Chapter 11
Aviation In The Miami Valley
Beginning with Wilbur and Orville Wright, the Miami Valley grew from
the birthplace of aviation into a hub of aviation research and
development through the various companies, military installations, and
airports that were established in the region. Many of the aviation sites
grew out of the work of the Wright brothers while others were developed
by entrepreneurs with an interest in aviation. The variety of this
development was instrumental in forming Dayton's future role in
aviation.
The airplane was first brought to the attention of the general public
through exhibition flights. Long thought of as an impossibility,
airplanes induced large numbers of people to flock to fair grounds and
other large areas to witness flights. These flights were organized in
conjunction with not only county fairs, but circuses, carnivals, and any
other possible venue. A gate fee was charged to attend an exhibition,
and the profits were shared with sponsors and the participating aviation
companies. When several organized exhibition teams were established, the
demonstrations became organized flying meets with prizes awarded in
specific categories. In addition to the excitement generated by the
competition, most of the attendees came to be convinced that human
flight was a reality. [1]
At the same time exhibition flying was popular, the first airplane
flight demonstrating the possibility of the airplane as a freight
carrier originated at Huffman Prairie Flying Field. Occurring in
November 1910, the pilot left Dayton carrying a bolt of silk bound for
Columbus. Despite the eventual practicality of this experiment, its
significance was almost lost when compared to the excitement generated
by the exhibition flights that included aerial stunts. But this did not
halt efforts to identify a practical use for airplanes. Experiments in
air-mail flights began in 1911 and the first commercial service began in
1913, yet neither of these uses for airplanes were immediately
developed. [2]
Despite the expanding uses for airplanes, they were still limited.
For this reason, airplane production was slow in its maturation towards
becoming a national product. The United States Census of Manufacturers,
at least through 1920, did not tabulate the airplane manufacturers
separately but as part of the miscellaneous industries. These statistics
show that in 1909 there were no airplane production facilities, but by
1914 a total of sixteen companies manufactured both airplanes and parts.
These companies employed 168 people and netted $135,000 for the year.
There were three companies in both California and New York and two in
Illinois. Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio,
Rhode Island, and Washington each contained one manufacturing facility.
[3] These numbers were in conflict with
those reported by Scientific American in 1911. In what appear to be
overly optimistic figures, the magazine stated that there were
approximately one dozen companies constructing airplanes and fifty
engaged in producing parts and supplies. [4]
This low number of factories reflected in the manufacturing census is
understandable, for at that time, airplanes were not viewed as having a
practical use. In the views of businessmen, a demand did not exist to
sustain an aircraft production company. Aerial stunts and endurance
flights drew large crowds and generated revenue, but a commercial use
for the airplane was not yet defined. [5]
The establishment of The Wright Company factory in 1910 was a step
towards Dayton's development as a focal point for aviation research and
development. Founded by the Wright brothers and New York financiers, The
Wright Company airplane production, exhibition team, and flying school
brought the attention of the United States to Dayton, the Wright
brothers' hometown and where the airplane was invented. This did not
immediately foster industry growth, for people first sought affirmation
of the existence and practicality of the airplane.
The onset of World War I in 1914 was a major factor in jump starting
the fledgling United States aviation businesses. When American forces
entered the war in April 1917, they lagged behind other countries in
aviation. At the start of the war, Germany operated 230 airplanes and
four dirigibles; Great Britain, 110 airplanes; and France, 130
airplanes. Almost three years later, the Aviation Section of the U.S.
Signal Corps consisted of fifty-five airplanes, of which most were
trainers, and thirty-five pilots. In addition, the Navy and Marine Corps
had fifty-four planes, one airship, and three balloons with forty-eight
pilots. It was not just the number of aircraft in which the United
States ranked behind the European countries, it was technology. Three
years of war had produced aviation advancements in Europe which were
still foreign to American aviation. [6]
The process of catching up with Europe was a rude awakening for the
United States. In the previous years, without the threat of imminent war
and pressure from the aviation industry, the government dedicated little
money to the improvement of aviation. At the onset of the war, the
United States Congress substantially increased the military's budget for
aviation, and one of the first actions taken was the establishment and
further development of the military aviation programs.
