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WEB-LINKS Copyright 2001-2007 by R.Harris |
KANSAS
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NOTE: These web links
below provide special information on
Wichita, Kansas
-- the aviation manufacturing "Air Capital" --
and on Kansas
aviation & aircraft manufacturers, generally.
(Most major U.S. plane-makers have Kansas ties.)
~ KANSAS AVIATION COMMUNITY
~ |
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KANSAS AVIATION
, GENERALLY (Wings Over Kansas website) |
Wichita: "The Air Capital City" ~ the world's leading aircraft-manufacturing center |
Famous Kansas
Aviators |
Kansas airlines:
~ TWA (Trans World Airlines) ~ Air Midwest ~ Ryan International |
Aviation
Museums of Kansas |
~ AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS of KANSAS
~ |
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major commercial & military |
major general aviation |
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Boeing
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Cessna,
Learjet, Mooney, |
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Other Aircraft Manufacturers with Kansas Ties:
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END of INDEXES ALL DETAIL LISTINGS (BELOW) ARE INDEXED ABOVE |
Wichita
-- The "Air Capital of the World" -- Its Aviation History
The city which has built far more aircraft than any other city on Earth (over 250,000).
"What the National Archives is to American history, Wichita is to aviation. Powered flight may have been born on those sand dunes in Kitty Hawk but it grew up here in Wichita" ~ Nicholas A. Sabatini, FAA Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, in the Opening Speech at the annual AIAA Technology Conference (the aerospace industry's leading technical conference), Wichita, Sept. 27, 2006• Wings Over Kansas
___________
Major Aviation Facilities in Wichita area:
AIRPORTS & AIRBASES:
EDUCATION & RESEARCH:
WICHITA'S MOST FAMOUS PLANE-MAKERS:
Swallow (started
as E. M. Laird Aviation Co., Inc.)
First successful commercial airplane-manufacturing company
in the U.S.A.
and the Air Capital's first airplane manufacturer;
included Mr. Beech (later head of Travel Air & Beech Aircraft)
and Mr. Stearman (later head of Stearman-Northrop and Lockheed)
and George "Buck" Weaver (co-founder of WACO)
• Emil Matthew "Matty" Laird
(Early Birds)
• (or CLICK HERE)
• Laird / E.M. Laird Airplane
Company (Aerofiles.com)
• Swallow / New Swallow Airplane
Company (Aerofiles.com)
•
Brief Swallow Company History (and E.M. Laird company history)
EAA AirVenture Museum, Oshkosh, WI.
Travel Air (see also Beech / Hawker
& Raytheon Aircraft )
the largest civilian-plane maker in the USA in the late 1920's
started by Mr. Beech, Mr. Cessna and Mr.
Stearman
• The Travel Air Company history, Arkansas
Air Museum
•
History of the Travel Air Airplane Manufacturing Co., Inc. (with PICTURES!)
,
Boeing-Wichita /
BMAC (Boeing Military Airplane Co.)
(for most of Boeing's history, its vast Wichita
plant -- one of America's largest --
has been the largest Boeing complex outside
of Washington state;
Boeing-Wichita produced the
Stearman trainer biplanes, most B-29, B-47, & B-52 bombers,
-- including the entire
currently-flying B-52 fleet -- and Air Force One 747 conversions,
plus major sections of
all Boeing airliners, including fuselages of the 727, 737 &
757)
•
The Boeing Company main website
Boeing-Wichita Division,
overview & history
Boeing Commercial Airplanes,
Wichita Division,
overview & history
Boeing Military Airplanes,
Wichita Division,
overview & partial history
•
Airliners.net
(private airliner-enthusiasts' website)
•
Pictures of Boeing airliners
(foreign private website)
• Bombers section,
Strategic-Air-Command.com (private website about U.S. Air Force
S.A.C.)
