Spartan Aircraft Company
Encyclopedia
The Spartan Aircraft Company was an American aircraft
manufacturing company formerly known as Mid-Continent Aircraft Company and reorganized under the Spartan name in 1928 by oil baron William G. Skelly in Tulsa, Oklahoma
. The manufacturing plant was on Sheridan Avenue near the Tulsa Municipal Airport
. Spartan built a number of different products before the closing its factories in 1961, including aircraft, aircraft components, and recreational vehicle trailers
. Spartan was best known for the luxurious Spartan Executive
aircraft produced in the late 1930s and early 1940s, made famous by such owners as Howard Hughes
and King Ghazi of Iraq
.
J. Paul Getty
acquired the company from Skelly in 1935. After World War II, Getty ceased producing aircraft and converted the company to manufacturing trailers.
companies of the time, Spartan's roots can be traced to oil. In 1905, an oil gusher named No. 1 Ida Glenn
sprung up just southeast of Tulsa. What was initially thought to be a localized small gusher turned out to be a fairly large oil reserve large enough to establish companies such as Getty Oil
, Gulf Oil
, Standard Oil
(Exxon
), Sinclair Oil
and Skelly Oil
. Through the "Roaring Twenties
," much innovation
took place allowing further improvement of existing and recently-introduced technologies. Of those made wealthy by the Tulsa oil boom, William G. Skelly stepped forward and used his considerable new wealth to fund the Spartan Aircraft Company in 1928. J. Paul Getty, impressed by the rapid growth and efficiency of Spartan's manufacturing facilities, would later purchase the company from Skelly in 1935.
The first aircraft produced by the Spartan Aircraft Company was the Spartan C3
open-cockpit biplane
. Built in 1926 (first flight 25 October, 1926), the C3-1 was the first of a series of variants of the design for flight schools
, sportsman aviator
s, and Fixed-Base Operators (FBO)
. The Spartan C3-225 was the last early biplane design produced by the company. At least 160 C-3's were built, using various engines.
1930 saw the production of Spartan's first monoplane
design, the Spartan C2-60. Designed for the sportsman flier, the C2-60 was a lightweight design with a small 60 h.p.
engine
. Using many of C2-60's characteristics, Spartan produced the heavier, more powerful C2-165 low-wing monoplane. Unpopular with the military due to the view-obstructing low-wing design, the C2-165 was primarily used for civilian training purposes.
Improvements in Spartan's manufacturing and technology was evident in the 1930 Spartan C4. The C4 was a high-wing monoplane designed for low-maintenance, high-comfort, and the best possible performance available for the time. The Spartan C4 was designed to accommodate large engines of 230 h.p. and more.
was a direct result of founder William Skelly's vision for an aircraft designed to accommodate the luxury and performance expected by the world's wealthier individuals. Powered by a 450 h.p. Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. engine, the Executive was Spartan's first attempt at an all-metal aircraft design using monocoque
technology. The large engine and aerodynamic airframe allowed for a then-remarkable 200 miles (321.9 km) an hour cruise speed, a range of over 1000 nautical miles (1,852 km) and a 22000 ft (6,705.6 m). service ceiling
. The Executive's high-performance design was clearly evident in the 1939 Bendix race
, in which the stock design aircraft won the trophy with speeds of nearly 197 miles per hour. Owing to the aircraft design mission to satisfy wealthy owners, the 34 7W's produced met a very wealthy and diverse audience of owners.
Based directly on the high-performance design of the civilian Spartan 7W, a military version of the aircraft was developed to meet military needs for high-performance reconnaissance and training aircraft. This re-designed model was named the Spartan Zeus 8W and featured a powerful Pratt & Whitney Wasp
600 h.p. engine.
trainer, the Spartan NP-1 featured a lightweight open-cockpit construction with a Lycoming R-680-B4C
225 h.p. engine.
, owner J. Paul Getty
and Spartan upper-management decided to change the company's product line to meet the skyrocketing demand for housing and leisure. Using the same internally-braced and space-saving monocoque design of the Spartan Executive 7W, the company produced its first all-metal trailer
. The company followed in the footsteps of previous design strategies and aimed to become the most lavish and full-featured trailers produced in the United States. Through the 1940s and 1950s, Spartan produced what would quickly become known as the "Cadillac
" of trailers, commanding prices upwards of $4000 each. Spartan produced over 40,000 trailer homes before it ceased production in 1961. Considering the average home cost in the United States at this time was $8000, Spartan trailers were deemed expensive, and like the Spartan Executive 7W, available to the select and wealthy few.
and financial
business under the name Minnehoma Insurance Co. The Spartan name was sold to the Spartan School of Aeronautics
, which operates today under the name Spartan College of Aeronautics.
Aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
manufacturing company formerly known as Mid-Continent Aircraft Company and reorganized under the Spartan name in 1928 by oil baron William G. Skelly in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. The manufacturing plant was on Sheridan Avenue near the Tulsa Municipal Airport
Tulsa International Airport
Tulsa International Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located five miles northeast of downtown Tulsa, a city in Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States. It was originally named Tulsa Municipal Airport, when the city acquired it in 1929...
