Wilfred Yackey, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Wilfred Yackey

Date of Birth: 27-Aug-1890

Place of Birth: St. Louis, Missouri, United States

Date of Death: 04-Oct-1927

Profession: aircraft pilot

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Wilfred Anthony (Tony) Yackey, Jr.
(August 27, 1890 – October 4, 1927), known professionally as W.A.
Yackey, was an airplane pioneer of the 1920s.
A veteran pilot of World War I, he flew for both the United States and Italian Air Force, and was decorated with the Croix de Guerre by the French government for acts of heroism against the enemy.
Returning to the United States, he settled outside of Chicago and operated the Checkerboard Aviation Field in Maywood, Illinois.
From this area he would start a flying school, advertised as one of the oldest flying schools in the United States at the time.
He would also start the Yackey Aircraft Company, first modifying surplus World War I planes for civilian private and commercial use, and later manufacturing planes of his own design.
On October 4, 1927, Tony Yackey died while he was testing one of his planes over the air field when a wing collapsed, causing the plane to crash into the grounds.