John Alexander Douglas McCurdy
Birthdate: August 2, 1886
Birth Place: Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Year Inducted: 1973
Death Date: June 25, 1961
Awards: MBE
"The dedication of his engineering talents to the development of manned flight was a prime factor in the birth of North America's aviation industry and has proven to be of outstanding benefit to Canadian aviation."
John McCurdy was educated at Baddeck Academy and in Ontario at the University of Toronto. He became a partner in the Aerial Experiment Association, formed by Alexander Graham Bell and worked on the design and construction of their first aircraft, the Red Wing and the Baddeck 1 and 2. Prior to these machines, McCurdy was the only person to pilot the Silver Dart. On August 29, 1908 he completed the first heavier-than-air machine flight in this country. McCurdy also made the first ocean flight from Florida to Cuba and sent and received the first messages while aloft in 1911. He opened Canada's first aviation school and was chiefly responsible for the founding of the Royal Canadian Air Force along with W.G. Barker and W.A. Bishop.
Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame
Glossary