• Bombers and Bomber Weapons,
GlobalSecurity.org (private website, military analysts)
•
The Boeing Company
Stearman (also see: Boeing
)
•
Stearman was aviation legend in his own time, by Paul Soutar, Wichita Eagle, (12/13/2003)
•
Home page, Airshow website
•
Stearman Restorers Association
•
National Stearman Fly-In
annually, beginning on Labor Day,
at Galesburg (IL) Municipal Airport
•
Stearman Airplanes & Adventures:
Cessna
• Cessna Aircraft Company, div. of Textron
Corp.
•
Cessna Owners' Organization
•
Cessna Pilots Association
•
Cessna 172-182 Club
•
The Twin Cessna Flyer organization
•
Bamboo Bomber Club
• 'Cessna Declares
Independence...';
Plant Sites & Parks magazine, Jan.1997
Beech
/ Hawker & Raytheon Aircraft
•
Raytheon Aircraft Co., div. of Raytheon Corp.
•
Raytheon Corp., Beechcraft product list
•
Raytheon Corp., Hawker product list
•
Raytheon Corp., Airliner product list
•
American Bonanza (& Baron) Society
•
Twin Bonanza Association
•
Staggerwing Club, history pages
Learjet
Div. of Bombardier, Ltd.
•
Bombardier Aerospace
• Learjet Div. history
• Learjets, Goodweather Flyer (UK)
• "Learjet 24D: Blowtorch for Six -- Daydream Believer"
pilot report by Budd Davisson, Air Progress(?) October, 1970
William P. Lear, Sr., founder, Learjet, Inc.; biographies:
• Lemelson-MIT Awards Program
• National Inventors Hall of Fame
• Horatio Alger Assn.
Mooney / Superior
(Al Mooney's Mooney Aircraft Co. started in Wichita in 1929 and quickly collapsed;
but after quitting
Culver
, he revived it in Wichita in 1947, and moved to Kerrville, Texas
in 1953. It is one of the world's leading suppliers of
high-performance single-engine light aircraft. The Mooney M-18 Mite was the company's main Wichita product, and its first success.)
•
Mooney Aircraft Company
•
Mooney Owners Of America
•
Mooney Aircraft Pilots Association
•
Mooney Aircraft Web Ring
(coalition of websites)
• Culver & Mooney Mite history
• Book review & summary:
"The Al Mooney Story: They All Fly Through the Same Air,"
•
Mooney Mite website
•
"Mitey Might," Mooney Mite pilot report
by Budd Davisson, Air Progress, April, 1985
Airbus
(Airbus Industrie -- a French-based consortium of European aerospace companies organized to produce large jetliners -- opened its North American operations (engineering) office in Wichita, to take advantage of the city's vast population of experienced aviation engineers. Today, these Kansas engineers help develop the world's largest airliner -- the Airbus A380 -- and other Airbus planes.
•
Airbus Industrie official main corporate website
•
"Airbus A380 vs. Boeing Dreamliner" article
(from recent issue of InFlightUSA)
•
"Airbus superjumbo ready to fly; Wichita office lands new projects" article
(Wichita Business JournalJan.28,2005)
Information and
Internet Links to...
OTHER WICHITA & KANSAS PLANE MAKERS
Wichita & Southern/Western Kansas:
· Ace Aircraft Mfg. (Otto Corben's Baby Ace, 1929, Wichita, was one of the very first popular "homebuilt" designs)
Ace Aircraft, Inc.
Int'l Miniature Aircraft Ass'n.· Alon (The famous, pioneering Ercoupe was reborn in McPherson, as the Alon Aircoupe)
www.Aircoupe.com
Ercoupe, Alon, Aircoupe, M10 Webring
Ercoupe Owners Club
Ercoupers Online Community
"Those Wonderful 'Coupes," by Howard Fried , AvWeb.com
Ercoupe 415C page, amateur history & overview of Ercoupe/Aircoupe family
'Flying an Aircoupe...' essay, by David W. Vernon, owner/operator of various Aircoupes, including Alon A-2A.
