Lieutenant Commander Richard Byrd departed Boston 17 June 1925 onboard the SS Peary, a former minesweeper, with three Loening amphibian aircraft on loan from the Navy. He was headed to Greenland as part of the MacMillan Expedition. Besides Navy endorsement, he was also supported by the National Geographic Society and had the backing of Edsel Ford, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., and others. This would be the first attempt to utilize naval aviation in the exploration of the Arctic regions and would particularly encounter the difficulties of navigation in the far north. Byrd's naval aviation detachment would consist of himself along with fellow naval aviators Floyd Bennett, A.C. Nold, and Chief Boatswain's Mate Earl E. Reber. Support personnel were Aviation Machinist's Mate 1st Class Charles F. Rocheville, Lieutenant M.A. Schur and two other civilians: Albert A. Francis, who served as the aerographer, and N.P. Sorenson, a mechanic.
During this expedition the team of Byrd and Bennett would learn important lessons in polar navigation and arctic operations, which would leave them determined to pursue future flights over the North Pole.
For a more detailed story on the MacMillan Expedition of 1925 read here...
Watch here a Loening catapulted into the air, unfortunately Byrd didn't have this option...