Page 31 - Volume 15 Number 12

Curtiss-Wright’s interest in
acquiring the Wichita-based
company was obvious: Travel
Air was among the leading
manufacturers of lightweight
private, commercial and business
airplanes in the United States.
Throughout 1928 and well into
1929, sales had soared upward and
production had nearly doubled in
an attempt to meet escalating
demand for aerial transportation.
In addition, the company’s
domestic dealer/distributor
network was expanding, and
export sales continued to
increase. Throughout 1928-1929
Travel Air’s success had not gone
unnoticed on Wall Street. Senior
management at Curtiss-Wright
targeted Travel Air because,
under the leadership of Walter
Beech, its dealer and distributor network was expanding both domestically and internationally.
When the merger was completed in August 1929, Beech had been appointed a vice president of Curtiss-Wright Corporation with his office located in New York City.
DECEMBER 2021
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 29
To keep pace with high demand for Travel Air biplanes and monoplanes, more buildings were added to the to the company’s manufacturing campus. In 1934 the vacant buildings formed the nucleus of the Beech Aircraft Company. (Edward H. Phillips Collection)