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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:
Ms. Patricia A. Kinder

Harold A. “Pappy” Dow was born on November 11, 1908 in Springfield, Illinois and died on December 5, 1987 in Dayton, Ohio.
Experimental Test Pilot for Bell Aircraft. Charter member of Aviation Hall of Fame.
Helicopter Pioneer. Began flying in 1938 after building and racing speedboats. 1941-42 civilian navigation instructor for Royal Canadian Air Force. Chief test pilot for Bell Aircraft’s B-29 program during World War II. Participated as chief B-29 pilot on first flights of the sound-barrier breaking X-1 dropped from a B-29. Helicopter test pilot and instructor. Helicopter rescue pilot for Erie County Sheriff Patrol in Buffalo, New York. 1954-59 Chief of Flight Test Operations at Holloman Air Force Base, for Bell’s “Shrike” and “Rascal” test flight program, the air and surface missile program that preceded development of the “Cruise” missile. Additionally qualified to fly P-39s, B-17s, B-50s B-47s and B-36s.
Beloved husband, father, and grandfather.