Photograph of airmail pilot James DeWitt Hill

c. 1924

Airmail pilot James DeWitt Hill started as an engineer, but caught the flying bug and never looked back. He was working at the Curtiss Aircraft Company as a pilot and sales representative when he left to join the Post Office Department's airmail service in 1924. He flew mail for the Department until August 11, 1927, when his route was turned over to a private company. Hill and fellow airmail pilot, Lloyd Bertaud had been friends before both joined the Department. Unlike many other pilots who flew as pilots for the fledgling aviation companies, Hill and Bertaud decided to try to be make a record transatlantic flight to Rome, Italy.