As part of the military's commitment to aviation during World War I,
the Army established Wilbur Wright Field in Dayton. This started a
military presence in Dayton that continues to the present. The United
States Army first demonstrated their commitment to aviation in 1908,
when they awarded the contract for a military airplane to the Wright
brothers. Edward A. Deeds, the chairman of The National Cash Register
Company and a leading citizen in Dayton, worked with the Signal Corps to
develop an aviation school in Dayton. Through his United States military
contacts, Deeds was aware of a plan to establish a flying school when
the necessary funds were available. [7]
When the funds were authorized by Congress in 1916, Deeds suggested
developing the Huffman Prairie Flying Field and surrounding acreage into
the new flying school, and it was included in those considered by the
military as a suitable location. After studying each potential site, the
board of officers recommended the Dayton location to the Secretary of
War. They concluded the government should lease 2,500 acres, which
included the Huffman Prairie Flying Field, with an option to purchase.
[8]
On May 22, 1917, the Signal Corps signed a short-term lease with the
Miami Conservancy District, the owners of the entire acreage, for 2,075
acres of land located between the Huffman Dam and the City of Fairfield
until June 30, 1917. The lease contained an option for renewal for one
year beginning July 1, 1917, for a total of 2,245.20 acres, slightly
more property than the short-term lease. On June 6, 1917, the Signal
Corps announced that the new aviation school would be known as Wilbur
Wright Field, in honor of the coinventor of the airplane. [9]
AERIAL VIEW OF WILBUR WRIGHT FIELD, 1923.
(Courtesy of NCR Archives at Montgomery County Historical Society)
|
The newly constructed buildings were built on the high ground while
the flying field was located near the river. The Signal Corps Aviation
School officially began operations at the new field on June 28, 1917.
During the first year of operation, an average of 160 students per month
were enrolled in the school. As one of the four largest United States
military aviation schools, when Wilbur Wright Field opened, it supported
four school squadrons, twenty-four hangars, 1,700 personnel and up to
144 airplanes. At the end of World War I, the training mission was
terminated although the military continued to operate the field. [10]
Wilbur Wright Field was in the international spotlight from October
2-4, 1924, when the field hosted the International Air Races. The event
was sponsored by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) whose
president in 1924 was Frederick B. Patterson, the president of The
National Cash Register Company. A high level of support for the event
was received from Dayton; schools were closed and factories were shut
down. One of the largest attractions was the reassembled 1903 Wright
Flyer, which was not flown, but placed on exhibit in the 1910 hangar.
The three days consisted of many air races, which offered a variety of
prizes from money to trophies. One of the most prestigious awards of the
event was the Pulitzer Trophy, which included $80,000 in prize money.
[11]
At the same time the Signal Corps was negotiating with the Miami
Conservancy District for the establishment of Wilbur Wright Field,
discussions were in progress for the establishment of an aviation supply
depot in Fairfield, Ohio, northeast of Dayton. Plans called for the
depot to be located in Dayton to supply the Signal Corps aviation
schools in the eastern United States which included Wilbur Wright Field,
Scott and Chanute Fields in Illinois, and Selfridge Field in Michigan.
On June 10, 1917, the Signal Corps Construction Division purchased forty
acres of land from the Miami Conservancy District for $8,000. The
triangular tract of land bordered Wilbur Wright Field on the north and
west. [12]
Construction began shortly after the purchase, and the supply depot
officially opened on January 4, 1918. Designated the Fairfield Aviation
General Supply Depot, the depot provided everything from airplane parts
and engines to the shoe laces for mechanics' shoes under its primary
mission to provide supply support for wartime training operations. In
the decades after World War I, the supply depot went through several
transformations and name changes. The first transformation was
immediately after World War I, when the flying school at Wilbur Wright
Field was discontinued, and the field and the depot merged. The various
other names for the depot were Wilbur Wright Air Service Depot, Aviation
General Supply Depot, Air Service Supply and Repair Depot, Fairfield
Intermediate Air Depot, and Fairfield Air Depot Reservation. In 1925,
the depot technically became part of Wright Field and, in 1931, part of
Patterson Field. The Fairfield depot was deactivated in 1946. [13]
The Army also established McCook Field in Dayton in September 1917.