Essco Aircraft, Manuals & Supplies (for Alon Aircraft, & others), AvWeb.com· Bede (Jim Bede's famous/infamous BD-5 kits were manufactured in Newton)
Bedecorp, LLC (Jim Bede's current company)
• BD-17 & BD-18 designs
• Bede's other designs
The BD-5 Network & the BD-5 Bulletin
BD-Micro Technologies, Inc
EAA BD-5 Links & magazine-article listings
BD-5 exhibit & history , National Air & Space Museum
"The BD-5 Actually Flies" - Pilot Report by Budd Davisson
(Air Progress, November, 1974) on airbum.com· Call Aircraft (the first "Call Aircraft", alias "Aerial Navigation Co. of America, Inc.," in Girard, 1908-1912. The giant Call aeroplanes were no success, but Call was one of the first aircraft manufacturers west of the Mississippi.)
• Early birds didn't always escape the bonds of earth
by Dan Close, Wichita Eagle (Oct.15, 1984)· Culver (The tiny Culver Cadet, designed by legendary Al Mooney, was built 1941-1946, in Wichita. The tiny 2-seat personal plane was reworked into various wartime aerial target drones (especially the PQ-8 / PQ-14), built in the thousands. Led to Mooney Aircraft. Also see "Mooney," above)
Culver & Mooney Mite history from MooneyMite.com website
"The Al Mooney Story: They All Fly Through the Same Air,"
Book review & summary, Mooney Aircraft Owners' Events
Culver "Type Club" List (support organizations for Culver operators)
from Vintage Airplane magazine, of Vintage Aircraft Association (EAA)
Culver Cadet (originally Culver Dart) - pre-WWII personal sport aircraft
"Dashing and Darting Through the Sky" - Culver Dart Model LCA history & pilot report
from Vintage Airplane Apr 2007 v35, #4 (PDF file, requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)
Cadet-Archive.digest.vol-aa
Culver Cadet, a Golden Age Classic, Cape Canaveral site, GeoCities.com
Culver Cadet, iPilot.com
Resurrection of the Flying Lumberyard, by Michael La France, Sport Aviation Ass'n
(review of Neil LaFrance's metal-frame version of the Culver Cadet,
apparently by a relative)
Culver LFA Cadet - N34863 - (c/n 273) : Ed Coates' photo & commentary
Culver PQ-series - WWII/post-WWII target drone aircraft
Culver (and other) PQ-series drones
from the online Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 1
Culver Aircraft Locator (Culver drones in museums & collections)
Aviation Enthusiast Corner, City Unversity of New York
Culver PQ-8 - WWII target drone aircraft
PQ-8 summary, on Ken's Aviation website
Culver A-8/PQ-8/TDC Cadet specifications & summary history
Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 1
Culver PQ-8A Cadet specifications & public comments
Aviation Enthusiast Corner, City Unversity of New York
Culver PQ-14/TD2C Cadet - WWII/Post-WWII target drone aircraft
Culver PQ-14B Fact Sheet, National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
and photos. (Also same fact sheet, alternate site .)
Culver PQ-14/TD2C Cadet summary, on Ken's Aviation website
Culver PQ-14/Q-14/TD2C specifications & summary history
Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 1
PQ-14 specifications & public comments
Aviation Enthusiast Corner, City Unversity of New York
PQ-14 museum displays, nationwide
Aviation Enthusiast Corner, City Unversity of New York
Culver PQ-14B Cadet at Pima Air Museum
Culver V - post-WWII personal/business aircraft
Culver V at the Mid-America Air Museum, Liberal, Kansas
Culver V: Ed Coates' photo & commentary
Culver V article/brochure (teaser) (click photo to enlarge)
AAHS Journal, Vol. 50, No. 3 - Fall 2005
Culver V - Mooney 17
by Culver V owner Carlos Gorjão
(written in Portugese; metric specs in English; photo)
· Eagle Aircraft & HGL Aero (Modern Australian airplane-maker Eagle Aircraft sells their lively 2-seat Eagle 150 composite-canard sport/trainer in the U.S. through HGL Aero, at the Augusta, KS airport, who assembles them for delivery nationwide.)
