Douglas Corrigan from the frontispiece of his 1938 autobiography

Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan (January 22, 1907–December 9, 1995) was an American aviator born in Galveston, Texas. In 1938, after a transcontinental flight from Long Beach, California, to New York, he flew from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, New York, to Ireland, even though he was supposed to be returning to Long Beach. He claimed that his unauthorized flight was due to a navigational error, caused by heavy cloud cover that obscured landmarks and low-light conditions, causing him to misread his compass. Corrigan, however, was a skilled aircraft mechanic (he was one of the builders of Charles Lindbergh's The Spirit of St. Louis), and he had made several modifications to his own plane, rendering it suitable for transatlantic flight. Between 1935 and 1937, he applied several times, unsuccessfully, for permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland, and it is likely that his "navigational error" was a protest against government "red tape"; however, he never publicly acknowledged having flown to Ireland intentionally. Image File history File links Corrigan_frontispiece. ... Image File history File links Corrigan_frontispiece. ... January 22 is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1907 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... December 9 is the 343rd day (344th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Aviators are people who fly aircraft either for pleasure or for a job. ... Galveston redirects here. ... ... 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... County Los Angeles County, California Area  - Total  - Water 170. ... State nickname: The Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York City Governor George Pataki (R) Senators Charles Schumer (D) Hillary Rodham Clinton (D) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² or 54,556 square miles (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water... Floyd Bennett Field, New York Citys first municipal airport, is located in Brooklyn on Barren Island, near Gerritsen Beach. ... A map highlighting Brooklyn and the rest of New York City. ... There are several traditions of navigation. ... This article is about the navigational instrument. ... An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight. ... A Mechanic is a person who fixes things (generally machinery) or works to keeps things operating properly. ... Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was a pioneering United States aviator famous for piloting the first solo non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. ... Illustration of the The Spirit of St. ... Transatlantic flight is any flight of an aircraft, whether airplane, balloon or other device, which involves crossing the Atlantic Ocean -- with a starting point in North America or South America and ending in Europe or Africa, or vice versa. ... 1935(MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Red tape is a derisive term for regulations that are considered excessive or for bureaucratic procedures that are considered time- and effort-consuming. ...

Early life

Clyde Corrigan (as he was originally named) was the older son of a construction engineer and a teacher. He must have been an attractive child; he won first prize in a local baby contest, aged 15 months. The family moved frequently due to his father's work, until his parents divorced and shared custody of their sons. He and his brother Henry finally settled with their mother in Los Angeles. Upon leaving school, he took work in construction. Look up engineer on Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In education, teachers are those who teach students or pupils, often a course of study, lesson plan, or a practical skill, including learning and thinking skills. ... This article is about the largest city in California. ...

On a Sunday afternoon in October 1925, Corrigan watched a pilot take passengers for rides in a Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" biplane at a local airfield. He returned the next Sunday and paid the $2.50 for his own ride. The following Sunday, he took his first flying lesson, returning weekly for the next few months. During this time he also learned what he could from the local aircraft mechanics. Corrigan made his first solo flight on March 25, 1926. 1925 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Curtiss JN-4 biplane is possibly North Americas most famous World War I airplane. ... For other uses, see Airport (disambiguation). ... March 25 is the 84th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (85th in leap years). ... 1926 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Aviation career

New York Post headline.

B. F. Mahoney and T. Claude Ryan, the aircraft manufacturers, were operating Ryan Airlines from the airfield where Corrigan learnt to fly. They gave him a job in San Diego at their Ryan Aeronautical Company factory. Charles Lindbergh commissioned the design and construction of the Spirit of St. Louis from the firm soon after Corrigan joined. Corrigan was responsible for the wing assembly and the installation of the gas tanks and instrument panel. Image File history File links Wrong_Way_Corrigan. ... Image File history File links Wrong_Way_Corrigan. ... The New York Post masthead The New York Post is one of the oldest (and according to some definitions, the oldest) newspapers still published in the United States. ... Tubal Claude Ryan (January 3, 1898- September 11, 1982) was an American aviator born in Parsons, Kansas. ... San Diego County in the Southwest corner of California. ... The Ryan Aeronautical Company was founded by T. Claude Ryan in San Diego, California, USA in 1934. ... A factory (previously manufactory) or manufacturing plant is a large industrial building where workers manufacture goods or products. ... Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was a pioneering United States aviator famous for piloting the first solo non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. ... A Laughing Gull on the beach in Atlantic City. ...

