Ralph O'Neill to be honored

[Barrett]

WW I ace Ralph O'Neill of the 147th Aero is among four Arizona aviation figures to be recognized next month at the Commemorative Air Force's Walk of Honor induction ceremony at Mesa's Falcon Field. This is the third year of the program, with other honorees being USAF MGEN Carl Schneider, RADM Denny Wisely, and Forum Ace Barrett Tillman.

Previous inductees include Frank Luke, Joe Foss, and Sergei Sikorsky.

[Gregvan]

Congratulations to YOU, Barrett! Pretty distinguished company!!

Greg

[Barrett]

Terrific evening last night, if just a tad chilly (which of course gets us Arizonies 0.00 sympathy in frozen climes.) Chris Brown provided background on Ralph O'Neill, getting the honorees off to a Great War start.

Maj. Gen. Carl Schneider, who survived Korea and Vietnam, appeared with an arm in a sling owing to the perils of walking his Poodle.

Rear Adm. Denny Wisely's wife Nadine showed a precious 5-minute video biography with appropriate music from "Downtown" (Hanoi) to "Libyan on a Jet Plane" (Denny commanded USS John F Kennedy in defying moamar kadaffi's notorious Line of Death in 89). There was even an original composition honoring Denny's tour as Blue Angel One.

Sergei Sikorsky hit it outta the hangar with his whimsical version of what the young B Tillman might have done from the back seat of the restored Dauntless. I can only say that I devoutly WISH some of it had been possible!

The CAF staffers asked me to relate a bit about some of the notables I've known, so I obliged with Jimmy Doolittle, Joe Foss, Marion Carl, and Wally Schirra. Wally was proud of his Purple Porsche and squired me about North County a few times while we wrote "Wildcats to Tomcats." The windy roads inland from Rancho Santa Fe are pure Sportscar Country, and I said I remembered thinking "My name will be in all the papers because I'm going to die with Wally Schirra!"

But I exaggerated some.

[normanf]

Well done Barrett. Norman Franks

[nogalesace]

As mentioned, Ralph O'Neill, (along with Barrett) and two others, were inducted by the Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force at Falcon Field into their WALK OF HONOR, paying tribute to those Arizonans who have contributed meaningfully to the field of military aviation. Ralph O'Neill has been an ongoing research project of mine for a dozen or more years, ever since I found out that the state of Arizona had produced not one, but two highly decorated aces from that long ago conflict when men first dueled it out among the clouds. I nominated him for, and saw him inducted into the Arizona Aviation Hall of Fame in 2012, and now this most recent honor has come to fruition. Though quite famous here in his day, now, he has been little more than a footnote, if that, in 21st century Arizona. Thankfully, that is changing and Lt. O'Neill is finally getting the state recognition he so richly deserves.

Chris

The text is tough to read from the photos, so here it is: 1st Lieutenant Ralph Ambrose O'Neill 1896-1980. Hailing from Nogales AZ, Ralph O'Neill served in the U.S. Army Air Service with the 147th Aero Squadron during World War I. Flying Nieuport 28 & SPAD 13 fighters, he was the unit's most durable pilot, amassing 103 combat patrols between 1 June and 6 November 1918. Finishing the conflict with 5 confirmed aerial victories, O'Neill was thrice awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry and the Croix de Guerre with Palm. After the war he continued his military aviation career, organizing and training a modern Mexican Air Force. In 1929, O'Neill founded the New York, Rio & Buenos Aires Line, a transcontinental passenger and mail air service.