Alfred L Williams

WILLIAMS, ALFRED LEE “AL” slipped the surly bonds of Earth to touch the face of God on February 9, 2017, “flying west” after a courageous two-year battle with cancer. Born May 8, 1933 to Lela Bevell and Allie Lee Williams of Boydton, Virginia, Al was a longtime resident of Wilmington, North Carolina and an accomplished aviator.

At the age of four, Al was introduced to flying machines by his father who took him to an airfield in Richmond, Virginia and sat him in the cockpits of small airplanes. The instruments and flight controls were fascinating and the unique smell of the aircraft was heady. He had to fly! As a teenager, Al would hitchhike to the airport and spend his paper route earnings on flying lessons. At the age of 17, Al was building flight time flying a yacht broker up and down the east coast, once landing and taking off on the beach at Ocracoke, NC years before a runway was paved there. At age 19, Al was hired by the fledgling Piedmont Airlines and was said to have been the youngest pilot of all the airlines at the time. Al’s airline career was briefly interrupted when he answered the call of duty and joined the Air Force Cadets where he was named Outstanding Cadet of Class 56N and his class made the 1,000th “flight” in the altitude chamber at Reese Air Force Base, Texas. For more than four decades, Al was part of the Golden Age of commercial aviation, flying everything from the tail-dragging Douglas DC-3 to the trans-Atlantic Boeing 767. Captain Al had the honor of piloting Piedmont’s inaugural flight from Charlotte, NC to Frankfurt, Germany. He reluctantly retired at age 60 with a flight from London, England to Charlotte, NC after having attained #1 on the pilot seniority list at Piedmont’s successor, USAir. Captain Al kept on flying his beloved Piper Twin Comanche “Rosebud” until 2014.

Al is survived by his wife of 60 years, Peggy, their three children Fred Williams (Dale) of St. Petersburg, FL, Beth Battle (Frank) of Lilburn, GA, and David Williams (Rebecca) of Ft. Mill, SC, three grandchildren Charlotte Smith (Scott), Bryson and Dawson Williams, and a one-month-old great-granddaughter, Lila Smith.

Al was a long-time member of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Wilmington where he served his Lord and Savior in many capacities throughout the years. The young people of the church lovingly referred to Al as “Mr. Bow” (for his bow ties) and he was called by some “the youth minister”.

Al’s family will hold a service in celebration of his life at St. John’s, 1219 Forest Hills Drive, on Monday, February 20, 2017 at 1:00 PM, the sixty-ninth anniversary of Piedmont’s very first flight from Wilmington, NC to Cincinnati, OH, a trip Capt. Al flew many, many times. Following the service, a gathering of family and friends will be held at the church.

In lieu of flowers, Al’s family asks that you consider a donation in his memory to St. John’s Episcopal Church and/or Lower Cape Fear Hospice.