Eagle Aircraft, Australia , the manufacturer
Eagle 150B online brochure, richly illustrated, from AvWeb online aviation magazine
Eagle 150 summary, Australian Aviation Archive
Eagle 150 Pilot Report, by Ed Wischmeyer,
In Flight USA magazine, August 2001· Fairchild Engine & Airplane Corp. (Winfield, KS., 1947, branch of major mid-century plane-maker)
Fairchild Club
Antique Aircraft Ass'n, Fairchild Page,
Airbum.com (Budd Davission) Fairchild F-24 pilot report
Fairchild companies (Aerofiles.com)· Funk (Coffeyville, KS., late 1930's. Popular, strong-hauling, small, single-engine plane)
Coffeyville Aviation Heritage Museum
EAA AirVenture Museum, Funk display
· Great Lakes (The Great Lakes biplanes were renowned for their exceptional aerobatic capabilities, and were the choice of champions for decades. For a time, Wichita shared the revived Great Lakes biplane company with Enid, Okla.)
Great Lakes Sport Trainer Biplane website
"Harvey Swack and the Great Lakes Trainer" Great Airplanes, Incorporated
"The Great, Great Lakes", - Great Lakes 2T-1A Pilot Report
by Budd Davisson (Air Progress, July 1975) on airbum.com· Helio (the famous Helio Courier STOL plane got its start in Pittsburg, Kansas, 1956)
Helio Aircraft Company
HelioCourier.net· Javelin (Dave Blanton's conversions of Cessnas, especially with automobile engines)
· LaFrance (steel-tube-and-fabric homebuilt design based on Culver Cadet. See also, "Culver," above)
Resurrection of the Flying Lumberyard, by Michael La France, Sport Aviation Ass'n
(review of Neil LaFrance's metal-frame version of the Culver Cadet, apparently by a relative)· Piaggio (of Italy, originally built cabins of PD-180 Avanti canard-turboprop-twin in Wichita)
Piaggio America / Piaggio Aero
Airliners.net commentary
ScaleAero.com
AW&ST reviews & news, 2001
· EBACE report on PD-108 Avanti
· NBAA report on PD-108 Avanti· Prescott (unsuccessful, but innovative, fast, 4-seat Prescott Pusher homebuilt)
· Aerofiles info on the P-Pusher
(and some other planes that start with 'P')}
(also see Air Progress magazine, March 1988)
pictures of the Prescott Pusher::
· Jentsch/Prescott Pusher at OUV Rally, Speyer, 1998
· Prescott Pusher, at Oshkosh 2002, by AvWeb
short comments on the Prescott Pusher (with unrelated info):
· owner/builder's remarks
· Burt Rutan notes P-Pusher over-rotation damage
· prices
· speed
· directional-control problems
· partial project
· P-Pusher & Prescott's balsa-model pusher
videos of the Prescott Pusher, in libraries, etc.:
· EAA Chapter 54 Video Collection
· also see: J. Douglas Allen, filmmaker· Purvis-Wilson (the first patented rotary-wing aircraft in America, did not fly, but contained features used in subsequent helicopters)
• Early birds didn't always escape the bonds of earth
• America's First Patented Helicopter
High Plains Museum, Goodland, Kansas
by Dan Close, Wichita Eagle (Oct.15, 1984)
• America's First Patented Helicopter
High Plains Museum, Goodland, Kansas· RANS (Hays, since 1983. Popular "microlight" aircraft, and small kitplanes, including the Coyote.)
RANS Aircraft Co.
AvGas website, RANS topic page· Seibel Helicopter (the first successful Kansas-built helicopter to fly, became the record-setting Cessna Skyhook/Seneca helicopter of the 1950's and early 1960's. Mr. Seibel later joined Bell Helicopter as a key engineer.)
The Cessna CH-1 Helicopter, superb illustrated history of Seibel's designs.
by former Seibel colleague Also online at alternate web site .
Helis.com, Helicopter History Site: 1950's Helicopters
Oral History of Richard Ten Eyck, helicopter engineer (who worked on Skyhook)· Wren STOL (radical conversions of Cessna singles into STOL aircraft)
Peterson's Performance Plus (current WrenSTOL certificate holder)
Cessna Owner.org, Wren Conversions
Northeast Kansas & Kansas City:
· American Eagle / Roos (Company of origin for many spin-off manufacturers & early aviation innovators)
Aerofiles.com, American Eagle / Roos page· Longren (the Longren Flyer, first Kansas-built plane to fly, was basis of more-successful Alexander Eaglerock and American Eagle biplanes. Topeka's Albin K. Longen became Cessna executive)
Albin Kasper Longren, Kansas Aviation Hall of Fame inductee,
(WingsOverKansas.com bio.)