. Spartan built a number of different products before the closing its factories in 1961, including aircraft, aircraft components, and recreational vehicle trailers
Trailer (vehicle)
A trailer is generally an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle. Commonly, the term trailer refers to such vehicles used for transport of goods and materials....
. Spartan was best known for the luxurious Spartan Executive
Spartan Executive
|-Military Operators:* Royal Canadian Air Force3 Examples based in Montreal, formerly Royal Air Force examples used in California.*Chinese Nationalist Air ForceThe second prototype was exported to China and serialed 1309...
aircraft produced in the late 1930s and early 1940s, made famous by such owners as Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
and King Ghazi of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
J. Paul Getty
J. Paul Getty
Jean Paul Getty was an American industrialist. He founded the Getty Oil Company, and in 1957 Fortune magazine named him the richest living American, whilst the 1966 Guinness Book of Records named him as the world's richest private citizen, worth an estimated $1,200 million. At his death, he was...
acquired the company from Skelly in 1935. After World War II, Getty ceased producing aircraft and converted the company to manufacturing trailers.
Early history
Like many large AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
companies of the time, Spartan's roots can be traced to oil. In 1905, an oil gusher named No. 1 Ida Glenn
Mid-continent Oil Field
The Mid-continent oil field is a broad area containing hundreds of oil fields in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The area, which consists of various geological strata and diverse trap types, was discovered and exploited during the first half of the 20th century...
sprung up just southeast of Tulsa. What was initially thought to be a localized small gusher turned out to be a fairly large oil reserve large enough to establish companies such as Getty Oil
Getty Oil
Getty Oil is an oil company founded by J. Paul Getty. It was at its height during the 1960s. In 1971, the Getty Realty division was formed to manage the real estate needs of Getty stations. The division was later spun off, but now owns the rights to the Getty brand...
, Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil
Gulf Oil was a major global oil company from the 1900s to the 1980s. The eighth-largest American manufacturing company in 1941 and the ninth-largest in 1979, Gulf Oil was one of the so-called Seven Sisters oil companies...
, Standard Oil
Standard Oil
Standard Oil was a predominant American integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. Established in 1870 as a corporation in Ohio, it was the largest oil refiner in the world and operated as a major company trust and was one of the world's first and largest multinational...
(Exxon
Exxon
Exxon is a chain of gas stations as well as a brand of motor fuel and related products by ExxonMobil. From 1972 to 1999, Exxon was the corporate name of the company previously known as Standard Oil Company of New Jersey or Jersey Standard....
), Sinclair Oil
Sinclair Oil
Sinclair Oil Corporation is an American petroleum corporation, founded by Harry F. Sinclair on May 1, 1916 as the Sinclair Oil & Refining Corporation by combining the assets of 11 small petroleum companies. Originally a New York corporation, Sinclair Oil reincorporated in Wyoming in 1976...
and Skelly Oil
Skelly Oil
Skelly Oil Company was a medium sized "major" oil company founded in 1919 by William Grove Skelly, Chesley Coleman Herndon and Frederick A. Pielsticker in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Previously, about 1915, Mr. Skelly had formed Skelly Sanky Oil Company in Duncan, Oklahoma. Mr...
. Through the "Roaring Twenties
Roaring Twenties
The Roaring Twenties is a phrase used to describe the 1920s, principally in North America, but also in London, Berlin and Paris for a period of sustained economic prosperity. The phrase was meant to emphasize the period's social, artistic, and cultural dynamism...
," much innovation
Innovation
Innovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes, technologies, or ideas that are accepted by markets, governments, and society...
took place allowing further improvement of existing and recently-introduced technologies. Of those made wealthy by the Tulsa oil boom, William G. Skelly stepped forward and used his considerable new wealth to fund the Spartan Aircraft Company in 1928. J. Paul Getty, impressed by the rapid growth and efficiency of Spartan's manufacturing facilities, would later purchase the company from Skelly in 1935.
Early Aircraft
Spartan C3
The Spartan C3 was a three-seat open cockpit United States biplane of the late 1920s.The Spartan C3 was a three-seat open cockpit United States biplane of the late 1920s....
open-cockpit biplane
Biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
. Built in 1926 (first flight 25 October, 1926), the C3-1 was the first of a series of variants of the design for flight schools
Flight training
Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills....
, sportsman aviator
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
s, and Fixed-Base Operators (FBO)
Fixed base operator
A Fixed-base operator or commonly abbreviated FBO is a term developed in the United States after the passage of the Air Commerce Act of 1926...
. The Spartan C3-225 was the last early biplane design produced by the company. At least 160 C-3's were built, using various engines.
1930 saw the production of Spartan's first monoplane
Monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
design, the Spartan C2-60. Designed for the sportsman flier, the C2-60 was a lightweight design with a small 60 h.p.
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
engine
Aircraft engine
An aircraft engine is the component of the propulsion system for an aircraft that generates mechanical power. Aircraft engines are almost always either lightweight piston engines or gas turbines...
