Alexis Felix du Pont Jr. (October 2, 1905 – December 30, 1996) was an American

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

pioneer,

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

, and a member of the prominent

du Pont family The du Pont family () or Du Pont family is a prominent family descended from Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739–1817), a French minor aristocrat. Currently residing in the U.S. states of Delaware and Pennsylvania, the Du Ponts have been ...

Biography

Known as Felix, he was born in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

on October 2, 1905, the son of Alexis Felix du Pont (1879–1948) and Mary Chichester (1878–1965). He developed an interest in aviation as a boy and took up flying, something he would do well into his late eighties. He graduated from the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

Flying School in 1928 and

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, class of 1929. The following year, du Pont was hired as a test pilot for the Fokker Aircraft Company. For five years, Felix du Pont worked for the family owned

DuPont Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to: People * Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...

and for a short time became involved in the investment business. With a lifelong interest in

, he partnered with brother

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...

to found All American Aviation Company which became Allegheny Airlines and eventually

US Airways US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in History of aviation in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it ...

. He later was a vice president of the Piasecki Helicopter Corp. of which he and

Laurance Rockefeller Laurance Spelman Rockefeller (May 26, 1910 – July 11, 2004) was an American businessman, financier, philanthropist, and conservationist. Rockefeller was the third son and fourth child of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller. ...

were early investors on its founding in 1946. Felix du Pont married twice, first to Eleanor Hoyt and second to Marka Truesdale. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, du Pont served with

Air Transport Command Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces. It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies a ...

with an office at

The Pentagon The Pentagon is the headquarters building of the United States Department of Defense, in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. The building was constructed on an accelerated schedule during World War II. As ...

. He was then shipped overseas as part of Pacific Theater operations, assigned to combat training and director of glider operations. He retired from the military with the rank of lieutenant colonel. On the death of his brother

in a glider accident in 1943, Felix du Pont was appointed to succeed him as head of the American Glider Program at

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene County, Ohio, Greene and Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patte ...

. The Chichester du Pont Foundation was incorporated in 1946 by Felix du Pont,

Alice du Pont Mills Alice Frances du Pont Mills (December 13, 1912 – March 13, 2002) was an American aviator, thoroughbred race horse breeder and owner, environmentalist, philanthropist and a member of the prominent du Pont family. Biography Born in Wilmington, D ...

, Lydia Chichester du Pont, and Mary Chichester du Pont Clark. The foundation, which remains in operation, is primarily involved in supporting youth with donations made to social service organizations for the direct benefit of children. In addition to his numerous charitable works and service on civic boards, Felix du Pont was a trustee of St. Andrew's School, founded by his father. In the 1994,

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

magazine listing of the richest Americans, Felix du Pont ranked No. 257. He died on December 30, 1996. He was inducted posthumously into the Delaware Aviation Hall of Fame in 2006. Children of Alexis Felix du Pont Jr. and Eleanor Hoyt: * Katharine Hoyt du Pont Gahagan b. 5 August 1933 (living) * Elaine Chichester du Pont b. 15 Nov 1934 (deceased) * Alexis Felix du Pont III b. 14 Apr 1936, d. Jun 1943 * Michael Hoyt du Pont (living) Child of Alexis Felix du Pont Jr. and Marka Truesdale: * Christopher Truesdale du Pont (living)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Du Pont, Alexis Felix Jr. 1905 births 1996 deaths Princeton University alumni United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II 20th-century American businesspeople Aviators from Delaware American philanthropists Alexis Felix du Pont Jr. Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Military personnel from Delaware United States Army Air Forces officers Airline founders