BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES 231
` U. S. Military Academy, and a member of the U. S. Infantry
Association.
ALFRED E. WALLER (1894-1937), who died in active
service as an airman, has been honored by the designation of
the recently (1941) acquired air base at Trinidad as "Waller .
Field." He was born in Morganfield, the son of Mr. and Mrs.
Alfred Forman Waller. He attended the lower grades and went
through high school here, then attended Castle Heights Military
Academy, Lebanon, Tennessee, and was a student in Vanderbilt
University for three years.
He enlisted in the aviation section of the Signal Corps in
December, 1917, and was assigned to Austin, Texas. He later
served at Camp Dick at Dallas, Texas, and Park Field in Ten- A
I nessee. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Aviation
Reserve Corps in 1918, after which he attended school at various
air bases. In 1920 he was inducted into the Regular Army and
ordered to Mather Field, Sacramento, California, where he
served as post exchange officer. Later he served at Presidio,
A California, and at Clark Field in the Philippine Islands. This was . —
followed by service at numerous posts in various sections of .
. the country. 4
After nearly a year’s service at the Air Corps Tactical School
at Maxwell Field, Alabama, he was assigned to Langley Field,
Virginia. He held various posts here, being at different times p
commanding officer of the 35th Pursuit Squadron and opera- A
tions officer of the 8th Pursuit Group. During the operation of
the air mail services by the Army in 1934, Major Waller had
charge of Section II (South) of the Eastern Zone. He was tem-
porarily promoted to the duties of major in 1935, a rank he
l accepted the following year.  
He was married to Elizabeth Skillman in 1917. Their only
son, Charles Skillman Waller, is now (1941) a cadet in the U.
S. Military Academy at West Point.
It was at Langley Field, during an aerial show, that Major
Waller met his death. As his plane came over the crowd of
more than 5,000 spectators, it caught fire. In order to avoid
crashing into the crowd watching him, Major Waller maneuvered
out of the formation in which he was flying and crashed at one
A side of the field. He was killed but the gunner flying with him
was only injured. For this self—sacrificing feat the U. S. War
Department `ws named the Trinidad field in his honoi.