The home of the Airplane Engineering Department of the Signal Corps,
McCook Field was the first United States military aviation research
center, and it was located along the Great Miami River north of downtown
Dayton. The purpose of McCook Field, named for General Alexander
McDowell McCook who once owned part of the property and was part of the
Fighting McCooks of Civil War fame, was to centralize the wide spread
military aviation research to provide better support in World War I. The
200-acre site was leased for $12,800 per year from the Dayton Metal
Products Company. The land had already been partially cleared in
anticipation of developing a flying school. [14]
The first personnel arrived at McCook Field in December. The
engineers and other staff at McCook Field researched, developed,
manufactured, tested, and evaluated military aircraft and all associated
components and equipment. By 1919, McCook Field totaled 254 acres,
sixtynine buildings, and a runway. The types of buildings ranged from
hangars, offices, a wind tunnel, and a hospital. [15]
As the military further defined and established their aeronautical
programs in preparation for the war, they also turned to private
industry to help improve the quality of American airplanes and the
technology incorporated into them. At the onset of World War I, Congress
appropriated $640 million for the construction of 20,475 airplanes in
twelve months, and the military planned to contract with aviation
manufacturers to meet the requirements. The increased business and
available funds caused a rapid growth in the industry, and between 1914
and 1919, the number of airplane and part manufacturers almost doubled
to a total of thirty-one. [16]
One of the companies incorporated during this time period was the
Dayton Wright Airplane Company. In 1916, the probability of the United
States entering the conflict, which ultimately developed into World War
I, caught the attention of several Dayton businessmen, including Edward
A. Deeds and Charles F. Kettering. These men saw economic benefits in
strengthening the United States military program. [17]
As a result, in 1917, Deeds and Kettering incorporated the Dayton
Airplane Company to manufacture airplanes for World War I. For several
years prior to the official establishment of the company, experimental
work on airplanes was conducted in the research section of the Dayton
Metal Products Company, also owned by Deeds and Kettering. Deeds and
Kettering had a long history together. Both worked at The National Cash
Register Company under John H. Patterson, and in 1914, they founded the
Dayton Engineering Laboratories (DELCO) to produce the automobile
self-starter they invented. The profits they received from DELCO were
used to start the Dayton Metal Products Company. [18]
When Orville sold The Wright Company in October 1915 to a group of
New York financiers, they reorganized the company and continued airplane
production under the name of The Wright Company. The newly formed
company was not successful, and in 1916 it was merged with the Glenn L.
Martin Company and the Simplex Automobile Company of New Brunswick, New
Jersey, to create the Wright-Martin Company. The new company established
their headquarters at the Simplex manufacturing plant, and in March
1917, production was relocated from the old The Wright Company factory
buildings in Dayton to New Jersey. [19]
Wright-Martin thrived as a manufacturer of engines instead of
airplanes. Dissatisfied with the new orientation of the company, Glenn
L. Martin left the Wright-Martin Company in 1917 to establish the Glenn
L. Martin Company. In 1919, the Wright-Martin Company was reorganized
and renamed the Wright Aeronautical Company. In the 1920s, the company
was known as the most innovative engine company in the United States.
The company changed names once again in 1929 when it merged with the
Curtiss Aeroplane Company to form the Curtiss-Wright Company. [20]
When the Wright-Martin Company vacated the Dayton factory buildings
in 1917, they arranged to lease the buildings to another firm and
severed all connections with Dayton. Many of the office personnel and
workmen who worked at the Dayton factory were hesitant to move to New
Jersey, and this pool of available skilled labor was one of the elements
that inspired Deeds and Kettering to form the Dayton Airplane Company.
When they established the company in 1917, they arranged to have Orville
Wright as a member of the board and a consulting engineer. The other
members of the board were H.E. Talbott, Sr., and his son, H.E. Talbott,
Jr. The company was reorganized as The Dayton Wright Airplane Company on
April 9, 1917. [21]
The Dayton Wright Airplane Company was originally conceived as an
organization to research and carry out experiments on some aviation
ideas of Orville's, but as the United States entry into the war became a
reality, the purpose of The Dayton Wright Airplane Company turned to
bringing together executives and manufacturers in the aeronautical field
to benefit the United States in the war effort. The company's
experimental station was located at South Field in Moraine where Howard
Reinhart operated an airport. A total of 65,000 square feet of floor
space in several buildings at South Field served as a small-scale
factory and aeronautical laboratory. The available runway and
two-hundred acre flying field supported experimental flights. [22]
When the United States entered World War I in April 1917 by declaring
war on Germany, Deeds was commissioned a colonel and placed in charge of
aircraft procurement for the Aircraft Production Board. In order to
avoid a conflict of interest, Deeds divested himself of any financial
interest in The Dayton Wright Airplane Company, but he did keep
allegiance to the Dayton company. In August he was instrumental in
