John Arthur Macready

John Arthur Macready (October 14, 1887 – September 15, 1979) was an American test pilot and aviator. He is the only three-time recipient of the Mackay Trophy, and they were awarded in three consecutive years: once for altitude flight, once for transcontinental flight, and once for an endurance flight of 36 hours, 4 minutes and 32 seconds.

History Born in San Diego, California, Macready received a bachelor's degree in economics from Stanford University in 1912. On 3 August 1921, Lieutenant Macready became the first person to test fly an experimental aerial application system for spraying pesticides from an aircraft, flying the world's first "crop duster".

In 1921, he set an altitude record of feet for which he was awarded the first of three consecutive Mackay trophies. On September 28, 1921, he climbed to in an experimental Packard-Le Père LUSAC-11 biplane designed and modified at McCook Field with a special breathing apparatus to provide him oxygen during his ascent.

October 5, 1922 Macready and Lieutenant Oakley G. Kelly set a world endurance record of 35 hours, 18 minutes and 30 seconds.

On 2–3 May 1923 with Kelly, Macready made the first non-stop coast-to-coast flight, from Roosevelt Field, formerly Mitchell Field, 2.3 miles south-east of Mineola, Long Island, New York to Rockwell Field, North Island, San Diego, California, with a total flight time of 26 hours, 50 minutes and 48 seconds. En route, he made the first in-flight aircraft engine repair in Air Service history, replacing a defective voltage regulator switch while the single engine, high wing Fokker T-2 Liberty mono-plane churned westward. The flight also set a new distance record for a single cross-country flight, 2,625 miles.

At McCook, he also became the first pilot to bail out of a stricken aircraft at night. involving the first use of supplemental oxygen. The flights established a world record altitude of 40,800 feet; the previous record being 39,596–ft set by a French aviator Callizo.