. Using many of C2-60's characteristics, Spartan produced the heavier, more powerful C2-165 low-wing monoplane. Unpopular with the military due to the view-obstructing low-wing design, the C2-165 was primarily used for civilian training purposes.
Improvements in Spartan's manufacturing and technology was evident in the 1930 Spartan C4. The C4 was a high-wing monoplane designed for low-maintenance, high-comfort, and the best possible performance available for the time. The Spartan C4 was designed to accommodate large engines of 230 h.p. and more.
Spartan Executive 7W
The most popular aircraft ever produced by the Spartan Aircraft Company, the Spartan Executive Model 7WSpartan Executive
|-Military Operators:* Royal Canadian Air Force3 Examples based in Montreal, formerly Royal Air Force examples used in California.*Chinese Nationalist Air ForceThe second prototype was exported to China and serialed 1309...
was a direct result of founder William Skelly's vision for an aircraft designed to accommodate the luxury and performance expected by the world's wealthier individuals. Powered by a 450 h.p. Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. engine, the Executive was Spartan's first attempt at an all-metal aircraft design using monocoque
Monocoque
Monocoque is a construction technique that supports structural load by using an object's external skin, as opposed to using an internal frame or truss that is then covered with a non-load-bearing skin or coachwork...
technology. The large engine and aerodynamic airframe allowed for a then-remarkable 200 miles (321.9 km) an hour cruise speed, a range of over 1000 nautical miles (1,852 km) and a 22000 ft (6,705.6 m). service ceiling
Service ceiling
With respect to aircraft, a ceiling is the maximum density altitude an aircraft can reach under a set of conditions.The word ceiling can also refer to the height of the lowest obscuring cloud layer above the ground.-Service ceiling:...
. The Executive's high-performance design was clearly evident in the 1939 Bendix race
Bendix trophy
The Bendix Trophy is a U.S. aeronautical racing trophy. The transcontinental, point-to-point race, sponsored by industrialist Vincent Bendix founder of Bendix Corporation, began in 1931 as part of the National Air Races. Initial prize money for the winners was $15,000...
, in which the stock design aircraft won the trophy with speeds of nearly 197 miles per hour. Owing to the aircraft design mission to satisfy wealthy owners, the 34 7W's produced met a very wealthy and diverse audience of owners.
Based directly on the high-performance design of the civilian Spartan 7W, a military version of the aircraft was developed to meet military needs for high-performance reconnaissance and training aircraft. This re-designed model was named the Spartan Zeus 8W and featured a powerful Pratt & Whitney Wasp
Pratt & Whitney Wasp
-External links:*...
600 h.p. engine.
End of Aircraft Manufacturing
The last aircraft to be developed by the Spartan Aircraft Company was the Spartan NP-1 biplane. The NP-1 was a throwback to earlier aircraft in appearance, though the technology used in the aircraft's construction was certainly more advanced than the wire and fabric used in Spartan's early biplane designs. Built as a United States NavyUnited States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
trainer, the Spartan NP-1 featured a lightweight open-cockpit construction with a Lycoming R-680-B4C
Lycoming R-680
|-See also:-External links:...
225 h.p. engine.
Spartan Leisure Trailers
Owning to the increased competition of the aircraft business following World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, owner J. Paul Getty
J. Paul Getty
Jean Paul Getty was an American industrialist. He founded the Getty Oil Company, and in 1957 Fortune magazine named him the richest living American, whilst the 1966 Guinness Book of Records named him as the world's richest private citizen, worth an estimated $1,200 million. At his death, he was...
and Spartan upper-management decided to change the company's product line to meet the skyrocketing demand for housing and leisure. Using the same internally-braced and space-saving monocoque design of the Spartan Executive 7W, the company produced its first all-metal trailer
Trailer (vehicle)
A trailer is generally an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle. Commonly, the term trailer refers to such vehicles used for transport of goods and materials....
. The company followed in the footsteps of previous design strategies and aimed to become the most lavish and full-featured trailers produced in the United States. Through the 1940s and 1950s, Spartan produced what would quickly become known as the "Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
" of trailers, commanding prices upwards of $4000 each. Spartan produced over 40,000 trailer homes before it ceased production in 1961. Considering the average home cost in the United States at this time was $8000, Spartan trailers were deemed expensive, and like the Spartan Executive 7W, available to the select and wealthy few.
Factories Close
After 33 years of manufacturing aircraft and trailers, the Spartan Aircraft Company closed its manufacturing facilities and entered the insuranceInsurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
and financial
FINANCIAL
FINANCIAL is the weekly English-language newspaper with offices in Tbilisi, Georgia and Kiev, Ukraine. Published by Intelligence Group LLC, FINANCIAL is focused on opinion leaders and top business decision-makers; It's about world’s largest companies, investing, careers, and small business. It is...
business under the name Minnehoma Insurance Co. The Spartan name was sold to the Spartan School of Aeronautics
Spartan School of Aeronautics
Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology is a private college in Tulsa, Oklahoma that offers training in aviation and aircraft maintenance. Originally established to augment sales of Spartan Aircraft Company, it outlived its parent company and continues to train pilots and mechanics into the...
, which operates today under the name Spartan College of Aeronautics.