American pilot (1907-1995) best remembered for a 1938 navigational 'error' (now widely believed to have been a purposeful protest against government red tape) that landed him in Dublin instead of his stated destination of California. Two items: an ALS signed “Douglas Corrigan,” one page, 5 x 8, February 4, 1945, a handwritten letter sent to Theodore Stillwell, forwarding a signed picture and writing: “The job of a test pilot is to fly each new plane once or more times if necessary to determine whether all the various instruments & controls are working correctly — very rarely is there anything wrong with the engines or plane structure itself — mostly just accessories — each new plane gets about 3 hours before being del. to the Army — or Navy”; and a vintage glossy 4 x 3 photo of Corrigan waving from the cockpit of his plane, signed and inscribed in black ink, “To Theodore Stillwell, Douglas Corrigan, 2-4-45.” The photo bears an affixed caption, both of which are adhered to a slightly larger backing sheet. In overall very good to fine condition, with old tape to the corners of the photo. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope hand-addressed by Corrigan.
