Robertson Aircraft Corporation
 | |
| Founded | 1918 (Incorporated Feb. 1921) |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Lambert-St. Louis Flying Field, Anglum, MO |
Key people | Maj. William B. Robertson, Frank Robertson and H. H. Perkins |
| Parent | American Airlines |
Robertson Aircraft Coroporation was a post WWI American aviation service company based at the Lambert-St. Louis Flying Field near St. Louis, MO, that flew Air Mail and passengers, gave flying lessons, performed exhibition flights, as well as modified, remanufactured, and resold surplus military aircraft including Standard J, Curtiss Jenny/Canuck, DeHavilland DH-4, Curtiss Oriole, Spad, Waco, and Travel Air types in addition to Curtiss OX-5 engines.[1][2] In addition to St. Louis, RAC operated facilities in Kansas City, San Antonio, Houston, New Orleans, and Fort Wayne. The company was owned and operated by brothers Maj. William B. Robertson (1893-1943) and Frank H. Robertson (1898-1938) who were both former US Army aviators. William Robertson left the company in 1928 to form the Curtiss-Robertson division of Curtiss-Wright to produce aircraft such as the Curtiss Robin, which RAC sold.
As an Airline
On April 15, 1926, Robertson Aircraft started Contract Air Mail service over route CAM-2 from Lambert Field to Chicago with Charles Lindbergh as chief pilot for the service.[3] RAC started service with four converted DH-4 aircraft (#s 109-112)[4] acquired from the U.S. Postal Service's Air Mail fleet two of which were lost in accidents in September and November, 1926, while being piloted by Lindbergh. RAC added service over CAM-29 between St.Louis and Omaha in May 1929.[5] Flight operations were bought by The Aviation Corporation in 1930, merging into American Airways in 1934, eventually becoming American Airlines.[6]
The 1957 film The Spirit of St. Louis featured both RAC chief airmail pilots Charles Lindbergh, and Harlan A. "Bud" Gurney's challenges in the early days of airmail delivery.
Production
On August 1, 1943, a WACO CG-4A military troop and cargo transport glider built under license by RAC crashed at Lambert Field in St. Louis during a demonstration flight when its right wing separated shortly after it had been released at 3,000 feet by its Army C-47 tow plane killing all ten on board including St. Louis Mayor William D. Becker, RAC President Maj. William B. Robertson, and VP/Chief Engineer Harold A. Krueger. Maj. Robertson's then 17-year old son, James, had been a passenger on a successful test flight of the glider made immediately before the fatal flight.[7][8][9]
Aircraft
| Model name | First flight | Number built | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waco CG-4 (license built) | Template:Avyear | 170 | Combat Glider |
References
- ^ Robertson Aircraft Corporation parts catalog "A". 1928.
- ^ Aerial Age. September 12, 1921.
{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Thomas Streissguth. The roaring twenties.
- ^ Richard Bak. The Big Jump: Lindbergh and the Great Atlantic Air Race.
- ^ John Motum. The Putnam Aeronautical Review.
- ^ "History of AMR".
{{cite web}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Missing or empty|url=(help); Unknown parameter|rul=ignored (help) - ^ "Mayor of St. Louis, Other Officials Die in Glider's Plunge" The New York Times, August 2, 1943, p. 1
- ^ "St. Louis Mayor William Becker and nine others were killed on Aug. 1, 1943, when a World War II glider they were riding in plunged and slammed nose first into the ground near the Lambert Airport runway." Eleven images from St. Louis Post-Dispatch, stltoday.com
- ^ J. Norman Grim. To Fly the Gentle Giants: The Training of U.S. WW II Glider Pilots.