Tom Gunn

Tom Tak Gunn was the first Chinese-American pilot in the United States graduating from the Curtiss School of Aviation class of 1911 and earned pilot's license no. 131 on June 19, 1912. He popularized passenger flight in Hawaii and became the head of the Chinese air force.

Tom Gunn
Tan Gen
Gunn in 1913
Born(1890-10-13)October 13, 1890
San Francisco, California, United States
Died1925
OccupationAviator and inventor

Early life

Gunn was born in San Francisco[1] on October 13, 1890.[2] He had at least three sisters[3] and at least one brother.[4] He attended the Oakland Polytechnic High School (also known as Central High School).[5] There, he took classes in engineering[5] and met his future fiancé, Lily Tong.[4]

Aviation career

Training and First Flight

Gunn was mentored by aviators Lincoln Beachey at the Curtiss School in Hammondsport, NY, Warren S. Eaton, Horace Kearney, and Glen Martin.[6] His nephew, Curtis Joe, recalled hearing that Gunn had learned to fly in Los Angeles and San Diego.[2]

On February 19, 1912, Gunn made his first public flight[7] at the international aviation meet in Emeryville, California.[8] The San Francisco Examiner reported that hundreds from San Francisco's Chinese-American community turned out to see him.[8] Beachey and other pilots were apprehensive because Gunn was relatively inexperienced, but he landed safely.[8]

Emeryville Crash

On February 22, 1912, Gunn's plane crashed at the Emeryville meet,[3] dropping 150 feet to the ground.[9] The plane was destroyed, and the building it crashed into was badly damaged.[3] Gunn's manager, Warren S. Eaton, said the accident was due to the plane's motor stalling.[3]

The San Francisco Examiner reported that Gunn fell from a height of several hundred feet, saying "that he was not killed outright is little short of marvelous."[3] Gunn's jaw was dislocated and his body was covered in severe lacerations.[3] He was taken to the Oakland Central Hospital,[10] where his doctor described his chance of recovery as good.[10]

Travels and Death

Gunn officially received his pilot's license on June 19, 1912.[2] On August 4, 1912, Gunn demonstrated his flying skills for three of Chinese president Sun Yat-sen's children and General Lan Tien Wei.[11] After watching Gunn make four flights around the airfield, Wei went for a ride in Gunn's plane.[11] Wei "expressed himself as delighted with the experience" upon landing,[11] and recommended that the Chinese government recruit Gunn as a pilot.[12]

In May 1913, Gunn and Lily Tong announced their engagement.[13] Gunn left San Francisco for China in June 1913, but promised to return for Tong at the end of eight months.[14]

On June 10, 1913, Gunn arrived in Honolulu, where he planned to stay for a month before traveling to China.[15] On July 13, 1913, in front of a crowd of thousands, he carried his first Hawaiian passengers.[16]

Gunn had been offered a commission as a captain in the Chinese army,[13] though he intended to spend his first six months in the country making freelance exhibition flights.[15] However, new president Yuan Shikai, fearing that Gunn intended to side with his political rivals, put a bounty of 5,000 dollars on his head.[17] Gunn traveled to the Philippines instead,[17] where he was credited with introducing air mail.[18]

By 1913, Gunn had built six different types of plane.[6] He preferred to fly planes he had made himself, explaining that "I always understand a machine I build myself much better."[6]

Gunn died in a rickshaw accident in China in 1925.[18] There is speculation that his death may have been an assassination in disguise.[18]

References
  1. "New Pacific Aviation Pioneers exhibit to open". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. 12 July 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  2. Gallery, Smithsonian Institution Asian Pacific American Center Capital; Maryl, Suite 7065 600; Avenue; Washington, S. W. (2014-06-25). "Young Historians, Living Histories Tom Gunn Chinese American Aviator | Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center". Young Historians, Living Histories. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  3. "Chinese Aviator Smashes His Plane Into Building". The San Francisco Examiner. 23 February 1912. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  4. "Tom Gunn Will Take Bride On Return Home". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. 20 June 1913. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  5. "May Make War In The Air". The Pantagraph. 26 February 1912. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  6. "Tom Gunn Was Born An Airman And Admits It". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. 18 December 1913. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  7. "Birdmen In Spectacular Flights". San Francisco Chronicle. 19 February 1912. Retrieved 13 April 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  8. "Beachy Makes Dazzling Flights With Hands Removed From Wheel". The San Francisco Examiner. 19 February 1912. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  9. "Tom Gunn Drops Hundred and Fifty Feet and is Buried Beneath Wreckage of Machine at Oakland; Will Recover". The Albuquerque Journal. 23 February 1912. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  10. "Mishaps Do Not Mar Meet". Oakland Tribune. 23 February 1912. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  11. "Chinese General Rides In Airship". The San Francisco Call. 5 August 1912. Retrieved 13 April 2019 – via newspapers.com.
  12. "Signal Honor For Flyer". The San Francisco Call. 2 December 1912. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  13. "Aeroplane Wedding Suggested". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. 28 July 1913. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  14. "Chinese Airman Gives Up Love For Duty". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  15. "Tom Gunn, Noted Chinese Aviator, May Give Exhibition While Here". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  16. "Gunn Carries Passengers In Sunday Flight". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  17. "Chinese Beauty To Marry". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  18. WarbirdsUpdate (2013-07-05). "Aviation Pioneer Tom Gunn Exhibit at the Pacific Aviation Museum". Warbirds News. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
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