Albin K. Longren notes & photos
INCLUDES EXTENSIVE PHOTOS OF LONGREN'S PLANES
from EarlyAviators.com, website of the Early Birds,
the organization of America's pre-World-War-I aviators
Longren Aircraft History (click here for alternate site .)
Brief (but informative) history of Longren and his aircraft.
from Landings Aviation News by Pacific Flyer, Jan.2008
(NOTE: Viewed best on a 1024x768 screen or larger.)
Longren 1922 Altitude Record (click here for alternate site .)
(includes photo of Longren biplane)
from Landings Aviation News by Pacific Flyer, Jan.2008
(NOTE: Viewed best on a 1024x768 screen or larger.)
Albin K. Longren, portraits in Kansas History, Kansas Historical Society
Longren biplane, display in Kansas Museum of History
Longren history & modeling project, including letter from Longren & photos
Topeka Capital-Journal newspaper articles:
- May 5, 2003, "Wamego man strives to continue Longren legacy,"
- March 3, 2003, "Aviator's Legacy Renewed"
also see: Longren Flyer's 90th Anniversary observed, Sept. 4, 2001, Salina Journal/Associated Press
· Luscombe (Don Luscombe's famous company)
Luscombe Aircraft Corporation (revived version) ,
current manufacturer of Luscombe 11E (revivial of Luscombe 11A Sedan)
Renaissance Aircraft,current manufacturer of revived Luscombe 8F Silvaire
The Don Luscombe Aviation History Foundation
The Luscombes - Luscombe Aircraft, by Roger Ritter
photo-illustrated history of Luscombe Aircraft Co.
& Luscombe planes, with specifications
Luscombe Phantom, by Peter Bowers, General Aviation News (8/20/1999)
"The Luscombe Model 8" pilot report, from "Comparing the Classics, a Series"
by Budd Davisson, EAA/Sport Aviation, Feb., 1998 http://www.armyairforce.freehomepage.com/history.htm· Marshall / Montague (the Montague Monoplane, sometimes called "M-2," was Al Mooney's second design. See the Mooney Aircraft links, above.)
· Porterfield (the Porterfield Collegiate -- similar to the Piper Cub -- trained many WWII pilots)
Aerofiles.com, Porterfield page
Sun'n'Fun Air Museum
'Remembering the Porterfields,' by Peter Bowers, General Aviation News (12/21/01)
· North American (one of America's leading military plane makers;
During WWII, for a time, all North American B-25 Mitchell bombers
were built at the Kansas City (KS) Fairfax Airport.)
North American, Boeing's official history of
(Boeing acquired Rockwell in the 1990's, who, in turn, had acquired North American in the 1960's)
History of North American's WWII plant at Fairfax Airport,
by Univ. of Missouri at Kansas City, history of K.C. in WWII:
Superb photos (with text) of Fairfax plant in operation
Kansas City's WWII "Home front" history, with details about Fairfax plant
History of Fairfax Airport (alias "Fairfax Army Air Field"),
including North American's operation there; and other Eastern Ks. "lost" airports
B-25 history, official USAF Museum website
Detailed B-25 history & 1st B-25 version· Rearwin / Commonwealth (the Rearwin Sportster was a popular bushplane)
Rearwin Airplanes Foundation
"The Forgotten Rearwins," by Peter Bowers, Landings.com
"Rearwin: Story of Men, Planes, & Aircraft Manufacturing During the Great Depression", (Amazon.com book)
REARWIN aircraft negatives, THE A.J. JACKSON PHOTOGRAPHIC COLLECTION,
Rearwin Aircraft Ads, Ad Attic.com
Rearwin page, Ken's Aviation website, Shanaberger.com· Republic Aviation (from World War II to the Vietnam War, one of the main U.S. manufacturers of military fighter and attack aircraft (P-47 Thunderbolt, F-84 Thunderjet/Thunderstreak, F-105 Thunderchief, etc.). Though Republic's main factory was at Farmingdale, NY, hundreds of F-84s, during the 1950s, were built in a large General Motors factory at Fairfax Airport, near downtown Kansas City, Kansas. In July, 1965, planemaker Fairchild acquired Republic, creating "Fairchild-Republic" aircraft brand. In September, Republic became the Republic Aviation Division of Fairchild Hiller.)
