Max Conrad
Encyclopedia
Maximilien "Max" Conrad, (January 21, 1903 - April 3, 1979 in Summit, New Jersey
) known as the "Flying Grandfather", was a record-setting aviator. In the 1950s and 1960s, he set nine official light plane world records, three of which still stand at the end of 2008. For his efforts, he was awarded the Louis Blériot medal in 1952 and the prestigious Harmon Trophy
in 1964. Winona Municipal Airport
, also known as Max Conrad Field, in Winona County, Minnesota
is named in his honor.
, where he later attended Cotter High School, graduating in 1921.
In 1929, while Conrad operated Conrad Flying Service, a woman was killed at Frontenac, Minnesota
when she walked into the spinning propeller of Conrad's aircraft. He had jumped out to try and stop her but was himself struck in the head. Conrad took months to recover.
One of Conrad's students during 1940 was Arthur "Art" Donahue
who, as a teenager, learned to fly at Conrad Flying Service. After learning how to fly and becoming Minnesota's youngest commercially certificated pilot at the age of 19, Donahue worked for Conrad helping to run the flight school until he left to join the Royal Air Force
. He became one of only seven American pilots to fly for the RAF during the Battle of Britain
, earned ace
status and was later killed in combat over the English Channel
.
Conrad's brother was killed in a plane crash.
On March 24, 1957, Conrad left Logan International Airport for his 25th Atlantic crossing.
N110LF non-stop from Casablanca
, Morocco
to Los Angeles
, a distance of 7668 mi (12,340.4 km). This distance record (for aircraft in the 1750-3000 kilogram weight class) stood until 1987. With interior seats replaced by fuel tanks, the aircraft was loaded 2000 lb (907.2 kg) over its production gross weight limit when Conrad took off from Casablanca.
A few months later, on November 24, 1959, Conrad set the record (that still stands) for the 1000-1750 kg weight class, flying from Casablanca to El Paso, Texas
in the same aircraft fitted with a smaller engine, with a flight time of 56 hours. At the time he also held the 500-1000 kg record, set on his transcontinental Pacer flight in 1952.
, Honolulu, Wake Island
, Guam
, Manila
, Singapore
, Bombay, Nairobi
, Lagos
, Dakar
, Amapa, Brazil
, Atkinson Field (British Guiana
), Port of Spain
(Trinidad
), and crossed the equator
twice.
Conrad was accompanied by Richard Jennings, an observer for the record flight.
or FAI, the aviation world record adjudicating body).
. Vinson is the highest mountain in Antarctica, located about 1200 km (745.6 mi) from the South Pole
. That year, a team of climbers sponsored by the American Alpine Club and the National Geographic Society, and supported in the field by the U.S. Navy and the National Science Foundation Office of Antarctic Programs. At the same time, an unauthorized attempt was announced by Woodrow Wilson Sayre, who was planning to fly in a Piper Apache piloted by Conrad with four companions into the Sentinel Range to climb the Vinson Massif. Sayre had a reputation for problematic trips as a result of his unauthorized, unsuccessful, and nearly fatal attempt to climb Mount Everest
from the north in 1962. His unauthorized incursion into Tibet
led China
to file an official protest with the U.S. State Department. However, the attempt did not materialize. Conrad had difficulties with his plane, and according to press reports at the time, he and Sayre were still in Buenos Aires
on the day the first four members of authorized team reached Vinson's summit.
Summit, New Jersey
Summit is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 21,457. Summit had the 16th-highest per capita income in the state as of the 2000 Census....
) known as the "Flying Grandfather", was a record-setting aviator. In the 1950s and 1960s, he set nine official light plane world records, three of which still stand at the end of 2008. For his efforts, he was awarded the Louis Blériot medal in 1952 and the prestigious Harmon Trophy
Harmon Trophy
The Harmon Trophy is a set of three international trophies, to be awarded annually to the world's outstanding aviator, aviatrix , and aeronaut...
in 1964. Winona Municipal Airport
Winona Municipal Airport
Winona Municipal Airport , also known as Max Conrad Field, is a public airport located three miles northwest of the central business district of Winona, Minnesota and adjacent to Goodview along the Mississippi River, in Winona County, Minnesota, USA. It serves general aviation for Winona and the...