awarding a contract to The Dayton Wright Airplane Company for the
production of 400 Standard J-1 training planes. The original contract
was amended several times, the end agreement being for the training
planes and 5,000 DeHavilland-4 reconnaissance bombers. [23]
At the same time as Deeds, Orville was commissioned a major in the
Aviation Section of the Signal Corps Reserve Corps, but never wore a
uniform or referred to his rank in correspondence. While there was some
discussion of placing him in Washington, Orville was ordered to remain
in Dayton and work with the engineers at The Dayton Wright Airplane
Company. [24]
One of the projects of the greatest interest to Orville during this
period was under development by Kettering. Known as the Kettering Bug,
it was the world's first guided missile, a three hundred pound unmanned
machine constructed of papier-mâché with twelve-foot cardboard wings and
powered by a four-cylinder engine. The device had the capability to
carry 300 pounds of explosives at fifty miles per hour. The total cost
was $400 each. The missile was launched from a rail pointed in the
direction of a target located behind enemy lines. The possibilities for
the Kettering Bug were favorable, but Kettering, with occasional
assistance from Orville, was still working on the project at the end of
the war. [25]
In order to meet the requirements of the contract with the Airplane
Production Board, in August 1917, The Dayton Wright Airplane Company
purchased a plant from the Domestic Engineering Company at 4100
Springboro Road in Moraine. The Domestic Engineering Company planned to
construct the DELCO light for rural electrification in the new factory,
but they sold the building due to the needed space for wartime
construction. At that time, the building measured 1350 feet in length
and 270 feet wide. Soon, additional space was added to the structure and
more buildings, such as warehouses, were constructed at the site. Two
more factory sites were acquired to enable the company to meet the
production requirements of the DeHavilland-4 contract. The first
additional site was located in Miamisburg, eight miles from the main
factory. The Miamisburg site, named Plant 2, contained 100,000 square
feet of floor space and was used for the manufacture of propellers,
wires, landing gear, and rear fuselages. The next acquisition,
designated Plant 3, was the former The Wright Company factory buildings
on West Third Street. The buildings were used for creating metal
fittings and all emergency work. [26]
The first DeHavilland-4 plane produced in the United States was
assembled by The Dayton Wright Airplane Company at South Field. In order
to adapt the plane to the Liberty engine, the company engineers worked
with representatives from the Signal Corps to modify the original
design. The first plane was completed on October 29, 1917, and called
the "Canary" due to its yellow color. The plane was retained by The
Dayton Wright Airplane Company for experimental use such as testing
alterations in the design. [27]
Proud of their involvement in the production of wartime airplanes,
The Dayton Wright Airplane Company never missed an opportunity for
promotion. Orville flew as a pilot for the last time on May 13, 1918, in
a publicity event for the company. Orville piloted a 1911 plane in
formation with a Dayton constructed DeHavilland-4. After the flight,
which was widely recorded by newspaper reporters, Orville landed his
plane and boarded the DeHavilland-4 as a passenger. [28]
During the later part of 1918, the company employed a total of 8,000
people at all four sites. The maximum production rate prior to the end
of the war reached forty planes per day. When the armistice was signed
with Germany, the Dayton Wright Airplane Company had produced a total of
400 training planes and 2,703 DeHavilland-4 battle planes. Official
orders at that time called for the company to cease production when
3,100 planes were completed. [29]
THE DAYTON WRIGHT AIRPLANE COMPANY EMPLOYEES AT SOUTH FIELD, APRIL 27, 1918.
(Courtesy of NCR Archives at Montgomery County Historical Society)
|
As war production increased, small aviation manufacturers complained
that their bids for government contracts were rejected in favor of
larger manufacturers, such as The Dayton Wright Airplane Company, who
had substantial influence in Washington. The complaints focused on the
fact that this influence outweighed the actual experience of the
companies. The sculptor Gutzom Borglum initiated an investigation in
1917 into the activities of the Aircraft Production Board when they
ignored a design he submitted. A Senate Committee investigated many
allegations in relation to the Aircraft Production Board, including the
charge that Deeds had favored his Dayton friends in awarding the
production contract to The Dayton Wright Airplane Company. [30]
In addition, President Woodrow Wilson appointed Charles Evans Hughes
to head a special commission to study the wartime aircraft acquisition
program. The Hughes Commission did not charge Deeds with any violation,
but it did recommend that the Army court-martial him due to charges of
mismanagement and favoritism. Orville testified before the Hughes
Commission, but since he was not a shareholder or manager in The Dayton
Wright Airplane Company, he avoided any charges of wrong doing.
Eventually, the Army decided against taking any action against Deeds.
[31]
Immediately at the conclusion of World War I, military contracts were
canceled and the aviation industry experienced a rapid decline in
business. This was due to the fact that unlike other industries,
aviation did not have an existing civilian demand to turn toward. The
war that boosted the American aviation industry now caused a new turn in
the nascent industry; a new market needed to emerge for the airplane.
