Albert Cushing Read, Sr. | |
|---|---|
 Read in 1919 | |
| Born | (1887-03-29)March 29, 1887 |
| Died | October 10, 1967(1967-10-10) (aged 80) |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Navy |
| Service years | 1907–1946 |
| Rank |  Rear admiral |
| Conflicts | World War I World War II |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Merit NC-4 Medal |
Albert Cushing Read, Sr. (March 29, 1887 – October 10, 1967) was anaviator andrear admiral in theUnited States Navy. He and his crew made the firsttransatlantic flight in theNC-4, aCurtiss NCflying boat.[1]
Read was born inLyme, New Hampshire on March 29, 1887 into aBoston Brahmin family. He attended theUnited States Naval Academy at Annapolis, graduating in the class of 1907.[2] His Academy classmates includedPatrick N. L. Bellinger,Willis W. Bradley,George M. Courts,Henry K. Hewitt,Jonas H. Ingram,Claud A. Jones, andRaymond Spruance.[3] In 1915, he was designated naval aviator number 24.
As a Lieutenant Commander in May 1919, Read commanded a crew of five on theNC-4 Curtissflying boat, the first aircraft ever to make atransatlantic flight, a couple of weeks beforeAlcock and Brown's non-stop flight, and eight years beforeCharles Lindbergh's solo, non-stop flight. Read's flight started fromRockaway Beach,Long Island, took 23 days before arriving inPlymouth, England. The six stops included layovers atTrepassey Bay,Newfoundland,the Azores, andLisbon, Portugal.
Later in 1919, upon returning to the U.S., Read predicted: "It soon will be possible to drive an airplane around the world at a height of 60,000 feet and 1,000 miles per hour." The next day,The New York Times ran an editorial in reaction, stating: "It is one thing to be a qualified aviator, and quite another to be a qualified prophet. Nothing now known supports the Lieutenant Commander’s forecast. An airplane at the height of 60,000 feet would be whirling its propellers in a vacuum, and no aviator could live long in the freezing cold of interstellar space."
On June 3, 1919, he was made a commander of theOrder of the Tower and Sword by the Portuguese government.[4] After returning to the United States, Read was awarded theNavy Distinguished Service Medal, which at the time was a more prestigious award than theNavy Cross that the other five NC-4 crew members received (the order of award precedence was switched in 1942).[5] In 1929, Read and the rest of the flight crew of NC-4 were awardedCongressional Gold Medals.[6]
On June 24, 1924, Commander Read assumed command of bothUSS Ajax and the aircraft squadrons of theAsiatic Fleet.[7] He served in this position untilAjax was relieved byUSS Jason in June 1925 and subsequently decommissioned in July 1925. From Oct. 1926 to May 1929 Capt. Read resided at the Historic "Connecticut House" on Norfolk Naval Base.[8][better source needed]
Read trainednaval aviators throughWorld War II. He was nicknamed "Putty Read" because his face rarely showed any emotion.[9]
On June 4, 1962, he appeared on the TV game showI've Got a Secret.[10]
He died in retirement inCoconut Grove, Florida, on October 10, 1967.[1][11] He is buried inArlington National Cemetery with his wife Bess Burdine Read (1896–1992).[12]
Read was inducted into theNational Aviation Hall of Fame in 1965.[13]
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