Aero Club of America facts for kids
The Aero Club of America was a special club started in 1905. Important people like Charles Jasper Glidden and Augustus Post created it. Their main goal was to help aviation (flying!) grow in America.
This club was like a main office for many smaller clubs across the country. The first one was the Aero Club of New England. The Aero Club of America was very successful until 1923. Then, it changed into the National Aeronautic Association, which is still around today!
The club was the first to give out pilot's licenses in the United States. The U.S. Army even required its pilots to get a license from this club until 1914. The Aero Club also put on many exciting air shows and flying contests. In 1911, a new president, Robert J. Collier, started giving out the famous Collier Trophy for achievements in aviation.
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History of the Aero Club
Most people think the Aero Club started in 1905. But some old photos from 1902 already show the "Aero Club" stamp.
In the summer of 1905, several members of the Automobile Club of America decided to create a new club. These members included Charles Glidden, Homer Hedge, Dave Morris, John F. O'Rourke, and Augustus Post. They loved flying in balloons. However, they felt there wasn't enough support for aviation as a sport in America.
So, they decided to start a new club. It was similar to the Automobile Club but focused on promoting aviation. They were inspired by the Aero Club of France. Homer Hedge became the first President, and Augustus Post was the first secretary.
In 1910, many flying clubs and groups met in New York. They formed the National Council of Affiliated Clubs of the Aero Club of America. Thirty-nine representatives from places like Pasadena, California, and Boston joined together. This meeting created the main organization for all the state flying clubs.
A big argument happened at the International Aviation Meet at Belmont Park in October 1910. It was between an English flyer named Claude Graham-White and an American, J. B. Moisant. Graham-White won a race around the Statue of Liberty by several minutes. But because of a small rule, the race and the prize money went to Moisant.
John Armstrong Drexel publicly said the club was unfair to its own members. Drexel even held his own dinner at the same time as the club's awards banquet. This disagreement caused problems for the club. But it was fixed when Drexel decided to leave.
In 1911, the Aero Club of New York put on the first Industrial Airplane Show. It happened with the 11th U.S. International Auto Show in New York City. This was a huge event. Important speakers gave talks, and many excited people saw a full-size airplane for the very first time. The show ran from December 31, 1910, to mid-January 1911.
In 1919, the club's secretary, Augustus Post, helped create the rules for a transatlantic flight competition. This was a race to fly across the Atlantic Ocean between New York and Paris. He worked with a rich hotel owner named Raymond Orteig to get the $25,000 Orteig Prize.
The prize would go to "the first aviator of any Allied Country crossing the Atlantic in one flight, from Paris to New York or New York to Paris." For five years, no one tried to win the prize. Then, a group of trustees took control of the award. They gave it to Charles Lindbergh in 1927 for his amazing flight in the Spirit of St. Louis.
National Aeroplane Fund
The Aero Club of America supported the National Aeroplane Fund. This fund was created because many people felt the military and politicians weren't interested enough in aviation. Started in the summer of 1915, this group tried to convince Congress to spend more money on military aircraft.
The fund's goal was to train pilots and provide planes for the National Guard and Navy. They also wanted to use planes for mail delivery to hard-to-reach places. This would create an "aeronautical reserve." These planes and pilots could be used for peaceful things every day. But they would also be ready for military service if needed.
A letter from July 29, 1915, explains this. It was written by Alan Hawley, President of the National Aeroplane Fund. He wrote to Captain Leroy Hall of the Vermont National Guard. The letter talked about flying demonstrations planned for the Vermont National Guard in August 1915. The National Aero Fund provided the plane and pilot, George A. Gray, for this experiment.
The letter also said that the U.S. Army and Navy had very few planes. Only a few licensed pilots had flown more than 50 miles. Our military also had no experience with aircraft.
The letter mentioned that countries like France and Germany built their air forces with public help. In 1912, France started a public fundraiser. People from all walks of life gave money. This raised over 6 million francs and provided France with 208 planes, 62 landing spots, and 75 trained pilots. This public interest made the French government pay attention to aviation. By April 1914, the French Army had 1,200 planes and 28 airships.
Germany's air force also grew thanks to public donations. The Aerial League of Germany started a fundraiser in 1912. It raised over 7 million marks. The League wanted to train many pilots quickly to create a reserve. It also wanted to help aviation grow in Germany. By the end of 1913, Germany had 600 pilots. The German government then decided to spend $35 million on military aviation over five years.
