Archie League soared through the skies, skimming cow barns co-piloted by danger.
The young aerial daredevil gained a bird’s-eye view on the need for safety.
A Missouri native, League was hired to direct aircraft at Lambert Field in St. Louis in 1929. This incubator of dauntless pilots and air safety seers grew into Lambert-St. Louis International Airport.
The barnstormer forged a league of his own in aviation history.
The legacy of the global industry “began with the brave actions of a single air traffic controller guiding a struggling aircraft to safety,” NATCA notes.
Passenger, left, checks in on United Airlines at Chicago O’Hare International Airport; Archie League, right, the nation’s first air-traffic controller. (Scott Olson/Getty Images and courtesy FAA )
“The story of Archie League and the genesis of federal air traffic control serves as a testament to the power of human ingenuity and collaboration in shaping the course of aviation history.”
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Kerry J. Byrne is a lifestyle reporter with Fox News Digital.
