helicopters Archives » Rhode Island Aviation Hall of Fame

CAPT William Calhoun

RIAHOF — Sat, 21 Nov 2015 20:36:33 +0000

Captain William McBrayer Calhoun, USN, Ret. (1948-2015) was a long-time RI resident who graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1967. Capt. Calhoun was a LTJG with the highly decorated Helicopter Attack Squadron (Light) 3), nicknamed the “Seawolves”, an all-volunteer squadron formed in support of Naval Special Warfare operations and Mobile Riverine Forces.

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Maj. William D. Chesarek, USMC

RIAHOF — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 20:32:32 +0000

Marine Corps Maj. William D. Chesarek was born in Newport, RI. He is the first American to receive Great Britain’s Distinguished Flying Cross since World War II. His exploits involved the daring rescue of a wounded British soldier in Iraq. Queen Elizabeth II presented his award at Buckingham Palace.

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Antoine Gazda

Rich Cayer — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:26:32 +0000

Antoine Gazda was an Austrian count, a race car driver, and a World War I fighter ace (on the losing side), but he spent World War II in Providence, living in suite 1009 of the Biltmore Hotel. The work he performed here in Rhode Island was considered so crucial to the Allied war effort that […]

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William C. Harris

RIAHOF — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 22:14:00 +0000

William C. Harris (1906-1963) As an early transport pilot and commercial aviation executive, Harris led the American Airlines operations in Providence from inception in 1936 until he retired in 1962. He learned to fly at Harvard University in the late 1920s, and went to work for Curtiss-Wright Flying Service in Boston, piloting a Ford Trimotor to […]

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CW4 Alton L. Maurais, USA (Ret.)

RIAHOF — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 20:03:31 +0000

Maurais flew helicopter gunships in Vietnam in 1966-67. He accrued 440 combat hours flying with an innovative aerial rocket artillery unit. Having served as a mechanic after enlisting in 1956, he reenlisted in order to fly. After Vietnam he worked as a commercial helicopter pilot and joined the RI Army National Guard. When he retired […]

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Jennifer Murray

RIAHOF — Sat, 22 Oct 2005 21:58:45 +0000

Jennifer Murray is the first woman to fly a helicopter around the world. The Providence-born Murray was also the first person of either gender to pilot a piston engine helicopter around the world and the first to do it without an autopilot. Perhaps the most astounding aspect of her aerial exploits, however, is the fact […]

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