jackharding

Correct spelling of Nelson's first name is "Erik." Standing to Erik H. Nelson in this photo is his co-pilot during the around the world flight of the Douglas World Cruiser "New Orleans," Jack Harding.

This is a photo of the would-be US Army Air Service Round The World Flight aviators. First row, sitting, from left to right, Erik H. Nelson, Frederick Martin, and Lowell H. Smith. Second row, standing, from left to right, Laclair D. Schulze, Leigh Wade, Leslie Arnold, and Jack Harding. See: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_aerial_circumnavigation Schulze (1891-1927) was an alternate for the flight. His name is frequently misspelled as "Le Clair D. Schulze." On August 2, 1927, he'd perish flight testing a new Curtiss engine. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. See: www.arlingtoncemetery.net/ldschulze.htm Frederick Martin (1882-1954) was the commander for the expedition, but his aircraft would crash onto the side of a mountain in the Aleutians. Both he and co-pilot/mechanic Alva Harvey would survive the crash, and hike down to a cannery after a 10-day ordeal. Martin would go on to have a military career of note. In fact, he would be the commander of US Army Air Forces in Hawaii during the Imperial Japanese Navy's (IJN) sneak attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. See: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Martin_(general)

This is a photo of the 1924 US Army Air Service fliers that completed the circumnavigation of the globe in their Douglas World Cruisers (DWC) that year. The person in the foreground closest to the microphone is aviator Lowell H. Smith. From those visible closest to Smith's right shoulder and outward are Leigh Wade, Les Arnold, "Smiling" Jack Harding, and Henry Ogden. See: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_aerial_circumnavigation