Fletcher Aviation
| Fletcher Aviation | |
|---|---|
| legal form | Corporation |
| founding | 1941 |
| resolution | 1964 |
| Seat | El Monte , California |
| Branch | Aircraft construction |
The Fletcher Aviation Corporation was an aircraft manufacturer founded by the three brothers Wendell, Frank and Maurice Fletcher in Pasadena , California in 1941 . The company's original goal was to produce the Wendell-designed wooden Fletcher FBT-2 training aircraft for beginners . In the absence of USAAF interest in this machine, some were used as radio-controlled target drones (Fletcher PQ-11). After the company moved to Rosemead , California, the development of a family of aircraft such as the Fletcher FU-24 , an agricultural and multi-purpose aircraft, of which approximately 296 aircraft have been and still are produced, primarily by Pacific Aerospace in New Zealand .
In 1953, the same year the FU-24 took off on its maiden flight, the company also presented the prototype of an amphibious vehicle as the Fletcher Flair . The vehicle was powered by a 4-cylinder engine from the Porsche 356 , the drive train of which was modified so that all four wheels of the vehicle could be driven. The company hoped to sell the vehicle to the US Army , but the performance in the water was poor, so the Army did not place orders.
After the company was acquired by AJ Industries , it changed its name to Flair Aviation and began producing aircraft refueling equipment, including drop tanks and hose reels for air refueling, from 1960. After moving to El Monte , California, the name was changed back to Fletcher Aviation and was merged with Sargent Fletcher in 1964 , before aircraft construction was given up in 1966. The rights to the FU-24 went to Pacific Aerospace .
FU-24
FD-25
Individual evidence
- ↑ The Fletcher Flair: A Crazy Floating Porsche Jeep Thing. atomictoasters.com, November 21, 2011, accessed August 26, 2018 .
- ^ Daniel Strohl: Fletcher Flair - a Porsche designed for paddling. www.hemmings.com, September 26, 2011, accessed on August 26, 2018 (English).
literature
- Bill Gunston: World Encyclopedia of Aircraft Manufacturers . Ed .: Naval Institute Press. Annapolis 1993, p. 118 .