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of business was put on the books here during the year (1936), some of it yet to be filled, but a substantial part of it has been produced. It was the best year since the boom days of 1928-1929.” Walter Beech told the press that the factory on East Central Avenue had built twice as many commercial Model 17 cabin biplanes in 1936 as they had in 1935, and more than 300 men and women were working on the production lines. In addition, in 1936 the Cessna factory had rolled out 50 of the new C34 cabin monoplanes – three times the number built in 1935 – and manager Dwane Wallace boldly prophesied that the company would double its business in 1937.
As the year 1937 dawned, facilities at the Stearman factory were rapidly approaching maximum production capacity. More than 500 workers were turning out 15 new biplanes each month, but the management realized that more floor space would be required to meet future demand. As 1937 progressed, more orders for the PT-13A soon arrived from the Army Air Corps. Air Corps flight instructors, who were arriving almost weekly to ferry new ships south to Texas, were quick to tell the local newspapers that, “The primary training planes have proven highly popular and efficient at the Randolph Field, San Antonio, Texas, base. When the present contract is filled there will be more than 125 Stearman planes in service there, all Wichita-built.” By autumn 1937, the factory workforce was completing one PT-13A every other day.
The Stearman company not only ended 1937 with a profit, but also contributed significantly to the Boeing Aircraft Company’s bottom line. The parent company and its subsidiaries held a backlog of unfilled orders worth more than $14 million. The Stearman factory had delivered 91 airplanes that year, with the majority of these delivered
The Air Corps designated the Model 75 as “PT-13” powered by a Lycoming radial engine. (Courtesy Lawrence Johnson)
to the Air Corps and U.S. Navy, along with export versions of the Model 73 and Model 76 for the military services of Brazil, Argentina and the Philippines.
In April 1938 at a meeting of senior Boeing officials, the Stearman Aircraft Company was renamed the Stearman Division of Boeing Aircraft Company. The new name took effect June 1. Boeing executives explained that the change was made “for reasons of economy and manufacturing advantages.” When 1938 ended, the Stearman Division was on the brink of a major expansion to greatly increase its workforce and manufacturing capacity.
By early 1939 it had become clear to an increasing number of military leaders and politicians in America that war clouds again were threatening to engulf Europe. Both Great Britain and France hoped to placate Germany’s Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler, and his thirst for more land. In addition, an increasingly belligerent and militaristic Japan had invaded Manchuria while rattling its sabre and calling for expansion of its “Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.”
Meanwhile, the United States clung tightly to its isolationist policies as President Roosevelt walked a political tightrope between preparing for war and talking peace. As commander in chief of all United States military forces, he wanted the “Arsenal of Democracy” to be ready if and when America went to war. The Stearman Division would soon become an important part of that arsenal. KA
Notes:
1 Wichita “Eagle,” May 17, 1934, Page 5. Also Hoffman, Raymond J.B., “History of Boeing Airplanes Designed in Wichita,” Page 5. Boeing Aircraft Company, March 10, 1946.
Ed Phillips, now retired and living in the South, has researched and written eight books on the unique and rich aviation history that belongs to Wichita, Kan. His writings have focused on the evolution of the airplanes, companies and people that have made Wichita the “Air Capital of the World” for more than 80 years.
FEBRUARY 2020
KING AIR MAGAZINE • 35