William Merrill Corry Jr.

He returned to the burning plane to rescue its trapped pilot

In October 1920, Lieutenant Commander William Merrill Corry Jr. was injured when an aircraft in which he was a passenger crashed and caught fire near Hartford, Connecticut. Thrown clear of the wreck, he returned to the burning aircraft to try to free its pilot. He suffered severe burns and died on 7 October. His attempt to save a fellow officer earned the Medal of Honor posthumously.

Born in Quincy, Florida, on 5 October 1889, Corry graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1910. His five years aboard USS Kansas included patrols off Mexico in 1914. He entered flight training in 1915 and qualified as a naval aviator in 1916. During the First World War, he held aviation commands in France, including service at Le Croisic and Brest. His wartime aviation service earned the Navy Cross and France appointed him a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour.

After the war he assisted the demobilisation of naval aviation units and became aviation aide to the Atlantic Fleet commander. Three destroyers and naval aviation facilities were subsequently named in his honour.

Official Medal of Honor citation: For heroic service in attempting to rescue a brother officer from a flame-enveloped airplane. On 2 October 1920, an airplane in which Lieutenant Commander Corry was a passenger crashed and burst into flames. He was thrown 30 feet clear of the plane and, though injured, rushed back to the burning machine and endeavored to release the pilot. In so doing he sustained serious burns, from which he died 4 days later.