Concluding that this would be commercial use, airplane manufacturers
turned to commercial airplane construction, but this was a small to
non-existent market. It was estimated that ninety percent of the
manufacturing plants established during the war were closed by 1919. [32]
One of the companies that turned to commercial airplane construction
was The Dayton Wright Airplane Company. In 1920 they advertised the sale
of three types of airplanes developed by company engineers, which
embodied safety, speed, and comfort. The Model K-T Cabin Cruiser had a
six-hour cruising radius that made it desirable as a plane for covering
great distances at a high rate of speed. The Model O-W Aerial Coupe held
three passengers and carried enough fuel for five and a half hours of
flight. The last model, Nine-Hour Cruiser, had greater speed than the
other models but was lacking the extra seating and enclosed cockpit. [33]
In order to assist purchasers in learning to pilot the planes, The
Dayton Wright Airplane Company operated a flying school at South Field.
Since the flying school was located near the factory buildings, the
students at the flying school had the unique experience of watching the
assembly of planes as well as learning to operate the airplanes. The
actual lessons consisted of lectures and training flights. The cost was
$450.00 for ground instruction and flying time and $250.00 for students
owning their own plane. Students who purchased a plane from the company
were given lessons free of charge. [34]
The General Motors Corporation purchased The Dayton Wright Airplane
Company in 1919 and continued its operations until June 1, 1923, when it
ceased any involvement in the airplane business. In 1923, General Motors
formed the Inland Manufacturing Company and located it in the former
buildings of The Wright Company in West Dayton. Three new buildings in
the same design as the original two were erected on the site the same
year. The first items produced at Inland were wood veneer iron steering
wheels for automobiles. [35]
When General Motors purchased the airplane company, Orville continued
as a consulting engineer, although he continued to work in his West
Dayton laboratory and not in the factory. He occasionally made trips to
the facilities to consult with the Dayton Wright Airplane Company
employees on various projects. Orville's last important contribution to
aeronautics was a split wing that he invented along with Dayton Wright
employee James H. Jacobs, who had also worked for The Wright Company.
The split flap was designed to increase lift and enabled a pilot to
reduce the plane's speed in a steep dive. Orville conceived of the idea
when he experimented with hydroplanes in the Miami River in 1914, and he
further explored it using a wind tunnel in his laboratory. Jacobs
assisted him in developing the concept. The two applied for a patent in
1921, and it was issued three years later. [36]
The change of focus after World War I from military to civilian
aviation was not the key to saving the aviation industry. Annual
production decreased from an estimated 21,000 airplanes at the end of
the war to between 500 and 1,200 in 1925. While the military was not
pumping money into aviation at the rate of the war years, the decreased
military efforts still played a vital role in developing aviation in the
United States. [37]
An example of the aviation advancements made by the military that
assisted both military and civilian aviation was the work conducted at
McCook Field beginning in 1920. The contributions included: development
of the modern free fall parachute; development of aerial photography;
high altitude experiments that led to successful high altitude flights;
propeller and engine improvements; and the design and testing of
aircraft. Also, the field was involved in several record-breaking
flights, the first of which was the first nonstop flight across North
America. Two McCook test pilots flew 2470 miles in twenty-six hours on
May 2-3, 1923, to complete the first flight. McCook Field served as the
logistics center for the first flight around the world in 1924, and
three of the personnel involved in the flight, two pilots and one
mechanic, were from McCook. In 1924, all production work ceased at
McCook Field and the personnel concentrated on evaluating the designs
for aircraft produced by commercial firms and purchased by the military.
[38]
Since the size of the field and its location inhibited many
experiments, the motto for McCook Field became, "This field is small.
Use it all." Only minimal experiments to test in-flight airplanes took
place at the field for these reasons, and eventually the lack of space
and the need for larger quarters caused McCook Field to close. Since
McCook Field was originally established as a temporary experimental site
for wartime testing, discussions regarding relocating to a permanent
home began immediately after World War I ended. [39]
In response to the possibility of the operations at McCook Field
relocating to another city, Daytonians, in 1922, formed The Dayton Air
Services Committee. The sole purpose of this committee was to guarantee
the retention of the United States Army Air Service Experiment Station
in Dayton. The committee was chaired by Frederick B. Patterson who took
over the position when his father, John H. Patterson, the founder of The
National Cash Register Company, died. The Dayton Air Services Committee
raised $425,000 to purchase property for a new field. [40]
The property The Dayton Air Services Committee purchased was
northeast of Dayton and included Wilbur Wright Field. The committee sold
the property to the federal government in August 1924 for a token fee of
two dollars for the establishment of an aeronautical engineering
laboratory. Ground was broken for Wright Field, named in honor of Wilbur
and Orville Wright, on April 16, 1926, and the new field was dedicated
October 12, 1927. Orville Wright attended the ceremonies and raised the
first flag over the facility. In the dedication program, a message from
the Assistant Secretary of War claimed: "Many important chapters in air
advancement have been written at McCook Field and all signs indicate
that even more startling chapters of progress are to be penned at Wright
Field. It gives promise of becoming one of the most important aviation
proving grounds in the world." [41]
As the home for the newly formed Materiel Division, Wright Field was
the focus of engineering, procurement, maintenance, and industrial war
plans. Inherent in many of these categories was the need for research.
