Benoist Aircraft

The Benoist Aircraft Company was an early manufacturer of aircraft in the United States. It was formed in 1912 in St Louis, Missouri by Thomas W. Benoist. Over the next five years, it would manufacture some 106 aircraft, including Benoist XIVs that would be used for the first heavier-than-air airline service. The company dissolved with Tom Benoist's accidental death in 1917.

Benoist Aircraft Company
IndustryAircraft Manufacturer
Key people
Thomas W. Benoist, Tony Jannus
ParentAeronautic Supply Co

The first airline service was from St. Petersburg, Florida to Tampa in January 1914. Currently Fantasy of Flight (an aeronautical museum) is building a replica of the aircraft and will re-create the flight in January 2014.

History

In 1908 Benoist founded the Aeronautic Supply Co, the first supplier of aircraft parts.

In 1913, Benoist moved production into the St. Louis Car Company factory run by E. B. Meissner. After Benoist's death, Meissner continued to build aircraft on contract to the government as the St. Louis Aircraft Corporation[1]

Promoter Bill Pickens and Benoist's earlier business partner, publisher E. Percy Noel, sponsored the 1913 "Great Lakes Reliability Tour" to promote the new seaplanes with Benoist aircraft as the featured manufacturer. Benoist originally was going to compete with three aircraft. "The Ark of Duluth" was to be flown by Hugh Robinson, but wrecked prior to the race. Tony Jannus flew a Benoist XIV that suffered a broken propeller, and sunk while being towed to shore.[2]

Benoist built the type XV twin-engine flying boat with hopes to market it as an anti-submarine patrol aircraft for the British government. A round-the-world publicity tour was scheduled and a merger with the Meissner's company to make a thousand examples were in the works when World War I tensions cancelled the efforts. In 1917 Benoist Aircraft moved operations to Sandusky, Ohio.[3]

Aircraft
Summary of aircraft built by
Model name First flight Number built Type
Benoist Headless 1910 1 Modified Curtiss Pusher
1912 Benoist 1912 1 Tractor biplane
Benoist Land Tractor Type XII 1912 5 Tractor biplane
Benoist XIV 1913 2 Flying boat
Benoist C 1915 1 Pusher twin floatplane
Benoist E 1915 1 Pusher twin floatplane
Benoist XV 1915 1 Flying boat
Benoist XVII 1916 1 Tricycle Biplane

References
  1. "Welcome to Flight City". Archived from the original on 21 November 2011. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
  2. Thomas Reilly. Jannus, an American flier. p. 102.
  3. E. R. Johnson. American flying boats and amphibious aircraft: an illustrated history.
  • Gunston, Bill (1993). World Encyclopedia of Aircraft Manufacturers. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. p. 44.
  • aerofiles.com
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