Moffett, William

Moffett, William (Adger) (1869–1933) naval aviator; born in Charleston, S.C. An 1890 Naval Academy graduate, he served with Admiral George Dewey's fleet at the battle of Manila Bay (1898). Well advanced in a traditional naval career by the second decade of the 20th century, Moffett became an early supporter of naval aviation. As chief of the new Bureau of Aeronautics (1921) he expanded navy flying programs and improved training and equipment; too old to learn to fly, he qualified as an aerial observer instead. He perished in the crash of the dirigible Akron in a storm off the New Jersey coast on April 4, 1933.