"Republic Aviation", (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
"Republic Aviation Corporation History" (from the Seabee.org website for Republic Seabee amphibian aircraft owners)
"Republic F-84F", at the Kansas Aviation Museum (this one was built at the Fairfax Airport, Kansas City, Kansas factory)
""The Republic Aviation Corporation F-84 Production Line" (photos from LIFE Magazine, city and date unknown; CAUTION: uncertain website)
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One of the world's top airlines, for 75 years. From its world headquarters
Founded as "Western Air Express" in 1925,
TWA quickly became one of America's "Big Four" airlines,
Owned 25 years by eccentric billionaire/aviator Howard Hughes,
Decisive force in development of the
on the U.S. government's official Centennial of Flight website "Fly TWA" historical site (by former TWA employees)
TWAlive
TWA section, airline history, from PBS-TV Series "Chasing the Sun"(pbs.org) brief "History of TWA Airlines" (aviationexplorer.com)
Photos of the TWA Fleet
on Airliners.net
1960 TWA film (requires FLASH, & JavaScript turned on).
Trans World Airlines Terminal, John F. Kennedy Airport
Fatal Events Since 1970 for Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines Collection (historical documents)
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America's 1st Certificated Commuter Airline (begun in Wichita, circa 1969, as Air [Taxi] Services, Inc.), eventually 8th largest U.S. regional air carrier; still active today, nationwide (55 cities in 19 states, New York to California, flying turboprops with other major airlines' insignia, -- "code-sharing" -- as div. of Mesa Airlines)
Air Midwest, summary by wikipedia-org
Air Midwest history, and biography of founding president
Archive of articles about Air Midwest
Cessna 206 #N5228U - Air Midwest's first airplane
Air Midwest named Regional Airline of the Year, 1982,
"'Flexible' Air Midwest achieves success as an industry maverick."
Summary history of Air Midwest, by Italian website,
'Air Midwest [new] chief [Stephens] began his career as a baggage handler,'
History of Mesa Air Group, Inc. (official Mesa Air website)
Mesa Air Group Announces Enhanced Codeshare Agreement with United Airlines'
The infamous Charlotte, North Carolina crash, January 8, 2003,
This crash was a landmark event in U.S. airline history, resulting in various changes to safety regulations and practices. Information and links are below: NOTE: Though this was one of the most notorious of all commuter airliner crashes, and raised intense interest, worldwide, in many questions about operating practices in the airline industry, it was while Air Midwest was under the management of Texas-based Mesa Air Group, and should not be taken as a reflection upon the original founders and pioneers of Air Midwest. Until the takeover by Mesa Air Group in 1991, Air Midwest had NEVER had a fatal crash of an Air Midwest airplane despite being the first certificated commuter airline in the U.S., and eventually becoming the 8th largest regional airline in the United States. When it was an independent company, Air Midwest was well-known for its good safety record -- in an industry with an otherwise very poor safety record (the early U.S. commuter airline industry).
Charlotte crash, January 8, 2003
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
"The Charlotte Beech 1900D Crash - NTSB Reviews Factuals"
"Flight 5481 declared emergency before crash"
"FAA can't find records of inspectors before Charlotte crash"
"FAA changes weight rules for aircraft"
"FAA decrees changes on Beech 1900 after 2nd crash"
Poor Maintenance Cited as Primary Cause of Air Midwest Crash
Companies Accept Responsibility
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International Custom Cargo, Charter & Specialty Scheduled Airline From its headquarters in Wichita, KS,
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