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37-660: The Sperry Messenger is an American single-seat biplane designed by Alfred V. Verville working for the Engineering Division of the United States Army Air Service (USAAS) and built under contract by Sperry Aircraft Company of Farmingdale, New York. The aircraft was later designated the M-1 and MAT by the USAAS. Sperry produced approximately 50 Messengers and the civilian two-seat version,

74-814: A correspondence course in electrical engineering . He moved to Detroit , Michigan , at the age of twenty, and from 1910 to 1913 he worked in the electrical departments of the Detroit Edison Company , Ford Motor Company , and Hudson Motor Car Company . By 1913, Verville had made his mind up that he wanted to learn to fly. William Edmund Scripps , the editor and owner of The Detroit News , introduced Verville to Glenn Curtiss in July 1913. Curtiss encouraged Verville to apply for his spring 1914 flight school. Instead, Verville went to Hammondsport, New York , in February 1914, where Curtiss Aeroplane Company

111-559: A 10-lap course at Wilbur Wright Field . For the 1924 National Air Races, his R-3 won the 1924 Pulitzer Speed Trophy at 216 mph. While at the Air Service, Verville was awarded eight aeronautical patents for technologies such as airplane truss design, radiator mounting, and an automatic gun mechanism. In 1925, Verville left the government service to co-found the Buhl-Verville Aircraft Company with

148-526: A child, his mother bought him a Conyne-style box kite from Sears Roebuck , which captured his imagination and started his interest in flight and aviation. Verville also began reading stories about the Wright brothers in newspapers and magazines with great interest. Later he even wrote to the Wrights and Glenn Curtiss and received responses. After graduating from Adams Township High School, Verville took

185-730: A designer and you don't know it." While at Curtiss Aeroplane, Verville took an active part in the development of the transatlantic flying boat America (which was a Curtiss H-2 ) and the Curtiss Jenny of World War I fame. In the fall of 1914, Verville left the company and joined the Aeromarine Plane and Motor Company in New Jersey; shortly thereafter, he joined the Thomas-Morse Airplane Company . In March 1915, he returned to Detroit and joined

222-493: A passenger in a plane, c. 1913 (age 23). Verville excelled as a draftsman and designer, but still wanted to attend flight school and to become an exhibition pilot . After applying and being passed over three times for the Curtiss Flying School , Verville went to Curtiss, who responded: "No, Mr. Verville you don't want to be a pilot. We can get all the pilots we want. What we want are designers. You're [really]

259-819: A selection as a fellow of the Smithsonian Institution 's National Air and Space Museum in 1962. An airmail stamp was issued in 1985 by the US Postal Service in Verville's honor. In 1991, he was posthumously inducted into the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame. Verville was born in Atlantic Mine , a small town in Michigan 's Upper Peninsula , on November 16, 1890, as the son of Victor Verville and Fabianna Miron. As

296-589: A top speed of 156.54 mph. In 1919 Brigadier General Billy Mitchell requested the Engineering Division to design a light-weight "motorcycle of the air" that could operate as a liaison between Army field units. Verville completed the Messenger design in early 1920. The Lawrence Sperry Aircraft Company of Farmingdale was contracted to build five Messengers in April 1920. The first Messenger flight

333-413: A top speed of 181 mph. After the 1922 race, Verville was able to finally obtain a Curtiss D-12 engine. It was installed on an R-3 and based on trials, it was determined that it could break a world record. On March 31, 1923, with Orville Wright officially observing from the ground, pilot Lieutenant Alexander Pearson Jr. set a 500 km world speed record of 167.73 mph (269.94 km/h) over

370-557: A trapeze attached to a non-rigid airship, the TC-3 . In the Messenger, Finter remained attached briefly while the airship made a turn, then he unhooked and landed the aircraft on the ground. General characteristics Performance Armament Related lists Alfred V. Verville Verville was a founder of three aeronautical companies, the General Aeroplane Company , Verville Aircraft Company , and

407-541: Is a civil township of Houghton County in the U.S. state of Michigan . As of the 2020 census , the township population was 2,540. According to the United States Census Bureau , the township has a total area of 47.7 square miles (124 km ), of which 47.2 square miles (122 km ) is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km ) (1.01%) is water. As of the census of 2000, there were 2,747 people, 1,011 households, and 630 families residing in

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444-604: The Buhl Aircraft Company . He worked for General Billy Mitchell during his service at the United States Army Air Service from 1918 to 1925. From 1937 to 1945, he worked as a consultant for companies such as Douglas Aircraft , Curtiss-Wright , Snead Aircraft, and Drexel Aviation. Verville spent the next sixteen years in the U.S. federal government , primarily in the Bureau of Aeronautics , before retiring in 1961. Verville received many honors and awards, including