Just like people in France and Germany worked together, the letter said Americans could do the same.
Notable Pilots Licensed by the Aero Club
The Aero Club of America gave licenses to many important early pilots. Here are some of them:
Airplane Pilots
- 01 Glenn Curtiss
- 02 Frank Purdy Lahm
- 03 Louis Paulhan, a French pilot
- 04 Orville Wright (honorary license)
- 05 Wilbur Wright (honorary license)
- 06 Clifford B. Harmon
- 07 Thomas Scott Baldwin (1854–1923)
- 08 John Armstrong Drexel
- 09 Todd Shriver
- 10 Charles Foster Willard
- 11 James Cairn Mars (1875–1944)
- 13 Leon Richardson (1887-1951)
- 17 Eugene Ely
- 24 Charles Terres Weymann
- 25 Augustus Post
- 26 Ralph Clayton Diggins (1887–1959). He was born in Cadillac, Michigan, and moved to Chicago, Illinois. He first flew in 1912. He was the 26th person in the U.S. to get a pilot's license from the Aero Club of America.
- 28 Theodore Gordon Ellyson
- 32 Edson Fessenden Gallaudet
- 35 William Redmond Cross, a Governor of the Aero Club of America from 1911-1921
- 37 Harriet Quimby, the first woman to get a license
- 44 Matilde Moisant, the second woman to get a license
- 55 Norman Prince, an early member of the Lafayette Escadrille flying group
- 57 Paul Peck, one of the first U.S. Army pilots
- 133 Julia Clark, the third woman to get a license
- 148 Katherine Stinson (1891–1977), the fourth woman. She convinced her flight teacher, Max Lillie, to teach her in 1912. Katherine became one of the country's most famous female pilots.
- 173 Bernetta Adams Miller, the fifth woman
- 188 Ruth Bancroft Law, also known as Ruth Law Oliver, the sixth woman
- 303 Marjorie Stinson, (Katherine's sister) the ninth licensed female pilot in the United States
- 354 Albert Daniel Smith (1887-1970)
- 440 Reginald Malcolm, a World War I flying ace
means a female pilot.
Seaplane (Hydroaeroplane) Pilots
Seaplanes are aircraft that can take off from and land on water.
- 01 Adolph G. Sutro
- 02 Lieutenant Alfred Austell Cunningham (USN)
- 03 Lieutenant B. B. Smith (USN)
- 04 Lieutenant Commander Patrick Nieson Lynch Bellinger (USN)
- 05 Ensign Godfrey DeCourcelles Chevalier (USN)
- 06 Logan Archbold Vilas
- 07 William Ellwood Doherty
- 08 H. P. Harris
- 09 Ernest C. Bass
- 10 Steve MacGordon
- 26 Roger Weightman Jannus (1886-1918)
Balloon Pilots
- 01 Major James C. McCoy (USA)
- 02 Albert Leo Stevens
- 03 Frank Samuel Lahm
- 04 Colonel Frank Purdy Lahm (USA)
- 05 Carl E. Meyers
- 06 Colonel Henry B. Hersey (USA)
- 07 Allan R. Hawley
- 08 Colonel Charles deForest Chandler (USA)
- 09 Thomas Scott Baldwin (1854–1923)
- 10 Albert C. Triaca
- 11 Augustus Post
- 27 Sylvester Louis Von Phul (1878–1911)
- 533 Harry Rasmussen (1886–1968)
Airship (Dirigible) Pilots
"Dirigible" means an airship that can be steered in any direction.
- 01 Major Thomas Scott Baldwin (1854–1923)
- 02 Brigadier General Frank Purdy Lahm (1887-1963)
- 03 Captain Horace Bird Wild (1879-1940)
- 04 Augustus Roy Knabenshue (1875-1960)
- 05 Albert Leo Stevens (1877-1944)
- 06 Frank W. Goodale
- 07 Ralph Hazlett Upson (1888-1968)
- 08 Ralph Albion Drury Preston (?-1954)
- 09 Walter J. Pouchot
- 10 Noel Chadwick
Presidents of the Aero Club
- Charles Jasper Glidden 1905 to 1910
- Cortlandt Field Bishop 1910 to 1913
- Alan Ramsay Hawley 1913 to ?
- Jonathan Gaffney 2007 to present
See Also
- Other Aero clubs
- National Aeronautic Association, the ACA's direct American successor (1922)
- Aéro-Club de France (1898)
- Royal Aero Club (1901)