As the dedication program for Wright Field explained, "The further
development and improvement of the airplane is a problem requiring the
continuous efforts of highly trained specialists in aerodynamics,
structural analysis, design and flight testing." It was this work that
would be conducted at Wright Field. [42]
Elsbeth Freudenthal, in her study of the aviation industry, argued
that the work of the military and the pioneering efforts of individual
flyers between the end of World War I and 1926 saved the industry from
extinction. Through the efforts of the itinerant flyers and fixed-base
operators, flying was translated into terms of public participation
instead of being solely a military venture. Through their efforts, the
general public realized that airplanes could become a mode of
transportation and a part of everyday life. [43]
The story of the fixed-base operators and the development of
commercial aviation relates directly to Dayton. Fixed-base operators
were individuals who owned a small hanger and one or two airplanes, and
they used these as a base for a small business. One example of this type
of business was the small flying field established by Edward "Al"
Johnson. Johnson was born in Newport, Rhode Island, in 1885, but his
family moved to California when he was young. From 1909 until 1915, he
owned and operated the Motor Express and Drayage Company in Oakland.
Johnson then pursued his interest in flying and took lessons at the
Curtiss school in North Island, California, and Buffalo, New York, and
in 1915, he became a representative for the Curtiss Aeroplane Company in
England. He returned to the United States the next year to become a
civilian flight instructor for the Army in Mineola, New York, and McCook
Field in Dayton. After World War I, Johnson worked for the postal
service developing the airmail route between New York and Chicago. [44]
In 1921 Johnson returned to Dayton and leased seventy acres at the
southwestern corner of the intersection of Wilmington Pike and Patterson
Road from George W. Hartzell,who was the head of Hartzell Propeller
Company in Piqua. It was here that Johnson located Johnson Flying
Service. In 1927 the site did not have official landing strips, but
pilots could land in any direction. It also contained a small warehouse
and one hangar measuring 60'x120' with fourteen feet of clearance. The
airfield was marked by "Johnson" painted on the roof of the hangar. The
field also had white boundary lights and red lights in the corner of the
landing field, fire equipment, a wind indicator, and refueling
operations. Johnson occupied the site for seven years. [45]
The Johnson Flying Service offered plane rides to customers wishing
to experience flight. The charge for a flight 1,500 feet over Oakwood
and South Dayton was three dollars. For five dollars, a passenger was
treated to a ten-minute flight over Hills and Dales and Dayton at 2,500
feet. The most expensive flight was ten dollars per passenger, and it
consisted of a twenty-minute tour of the area at 4,000 feet. More than
15,000 individuals took advantage of Johnson's flights while he occupied
the flying field on Wilmington Pike. [46]
For a short time, Johnson also manufactured airplanes at the location
on Wilmington Pike. From 1924 to 1926, he produced the Driggs-Johnson
and in 1926 the Johnson Twin 60. The Driggs-Johnson was a monoplane
designed by Ivan Driggs, who soon quit working with Johnson to form his
own company. The Johnson Twin-60 was a two-seat open cockpit biplane
designed by Dave Earl Dunlap. It was developed to "meet the existing
landing facilities, or rather lack of facilities." In order to do this,
the plane was designed for low landing speeds, quick take-offs, and a
good climbing ability. After this short delve into the manufacturing
business, Johnson focused on operating the flying field and a repair
business. [47]
In 1924 Johnson incorporated the Johnson Airplane and Supply Company.
The company, located at 900 South Ludlow Street, supplied airplane
materials, accessories, and equipment. Some of the items that were
produced by the Johnson Airplane and Supply Company were log books,
airport registers, dollies, wind cones, steel disc wheels, tail wheels,
airspeed indicators, and gasoline gauges. By 1928, the company had
established additional supply houses in Los Angeles, Kansas City, and
New York City. [48]
As civilian aeronautics grew, so did aviation's applications in the
military. In Dayton the military's presence continued although it was
restructured from its earlier form. On July 1, 1931, portions of Wright
Field and Fairfield Depot were renamed Patterson Field in honor of
native Daytonian, Lieutenant Frank S. Patterson. [49] Patterson, along with Lieutenant Leroy
A. Swan, died during an airplane crash at Wilbur Wright Field while
firing at ground targets. The two were flying a DeHavilland-4 while
testing the synchronization of a machine gun with the plane's
propellers. In the changes, the land west of Huffman Dam remained Wright
Field while the land east of the dam was designated Patterson Field. [50]
Wright Field and Patterson Field operated as separate installations
from 1931 until the end of World War II. Wright Field was dedicated to
engineering advancement while Patterson Field had a logistics mission,
which was reflected by the Fairfield Air Depot. By 1945, the two
installations had merged their functions and identities until they
appeared as one unit. This was made official on January 13, 1948, when
Wright Field and Patterson Field were merged into Wright-Patterson Air
Force Base. This change coincided with many changes of Air Force fields
into bases after the Air Force was created as a separate service in
1947. [51]
In the years since its formation, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base has
developed into one of the largest Air Force Bases in the United States.