481-625: The General Aeroplane Company , where he led his first full design and build to his specifications, the Verville Flying Boat. On July 9, 1917, Verville married Bertha M. Kamrath in Escanaba, Michigan . He had three children with her, daughters Betty and Janet, and son Myron. Also in 1917, Verville left the General Aeroplane Company to become executive engineer of Fisher Body Corporation , where he supervised

518-552: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics used one in its pioneering aerodynamic research programs from 1923 to 1929. Sperry modified twelve into the radio-controlled Messenger Aerial Torpedo, an early flying bomb , and developed the apparatus for a Messenger to make the first successful airship hook on and release in December 1924. On December 15, at Scott Field, Illinois, Lt. Clyde Finter hooked on to

555-692: The National Air Races . Verville was the chief designer from the company's founding in 1925 until 1927. In 1928, Verville left Buhl-Verville to establish the Verville Aircraft Company , also in Detroit. The company sought to market planes to the wealthy private owner. Verville Aircraft produced the Verville Air Coach , a four-passenger, high-wing monoplane , which made its debut at the 1929 Detroit Air Show and

592-697: The Verville Sport Trainer , a two-seat tandem biplane. The United States Army Air Corps purchased four Sport Trainers under the designation YPT-10. The USAAC tested with five different engine versions resulting in YPT-10 thru YPT-10D designations. Verville joined the Aeronautics Branch of the Department of Commerce in 1933. The Aeronautics Branch became the Bureau of Air Commerce in 1934. During his time there, Verville served in

629-692: The Buhl family in Detroit . On March 29, 1927, Buhl was awarded the first Approved Type Certificate for its Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster (i.e. A.T.C. No. 1 ) issued by the Aeronautics Branch of the Department of Commerce on March 29, 1927. There were a total of 20 of this aircraft manufactured and it broke a number of speed and endurance records, placing at the top of the Ford National Reliability Air Tour and

666-576: The Drexel Aviation Company (1942–45). Verville briefly returned to the Bureau of Air Commerce from 1939 to 1941. In 1945, once again returning to government service, he joined as a member of the Naval Technical Mission to Europe, and later, the U.S. Navy 's Bureau of Aeronautics (1946–1961). At the Bureau of Aeronautics , from 1950 until his retirement in 1961, Verville was a technical advisor and consultant to

703-543: The European progress of aviation. From their research they produced a 206-page report, which was published as a U.S. Army Air Service Information Circular. General Mitchell asked Verville to incorporate some of the European developments they had observed and to produce a plane for the U.S. Army Air Service's participation in the upcoming 1922 National Air Races. The resulting plane, the Verville-Sperry R-3 ,

740-587: The Lincoln Memorial. The prototype was used by Lawrence Sperry who disappeared in 1923, flying a Messenger across the English Channel from France to England . In 1922, Lawrence converted the Messenger into a private sport plane, one that could be kept in an ordinary garage and was easy to fly. Lawrence demonstrated his new achievement in a dramatic way. Angered because the government was slow to make payments on his contracts, Lawrence fueled

777-604: The Sport Plane, between 1920 and 1926. The aircraft was the first to make contact between an airplane and an airship while in flight. In 1921 Alfred V. Verville led the Engineering Division of the USAAS's design of a simple single-seat biplane to be used as a messenger aircraft to replace motorcycles. The aircraft was built by the Sperry Aircraft Company as the Sperry Messenger . The Messenger

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814-400: The apparatus for a Messenger to make the first successful airship hook on and release in December 1924. Following World War I , in the capacity as an engineering advisor, Verville joined General Billy Mitchell and his aide, Lieutenant Clayton Bissell , on their sailing trip to Europe in December 1921. The three men toured France, Italy, Germany, Holland, and England in order to check on

851-730: The construction of de Havilland DH-4 airplanes. In June 1918, Verville joined the Engineering Division of the U.S. Army Air Service (USAAS) as a civilian, and was based out of the USAAS Engineering Division at McCook Field in Dayton, Ohio . In 1920, the young engineer gained national prominence when his Verville-Packard R-1 won the Pulitzer Speed Classic Trophy at the first held National Air Races (at Roosevelt Field, New York ) by finishing first out of twenty four other planes, achieving

888-591: The design and development of nearly twenty different aircraft. A plane he designed, the Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger is on permanent exhibition at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center . Another plane he designed, the Verville-Sperry R-3 won first place at the 1924 Pulitzer Trophy Races . In June 1961, it was honored as one of the twelve most significant aircraft of all time by Popular Mechanics and it

