DAN SHUMAKER COLLECTION
No. 9000. Loening-Milling Tractor Biplane ("201")
Photographed at Redwood Aviation School, Redwood, California, USA, source unknown

Loening-Milling Tractor Biplane

05/31/2009. Remarks by Kees Kort: "This machine was designed by Grover Loening (then Signal Corps aeronautical engineer) in late 1914, when the San Diego Aviation School, North Island, California, USA, was desperately short of suitable training aircraft. Lieutenant Thomas DeWitt Milling (later Brigadier General) then commanding officer of the San Diego Aviation School decided to have the machine constructed by Curtiss. Glenn Curtiss decided to let the machine to be built by the students at the Curtiss Flying School, also at North Island, and not by the professionals at Hammondsport, New York.

While the six-cylinder in-line engine and its radiator still have to be fitted, the aircraft is almost complete and shows three-bay wings of equal span, with the front interplane struts right on the edge of the wing, and a nose-over skid with nose wheel construction. The all flying rudder construction is a characteristic Loening design of that time.

The machine was delivered to the Army flying area on North Island on December 30, 1914. Inspection by Loening and others learned that the workmanship was below standard, so that the machine was not accepted by the Army, and the biplane remained the property of Curtiss. Although not used in the intended trainer role, the machine was obviously not broken up as it reappeared in 1919 at the Redwood Aviation School, Redwood City (near San Francisco), California, which became active from June 1919 and had a large contingent of Korean flying pupils."


Created May 31, 2009