The base covers 8,144 acres and houses over one hundred organizations.
The main activities, growing out of the early work at Wright and McCook
Fields, focus on aviation research and development in addition to
logistics. [52]
The United States Air Force Museum on Wright-Patterson Air Force
Base, which traces its inception to 1923, is the oldest and largest
military aviation museum in the world. A small museum to collect
technical information was established in a section of a McCook Field
hangar in 1923. This museum moved to Wright Field, along with the other
operations of McCook Field, in 1927. After several other moves, the
museum moved to its present building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
in 1971. The exhibits in the museum chronologically present the
development of military aviation from man's earliest dreams of flight to
present day. [53]
The growing aviation industry created new job opportunities across
the United States and the further need for facilities, such as airports.
When a group of Dayton businessmen and city officials began discussing
the establishment of an airport, they approached Al Johnson, from
Johnson Flying Service, for advice. Originally it was believed when
McCook Field was abandoned by the military that the airfield would
become Dayton's municipal airport. A new location needed to be selected
when General Motors, which owned the majority of the site, announced
they would not dispose of the property. As an alternative, Johnson
recommended a 310-acre site in Vandalia. Plans for the city's municipal
airport began in 1926. Two years later, in 1928, under an agreement with
the Dayton Airport, Inc., a private corporation formed by the airport's
founders, Johnson began operating the new Dayton airport under a $9,000
per year lease. At this time, Johnson vacated both the flying field at
1507 Wilmington Pike and a building he leased at 900 South Ludlow
Street, and he consolidated all of the company's operations in Vandalia.
[54]
After several years, many of the original owners of the Dayton
Airport pulled out of the corporation, and by 1936 the company was
almost disbanded. In order to save the airport, the City of Dayton
purchased it. James M. Cox headed a committee which raised $65,000 for
the city to purchase the airport from the private owners. By buying the
airport, the city hoped to qualify for a Works Progress Administration
(WPA) grant to upgrade the facility. As was hoped, the city received a
grant from the WPA, and on December 17, 1939, the thirty-third
anniversary of the Wright brothers' historic flight, the newly
refurbished airport was dedicated. [55]
Many corporations located their businesses at the new airport. One of
these was United Aircraft Products which was established in 1929. United
Aircraft Products designed and manufactured heating and cooling devices
for both civilian and military aircraft as well as missiles. [56]
William P. Lear, in 1934, located Lear Avia, Inc. at 437 North Dixie
Drive at the Dayton airport. Lear, known as the developer of the
Lear-jet, was interested in electricity and radios as a young boy in
Chicago. Throughout the years, Lear located his companies in various
cities throughout the United States, and his reasons for establishing
Lear Avia, Inc. in Dayton were unclear. The company produced aircraft
navigation instruments at the Vandalia factory. One of the most
successful products was the Learscope, the first commercial radio
compass and a Lear invention. By using this instrument, a pilot was able
to navigate by following a signal broadcast by the Department of
Commerce. The aircraft radios and accessories manufactured at Lear Avia
were in great demand during World War II which caused Lear to move the
company to larger quarters in Piqua to increase production capabilities.
[57]
The Aeronautical Corporation of America (Aeronca), incorporated in
Cincinnati in 1928, also had connections to Dayton. The company was
organized and financed by five Cincinnati businessmen before they even
had an airplane to produce. A deal was made with Jean Roche, from
Dayton, in 1929 to produce his lightweight home built airplane, which
the company named the C-2. Roche designed a training glider for the Army
Air Services as an employee at McCook Field, and he built on this
experience when he began designing his own airplane. [58]
Roche constructed his airplane in his garage at 28 Watts Street in
Dayton with the help of John Q. Dohse, who was an assistant to Roche at
McCook Field. The most difficult task of the undertaking was locating an
engine to power the airplane. Roche and Dohse contacted Harold
Morehouse, who designed a small two cylinder engine for use in blimp
tests at McCook Field, and he agreed to join their project. Morehouse
built a twenty-five to thirty horsepower engine, and the trio was ready
to test their airplane on September 1, 1925. Dohse, elected as the test
pilot, circled the field for twelve minutes and made a perfect landing.