925-616: The director of the Technical Data Division. Verville retired in 1961 and moved to La Jolla, California . He died on March 10, 1970, from a heart attack at age 79. In 1962, Verville was selected as a fellow of the Smithsonian's National Air Museum. He was honored with ten Certificates or Letters of Commendation from the U.S. Armed Forces. He was an honorary fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and

962-666: The following roles: aeronautical engineer; chief of the Manufacturing, Engineering, and Inspections Service; and finally assistant chief of the Aeronautic Development Section. In his role as chief of the Manufacturing, Engineering, and Inspections Service, he was in charge of the reviews for issuing type certificates for all manufactured airplanes. Verville left government service to be a consultant for companies including Douglas Aircraft (1937–38), Curtiss-Wright (1941–42), Snead Aircraft (1942), and

999-527: The history of aviation. Over 20 boxes of material from Verville's estate are housed at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's Garber Facility . A 33 cent United States Postal Service airmail stamp was issued on February 13, 1985, bearing Verville's name, picture, the text "Aviation Pioneer", and an image of his Verville-Sperry R-3 low-wing monoplane. Over the course of his forty-seven years in designing and building planes, Verville contributed to

1036-591: The plane and flew to Washington to strike a telling blow against the bureaucracy. Circling the Capitol at ground level to disrupt Congress, he landed directly on the Capitol steps and stormed into the office of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy. The Messenger's small size, simple construction, and inexpensive cost made it ideal for testing and experimentation. As well as the original communications duties,

1073-450: The population. 47.1% were of Finnish , 8.6% Italian , 7.8% German and 5.6% English ancestry according to Census 2000 . There were 1,011 households, out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.5% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.6% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who

1110-428: The township. The population density was 58.1 inhabitants per square mile (22.4/km ). There were 1,160 housing units at an average density of 24.6 per square mile (9.5/km ). The racial makeup of the township was 92.61% White , 5.17% African American , 0.15% Native American , 0.55% Asian , 0.04% Pacific Islander , 0.22% from other races , and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.62% of

1147-455: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.19. In the township the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 124.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 132.1 males. The median income for

Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger - Misplaced Pages Continue

1184-503: Was a conventional biplane with a fixed tailskid landing gear and a nose-mounted 60 hp (45 kW) Lawrance L-4 radial engine. In 1924 the military aircraft were given USAAS designations M-1 , M-1A and MAT . Lawrence Sperry gained attention when he landed his personal Messenger in front of the Capitol building and bounced up the front steps in Washington D.C. (See photo below.) He also successfully landed his little Messenger at

1221-604: Was featured on a USPS airmail stamp issued in 1985. Curtiss Jenny (1914) America (1914) Verville Flying Boat (1916) Gamma S (1917) Gamma L (1917) Verville-Clark-Pursuit 1 & 2 (1920) Verville-Packard R-1 (1920) Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger (1921) Verville-Sperry R-3 (1922) Engineering Division TP-1 (1923) YPT-10 (1925) , Primary Trainer Buhl-Verville CA-3/CW-3 Airster (1925–1926) Verville Air Coach (1929) Verville Sport Trainer (1930) Adams Township, Houghton County, Michigan Adams Township

1258-412: Was located, and told Curtiss he wanted to work as an apprentice in his drafting and engineering shop. Curtiss agreed and this began Verville's aviation career. I always had that wonderful feeling in flying, no matter what kind of weather ... I just wondered why men hadn't learned to fly years ago, it was so wonderful ... It was a symphony. — Alfred Verville describing his first flight as

1295-754: Was named an Elder Statesman of Aviation by the National Aeronautic Association in 1956. In 1961, he was elected as a fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics . In 1991, he was posthumously inducted into the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame. The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum established the Verville Fellowship in his name, which is a competitive nine-to-twelve month in-residence fellowship for researching

1332-424: Was on November 1. Later designated the Verville-Sperry M-1 Messenger , the plane is notable for its small size, simple construction, and inexpensive cost, which made it ideal for testing and experimentation. The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics used one in its pioneering aerodynamic research programs from 1923 to 1929. Sperry modified twelve into the radio-controlled Messenger Aerial Torpedo and developed

1369-476: Was the second plane to utilize retractable landing gear and incorporated many features advanced for its time. The completion of the R-3 encountered challenges because the planned Curtiss D-12 engine was not available. So, instead Verville had to use the problematic Wright H-3 (Hispano) engine, which had major vibration issues. Three R-3s competed in the 1922 National Air Races, but only one finished in 5th place with

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