, also known as Max Conrad Field, in Winona County, Minnesota
Winona County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 49,985 people, 18,744 households, and 11,696 families residing in the county. The population density was 80 people per square mile . There were 19,551 housing units at an average density of 31 per square mile...
is named in his honor.
Biography
Conrad was born on January 21, 1903 in Winona, MinnesotaWinona, Minnesota
Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the U.S. State of Minnesota. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf....
, where he later attended Cotter High School, graduating in 1921.
In 1929, while Conrad operated Conrad Flying Service, a woman was killed at Frontenac, Minnesota
Frontenac, Minnesota
Frontenac is an unincorporated community in Florence Township, Goodhue County, Minnesota, United States, on the Mississippi River.-History:James Wells established a trading post in the location that would become Frontenac before 1850. He dealt mostly with Native Americans until the railroad was...
when she walked into the spinning propeller of Conrad's aircraft. He had jumped out to try and stop her but was himself struck in the head. Conrad took months to recover.
One of Conrad's students during 1940 was Arthur "Art" Donahue
Art Donahue
Arthur Gerald "Art" Donahue was a United States fighter pilot and ace who volunteered to fly for the British Royal Air Force in World War II. He was killed in action.-Early life:...
who, as a teenager, learned to fly at Conrad Flying Service. After learning how to fly and becoming Minnesota's youngest commercially certificated pilot at the age of 19, Donahue worked for Conrad helping to run the flight school until he left to join the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. He became one of only seven American pilots to fly for the RAF during the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
, earned ace
Ace
An ace is a playing card. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the case of the Ace of Spades...
status and was later killed in combat over the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
Conrad's brother was killed in a plane crash.
On March 24, 1957, Conrad left Logan International Airport for his 25th Atlantic crossing.
Flights from Casablanca
From June 2-4, 1959 Conrad flew Comanche 250Piper PA-24 Comanche
The Piper PA-24 Comanche is a four-seat, low-wing, all-metal, light aircraft of monocoque construction with retractable landing gear that was first flown in May 1956 according to a Piper Aircraft Company press release...
N110LF non-stop from Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
, Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, a distance of 7668 mi (12,340.4 km). This distance record (for aircraft in the 1750-3000 kilogram weight class) stood until 1987. With interior seats replaced by fuel tanks, the aircraft was loaded 2000 lb (907.2 kg) over its production gross weight limit when Conrad took off from Casablanca.
A few months later, on November 24, 1959, Conrad set the record (that still stands) for the 1000-1750 kg weight class, flying from Casablanca to El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
in the same aircraft fitted with a smaller engine, with a flight time of 56 hours. At the time he also held the 500-1000 kg record, set on his transcontinental Pacer flight in 1952.
Around-the-world record
Having chosen a westward route that exceeded the length of the Earth's equatorial circumference, Conrad left Miami in a PA-23 Aztec named New Frontiers (registration N4445P) on February 27, 1961 and touched down in Miami on March 8. His average speed was 123.19 mph (198.3 km/h). He made stops in Long Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, Honolulu, Wake Island
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
, Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Bombay, Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
, Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
, Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, Amapa, Brazil
Amapá (city)
Amapá is a municipality located in the easternmost portion of the state of Amapá in Brazil. Its population is 7,745 and its area is 9,169 km². The city is home to the Lago Piratuba Biological Reserve....
, Atkinson Field (British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
), Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
(Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
), and crossed the equator
Equator
An equator is the intersection of a sphere's surface with the plane perpendicular to the sphere's axis of rotation and containing the sphere's center of mass....
twice.
Conrad was accompanied by Richard Jennings, an observer for the record flight.
FAI certified world records
Conrad set nine official aviation world records (as recognized by the Fédération Aéronautique InternationaleFédération Aéronautique Internationale
The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale is the world governing body for air sports and aeronautics and astronautics world records. Its head office is in Lausanne, Switzerland. This includes man-carrying aerospace vehicles from balloons to spacecraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles...
or FAI, the aviation world record adjudicating body).