With the success of Lindbergh's transatlantic flight, Corrigan decided to emulate the feat and selected his father's ancestral origin, Ireland, as his objective. When Ryan Aeronautical moved to St. Louis in October 1928, Corrigan stayed in San Diego as a mechanic for the newly formed Airtech School. With over 50 students flying each day, Corrigan could only get flight time during his lunch break. The Gateway Arch, shown here behind the Old Courthouse, is the most recognizable part of the St. ... 1928 was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

The company disapproved of his attitude to risk and although prohibited from performing stunts in the company aircraft, he displayed the attitude to authority that would later gain him fame: he would fly to a small field further southm where his stunts could not be seen by company men. His favourite maneuver was the chandelle (a 180-degree turn while climbing steeply), in strings of almost a dozen, spiralling up from close to the ground. A stunt is an unusual and difficult physical feat, or any act requiring a special skill, performed for artistic purposes in theatre or cinema. ... Look up Fame in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Fame may refer to a number of different topics, including: Fame is the condition of being known to the general public. ...

Corrigan moved from job to job. He gained his transport pilot's license in October 1929, and in 1930, started a passenger service between small East Coast towns, with his friend Steve Reich. The most lucrative part of the business turned out to be barnstorming displays promoting short recreational plane rides. Despite business success, after a few years, Corrigan decided to return to the West Coast. In 1933, he spent $325 on a used Curtiss Robin OX-5 monoplane and flew it home, where he returned to work as an aircraft mechanic and began to modify the Robin for a transatlantic flight. 1929 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... This article is about the American composer. ... 1933 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1928 Curtiss Robin advertisement. ... A monoplane is an aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. ...

Having installed a Wright J6-5 engine and extra gas tanks, Corrigan applied to the Bureau of Air Commerce in 1935, seeking permission to make a nonstop flight from New York to Ireland. The application was rejected; his plane was deemed unsound for a nonstop transatlantic trip, although it was certified to the lower standard for cross-country journeys. Over the next two years, Corrigan made repeated modifications and reapplications for full certification, but none succeeded. Indeed, by 1937, after extensive modifications in the face of increasing regulation, his aircraft was refused renewal of its licence. Known to be exasperated with official resistance, Corrigan is widely thought to have decided that year to make an unofficial crossing. Alhthough he never admitted, he apparently planned to fly late into New York, refill his tanks and leave for Ireland after airport officials had gone home from work. Mechanical problems extended his unlicenced inbound flight to nine days, which delayed him beyond the Atlantic "safe weather window", and he returned to California. One result of this trip: he had finally named his plane, Sunshine. The other: federal officials notified Californian airfield officials that Sunshine was not airworthy; it was grounded for six months. Governments have played an important part in shaping air transportation. ... 1935(MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

On July 8 1938, Corrigan again left California for New York. He had repaired the engine, gained an experimental licence, and obtained permission for a transcontinental flight with conditional consent for a return trip. With the Robin cruising at 85 miles per hour for maximum fuel efficiency, the outward journey took him 27 hours. Fuel efficiency became critical towards the end of the flight: a gasoline leak developed, filling the cockpit with fumes. Upon arrival in New York, Corrigan decided that repairing the leak would take too long if he was to meet his schedule. His logged flight plan had him returning to California on July 17, but upon take off, he headed east from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn and kept going. He claimed to have noticed his "error" after flying for about 26 hours. This is not entirely consistent with his claim that after 10 hours, he felt his feet go cold; the cockpit floor was awash with gasoline leaking from the unrepaired tank. He used a screwdriver to punch a hole through the cockpit floor so that the fuel would drain away on the opposite side to the hot exhaust pipe, reducing the risk of a midair explosion. Had he been truly unaware that he was over ocean, it seems unlikely that he would not have descended at this point; instead, he claimed to have increased the engine speed by almost 20% in the hope of decreasing his flight time. He landed at Baldonnel Airfield, Dublin, on July 18, after a 28-hour, 13-minute flight. His provisions had been just two chocolate bars, two boxes of fig bars, and a quart of water. His plane had fuel tanks mounted on the front, allowing him to see only out of the sides. He had no radio and his compass was 20 years old. July 8 is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 176 days remaining. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) Senators Dianne Feinstein (D) Barbara Boxer (D) Official language(s) English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... July 17 is the 198th day (199th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 167 days remaining. ... A Ryanair Boeing 737 takes off from Bristol International Airport, England Take off is the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground (taxiing) to flying in the air (see flight), usually from a runway. ... The worlds oceans as seen from the South Pacific Ocean (from Okeanos, Greek for river, the ancient Greeks noticed that a strong current flowed off Gibraltar, and assumed it was a great river; Greek ωκεανός) covers almost three quarters (71%) of the surface of the Earth, and nearly half of... Baldonnel Airfield is an airfield to the south west of Dublin, Ireland situated off the N7 main route to the south and south west. ... Dublin (Irish: Baile Átha Cliath), is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Ireland, located near the midpoint of Irelands east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the centre of the Dublin Region. ... July 18 is the 199th day (200th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 166 days remaining. ... A type of chocolate sold by the Cadbury brand in the form of frogs. ... Species About 800, including: Ficus altissima Ficus americana Ficus aurea Ficus benghalensis - Indian Banyan Ficus benjamina - Weeping Fig Ficus broadwayi Ficus carica - Common Fig Ficus citrifolia Ficus drupacea Ficus elastica Ficus godeffroyi Ficus grenadensis Ficus hartii Ficus lyrata Ficus macbrideii Ficus macrophylla - Moreton Bay Fig Ficus microcarpa - Chinese Banyan Ficus...

