Wally McDonnell

[Speedy]

I heard that Wally McDonnell passed away from a heart attack the other day. Anyone have any more information? I always found Wally to be a fascinating character with lots of stories (especially A-26) to tell.

Pretty good one-eyed race pilot too!

[51fixer]

I heard that Wally McDonnell passed away from a heart attack the other day. Anyone have any more information? I always found Wally to be a fascinating character with lots of stories (especially A-26) to tell.

Pretty good one-eyed race pilot too!

Wally was a one of a kind.
I received a text from Hinton that said he passed yesterday (Sat 9/24) from a heart attack.

[cinimin]

I will miss Wally. He meant a lot to my flying carreer and I learned so much from him. We had lots of fun together. I loved listening to all of his increadible flying stories. Some we can tell now, but couldn't before. I am happy to think of him and sad that he has passed.

[Lynn Hunt]

Santa Rosa resident, aviation entrepreneur, consummate pilot, and all-around great guy Arthur Wallace McDonnell succumbed to a heart attack on Saturday. He was 80 years old. We knew him as Wally. He had traveled back to Florida to work on his boat, he wanted to replace some windows. First, the battery in the VW needed charging. Wally just never slowed down. He told me awhile back
that he had counted the number aircraft he had owned at one time or another. It was 54 and included DC-6's and -7's, a B-17, countless WWII fighters, helicopters and seaplanes. Wally may have been short in stature but he was long on integrity. He was also the most fearless man I have ever known. What Wally leaves behind is all of the people who knew and respected him. In our tiny little aviation community I've never heard one bad word about Wally McDonnell. He did it right and he did it with class. We are going to miss him.