| Date | Aircraft | FAI Class | Record Event | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 May 1952 | PA-20-135 Pacer Piper PA-20 Pacer The PA-20 Pacer and PA-22 Tri-Pacer are a family of four-place, strut braced, high-wing light aircraft that were built by Piper Aircraft in the post-World War II period.... |
C-1b | Distance | 3962.744 km (2,462.3 mi) Los Angeles CA - New York NY |
| 4 June 1959 | PA-24-250 Comanche Piper PA-24 Comanche The Piper PA-24 Comanche is a four-seat, low-wing, all-metal, light aircraft of monocoque construction with retractable landing gear that was first flown in May 1956 according to a Piper Aircraft Company press release... |
C-1d | Distance | 12341.26 km (7,668.5 mi) Casablanca - Trinidad - El Paso - Los Angeles |
| 26 November 1959 | PA-24-180 Comanche Piper PA-24 Comanche The Piper PA-24 Comanche is a four-seat, low-wing, all-metal, light aircraft of monocoque construction with retractable landing gear that was first flown in May 1956 according to a Piper Aircraft Company press release... |
C-1c | Distance | 11211.83 km (6,966.7 mi) Casablanca - El Paso TX |
| 4 July 1960 | PA-24-180 Comanche | C-1c | Distance over closed course | 11138.72 km (6,921.3 mi)} Minneapolis MN - Chicago IL - Des Moines IA |
| 8 March 1961 | PA-23 Aztec | C-1 | Speed around the world, westbound | 198.27 km/h (123.2 mph) |
| 8 March 1961 | PA-23 Aztec | C-1d | Speed around the world, westbound | 198.27 km/h (123.2 mph) |
| 26 December 1964 | PA-30 Twin Comanche | C-1e | Distance | 12678.83 km (7,878.3 mi) Cape Town - St Petersburg FL |
| 4 February 1968 | PA-23 Aztec | C-1d | Distance over closed course | 6357.48 km (3,950.4 mi) Chicago - Milwaukee |
| 7 September 1968 | PA-23 Aztec | C-1e | Distance over closed course | 8549.2 km (5,312.2 mi) |
Vinson Massif controversy
In 1966, Conrad was involved in a controversial attempt to climb Vinson MassifVinson Massif
Vinson Massif is the highest mountain of Antarctica, lying in the Sentinel Range of the Ellsworth Mountains, which stand above the Ronne Ice Shelf near the base of the Antarctic Peninsula. The massif is located about from the South Pole and is about long and wide. At the highest point is Mount...
. Vinson is the highest mountain in Antarctica, located about 1200 km (745.6 mi) from the South Pole
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
. That year, a team of climbers sponsored by the American Alpine Club and the National Geographic Society, and supported in the field by the U.S. Navy and the National Science Foundation Office of Antarctic Programs. At the same time, an unauthorized attempt was announced by Woodrow Wilson Sayre, who was planning to fly in a Piper Apache piloted by Conrad with four companions into the Sentinel Range to climb the Vinson Massif. Sayre had a reputation for problematic trips as a result of his unauthorized, unsuccessful, and nearly fatal attempt to climb Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
from the north in 1962. His unauthorized incursion into Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
led China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
to file an official protest with the U.S. State Department. However, the attempt did not materialize. Conrad had difficulties with his plane, and according to press reports at the time, he and Sayre were still in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
on the day the first four members of authorized team reached Vinson's summit.
- crash at the south polehttp://www.southpolestation.com/trivia/igy2/conrad/conrad1.html
- website developed
- winona paper search
Awards
On August 8, 1965, Conrad was named that year's winner of the Harmon International Aviation Trophy, (although the New York Times indicates that Joan Smith also received the trophy for the flight, the official Harmon Trophy site does not list her). The Harmon trophies are described by the Clifford B. Harmon Trust as "American awards for the most outstanding international achievements in the arts and/or science of aeronautics for the preceding year, with the art of flying receiving first consideration."- pdf of aopa pilot article, 11/99 http://dmairfield.com/people/conrad_ma/Conrad%20Max.pdf
Further reading
- Sally Buegeleisen, Into the Wind, The Story of Max Conrad, 1973, Random House, New York, ISBN 0-394-46306-4.
External links
- Memorial website
- PA-24 Comanche information, including the three record flights from Aviastar
- Obituary for Ethel Meyer Finley, one of Conrad's students who later became a WASPWomen Airforce Service PilotsThe Women Airforce Service Pilots and its predecessor groups the Women's Flying Training Detachment and the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron were pioneering organizations of civilian female pilots employed to fly military aircraft under the direction of the United States Army Air Forces...
- Pilot's website