Aviation officials gave him only a mild punishment; his pilot's license was suspended for a fortnight. He and his plane returned to New York by steamship and arrived on August 4, the last day of his suspension. His return was marked with great celebration. More people attended his Broadway ticker-tape parade than had honored Lindbergh after his triumph. A fortnight is a unit of time equal to two weeks: that is 14 days, or literally 14 nights. ... August 4 is the 216th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (217th in leap years), with 149 days remaining. ... This article is about the street in New York City. ...

Later life

Corrigan wrote his autobiography, That's My Story, within months of the flight. The following year, he starred as himself in RKO Radio Picture's The Flying Irishman (1939), a movie about his life. The $75,000 he earned from his story was the equivalent of 30 years income at his usual airfield jobs. Autobiography (from the Greek auton, self, bios, life and graphein, write) is biography written by the subject or composed conjointly with a collaborative writer (styled as told to or with). The term dates from the late eighteenth century, but the form is much older. ... The Flying Irishman is a film produced by RKO Pictures in 1939 about Douglas Corrigans unofficial transatlantic flight the previous year. ... 1939 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

When the US joined World War II, Corrigan tested bombers for the Government and flew in the U.S. Army Ferry Command. In 1946, he ran for the U.S. Senate as a member of the Prohibition party, but was defeated by the Republican William F. Knowland. For the next four years, he worked as a commercial pilot for a small California airline. He retired from aviation in 1950, bought an 18-acre orange grove in Santa Ana, California with his wife, Elizabeth, and their three children, and lived there until his death on December 9, 1995. He knew nothing about orange ranching, and claimed to have learnt the business by copying his neighbors. Elizabeth died in 1966 and in 1969, he sold most of his grove, keeping the green ranch-style house. One of the streets in the 93-house development built on his grove is named for him. He became reclusive after his son died in a private plane crash in the 1970s, but in 1988, he joined in the golden anniversary celebration of his famous flight, allowing enthusiasts to retrieve the famous Robin from his garage. It was reassembled and the engine was run successfully. World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrinations, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atom bomb. ... A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol. ... Republican Party is a name used by many political parties. ... William Fife Knowland (June 26, 1908 РFebruary 23, 1974) was a U.S. politician and newpaperman. ... 1950 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... An acre is an English unit of area. ... Santa Ana is the largest city and the county seat of Orange County, California. ... December 9 is the 343rd day (344th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1966 was a common year starting on Saturday (link goes to calendar) // Events January January 1 - In a coup, Colonel Jean-B̩del Bokassa ousts president David Dacko and takes over the Central African Republic. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday For other uses, see Number 1969. ... The 1970s in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1970 and 1979. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Legacy

Corrigan's "error" caught the imagination of the depressed American public and inspired many jokes. His nickname, "'Wrong Way' Corrigan," passed into common use and is still mentioned when someone takes the wrong direction; for example, it was used in The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show for the name of Captain Peter "Wrong Way" Peachfuzz, the world's worst sailor. Among aviation historians, he is remembered as one of the brave few who made early transoceanic flights. A joke is a short story or short series of words spoken or communicated with the intent of being laughed at or found humorous by the listener or reader. ... Bullwinkle (left) and Rocky (right), the stars of Rocky and His Friends and The Bullwinkle Show. ... A sailor is a member of the crew of a ship or boat. ...

References

This article is derived from the sources listed here. The essential sources are Corrigan (1938) and Fasolino (2001). Where the source may not be clear it has been included as a comment that is visible in Edit mode.

• 'The Flying Irishman (1939)', Internet Movie Database (2004). Retrieved August 25 2005.
• Corrigan, Douglas. That's My Story (New York: E.P. Dutton, 1938)
• Fadiman, Clifton. The Little, Brown Book of Anecdotes, (New York: Little, Brown, 1985) ISBN 0316273015
• Fasolino, Chris. 'The Adventures of Wrong-Way Corrigan', The History Net (2001). Retrieved August 24 2005.
• Fraser, Chelsea Curtis. Famous American Flyers, (New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1941)
• Fyn, Chip. 'The Story of Wrong Way Corrigan', Fiddler's Green (April 2003). Retrieved August 24 2005.
• Marsh, Diann. 'Wrong Way Corrigan', Santa Ana History. Retrieved August 24 2005.
• Onkst, David H. 'Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan', US Centennial of Flight Commission. Retrieved August 24 2005.
• Sears, Stan. 'Corrigan’s Way: Right or Wrong, He Made His Mark on History', Airport Journals (March 2005). Retrieved August 24 2005.
• Wallechinsky, David & Wallace, Irving. 'Where Are They Now? Flying Irishman Douglas Corrigan'. Trivia-Library.com (1981). Retrieved November 22 2005.