Corporal William Pershing Benedict (July 20, 1918 – Aug 31, 1974) was an American pilot who was born in Bangor, Maine and raised in California. He was a highly decorated WWII fighter pilot who served in both the RCAF and the U.S. Army Air Corps, until he was captured and help as a POW by German forces. 18 months after joining the U.S. Army Air Corps, at 26 years of age, Benedict achieved the rank of Major and was made Squadron Commander. He is best known for being the first man to land an aircraft on the North Pole.
Benedict joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in July 1940. After training, he was sent to Great Britain where he flew Spitfires, and was later transferred to North Africa. In March 1942 he was assigned to 127 Squadron RAF. He was shot down on July 16, 1942, while flying a Hurricane, but parachuted to safety. On December 14, 1942, Benedict transferred to the U.S. Army Air Corps, where he flew Curtiss P-40s and later P-47 Thunderbolts. He returned to the U.S. on leave and married his Canadian fiancée on January 7, 1945. He then returned to Europe for the remainder of the war.
Wanting the Air Force to get credit for the first landing on the North Pole, General Old, Commander of the Alaskan Air Command, asked Major Benedict to take what he needed and command the first flight to land on the North Pole. The historic landing was accomplished on May 3, 1952 in a U.S. Air Force C-47 modified with skis. Readings taken by the scientists accompanying Benedict and his crew verified that they were the first men to set foot on the exact geographical North Pole.
Benedict retired from the Air Force in 1962 with the rank of Lt Colonel after admitted he was gay to his commanding officer. He then worked as a firefighting pilot in California where he was killed in a plane crash on August 31, 1974 while flying a Grumman F7F twin engine fighter dropping fire retardant in the Ukiah area. This was believed to be a suicide attempt due to depression though his son Bill Benedict vehemently fought and suppressed this accusation.
This is also confirmed by the interview Bryan Shoemaker conducted with Fletcher in 1992 (link below).
Bill Benedict was flying a Gruman F7F Tiger Cat. Mrs. Mary Benedict died in January 2009. Charle B. Compton Author of Born To Fly