[59]
With the manufacture of the C-2, Aeronca became the first American
company to build and market a truly light airplane. Their success
continued, and between 1947 and 1950, the company leased a facility at
the Dayton Municipal Airport to manufacture their Model 11 Chief. At
first, parts were shipped from Aeronca's Middletown facility, and
assembled at the Vandalia site. Later, the construction of the wings and
covering was also carried on at the leased location. Managed by Harry
Yerkes, the Vandalia operation produced 1,862 11A Chiefs and 100 11AS
Scouts in 1948. In 1950 when Aeronca no longer needed the additional
space, they abandoned operations at the Vandalia location. [60]
AMERICAN AIRCRAFT COMPANY, OCTOBER 1945.
(Courtesy of William Mayfield Collection, Marvin Christian Photography)
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Of all the manufacturers in the Dayton area that were related to the
aeronautics industry, more produced propellers than any other item.
Founded in 1935, McCauley Aviation Corporation was located at 2901 West
Third Street. The company was founded by Ernest G. McCauley, a former
aerodynamics engineer at McCook Field, and produced propellers. A
pioneer in propeller construction, McCauley introduced the first
all-metal propeller to be sold in the United States as well as the first
forged aluminum fixed-pitch propeller. The company, in 1941, relocated
to 2900 West Second Street and moved again in 1943 to 1840 Howell Avenue
where it remained for thirty-five years. In 1978, McCauley moved to 3535
McCauley Drive at the Dayton airport where it is still located. The
company was acquired by Cessna Aircraft Company in 1960 and operates as
one of the divisions. [61]
Another propeller company founded in 1935 was Engineering Products,
founded by W.J. Blanchard and Charles J. MacNeil. While the company
experimented with various types of propellers, they had no production
facilities. Aeroprop, developed by Engineering Products, was a specialty
propeller that was used extensively on World War II military aircraft.
General Motors acquired Engineering Products, and renamed it
Aeroproducts, in 1940. The propeller was manufactured at the plant
located at North Dixie Drive and Engle Road which was part of the Inland
Division Vandalia Plant of the General Motors Corporation, now DELPHI
Chassis. [62]
The American Aircraft Manufacturing Company opened in Dayton in 1943.
Richard A. Neikamp was the president, Delbert L. Mills the
vicepresident, and Vera A. Neikamp the secretary. The company
manufactured electric motors, special aircraft testing equipment, and
auxiliary electric power plants in two plants in the Dayton area. The
first plant was at 215 South Marion Street and the second at 1818 West
Third Street. The company's executive offices were located at 704 North
Main Street. The same people who formed the American Aircraft
Manufacturing Company also founded the American Aircraft Associates.
Also located in the offices at 704 North Main Street, this company
provided aeronautical engineers for consulting, research, development,
and electrical and mechanical work. [63]
While aeronautical businesses and military installations developed in
Dayton, other companies appeared throughout the Miami Valley. One of the
first was the Weaver Aircraft Company, known as WACO, which was formed
in Lorain in November 1919. The founders were George Weaver, Charlie
Meyers, Sam Junkin, and Clayton Brukner. The company moved to Medina in
1922 and underwent further change in March 1923 when Junkin and Brukner
started the Advance Aircraft Company, which used the WACO logo, and
relocated to Troy. The company changed names once again in 1929 to the
WACO Aircraft Company. Between 1927 and 1930, WACO was the largest
commercial aircraft manufacturer in the world. It ceased its Ohio
operations in 1946. [64]
Businesses in support of aircraft production were also located in the
Miami Valley. Hartzell Walnut Propeller Company, a division of the
George W. Hartzell Company, began constructing propellers at 350
Washington Avenue in Piqua in 1917. During World War I, George W.
Hartzell Company lost many customers of their walnut lumber products due
to an embargo. The propeller industry was formed to offset this loss of
business. Both The Dayton Wright Airplane Company and WACO Aircraft were
customers of Hartzell Propeller, now called Hartzell. [65]
The many companies and military installations that developed in the
Miami Valley further defined Dayton's position at the forefront of
aviation development. The research that led to the development of new
technology and the production of aircraft and parts was widespread
throughout the region. What the Wright brothers began with their
investigation into solving the question of human flight has continued
into present day. Now instead of solving the basic problem, the
community is working to refine and enhance aeronautical knowledge.
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