WWI Navy Aviator Eustace Lane Adams

[Croix de Guerre]

Hi, Is there a good database you all could recommend to date when a Navy pilot got his wings?  I am not up to date on researching Naval Aviators.  I am researching a man named Eustace Lane Adams (1891-1963).  I know a fair amount about him.  He was an early volunteer with the American Field Service in 1915, served in SSU.  He returned home and joined the New York National Guard in 1916.  In April 1917 he joined the Norton-Harjes ambulance service and served in SSU 24.  He claimed to have "been accepted in the Lafayette Escadrille" when he came home to get married in 1917 and either had or was supposed to begin aviation training in France.  It doesn't appear that he did or something happened as he enlisted in the US Navy in 1918.  He was assigned to the Naval Aviation Training Station in Pensacola but the records I have found for him have him assigned as an ensign on the hospital ship USS Comfort.  He was in the Navy from 1918 through 1920.  Later on in life he was a prolific writer of boy's adventure novels most notably the Andy Lane series.  He seems to have been involved in aviation most of his life, having taken flying lessons while in college in 1915 and then stayed active in civil aviation throughout his life.  I have a studio portrait of him in his Naval officers uniform, wearing a wing, but due to the false claims of Escadrille membership, I am more than a little dubious.  Any help would be appreciated.  

[FriarChuck]

Not sure how accessible the records are but I believe every Naval aviator is numbered based on exhibits at NAS Pensacola Naval Aviation Museum. They had a very large area dedicated to Naval aviators earning their wings which listed at least the first hundred or more Naval aviators. I believe the Navy has maintained the tradition. The museum might maintain a list that would have your man if he did in fact earn his wings of gold. 

 

Friar

[FriarChuck]

Well with a little googling it looks like the Navy stopped issuing aviators a number in the 1970s (though it seems some bases might have continued the tradition.) Below is a link that has the some official Navy history of the numbering of aviators. Might provide some illumination or interest. Page 197 or 198 describe when the Navy stopped . https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/nhhc/research/publications/1910/Part2.pdf

[cwnorma]

Tom,

 

Have you looked in "the usual places?"  The book "Contact!" lists the first 3000 Naval Aviators and "Flying Officer's of the USN" lists most Naval Aviation officers serving before the war.  Most USN officer muster roles are also available.  If someone doesn't beat me to it, I'll take a look this afternoon when I get home from work.

 

Chris

[pfrost]

I did a quick Ancestry.com search.  This guy popped up. Not matching what you have on Mr. Adams.  I only spent a few minutes looking.

Contact is a great source of pilots up to about the early 1920's.

 

[cwnorma]

Tom,

 

This may be of some help to you:

 

Source: "Contact" p147

 

Source:  "Flying Officers of the USN"

 

Adams was a Naval Aviator, and based on his number was 447 and he became an Ensign 25 MAR 18.  "Contact" seems to corroborate the Lafayette Escadrille angle as well, although I believe much of the personal data in "Contact" was either self reported or in the case of decedents, by family members... take it with a grain of salt.

 

Cheers!

 

Chris

[R Leonard]

The mentioned handy book for WWI naval aviators, Flying Officers of the U.S.N can be found here

 

https://ia600209.us.archive.org/1/items/flyingofficersof00nava/flyingofficersof00nava.pdf

[Croix de Guerre]

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[mds308]

On 9/28/2021 at 1:11 AM, Croix de Guerre said:

You guys are the best!  I appreciate it so much!

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