Glenn Hammond Curtis was born on May 21st, 1878 at Hammondsport, N.Y. USA (Trimble, 2010) . He is said to e the pioneer and the leading American manufacturer of aircraft by the time the USA was entering the World War 1. Curtis began his career in bicycle business, where he built lightweight internal combustion engines for his motorcycles. He also participated in bicycle and motorcycle races due to his fascination with speed. Curtis later joined the aviation industry in the year 1904 when he was approached by the balloonist Thomas Scott Baldwin, to build a lightweight engine that could allow putting a machine heavier than air to float in the air (Trimble, 2010) . Curtis built an engine, and Baldwin was able to fly his ship using the engine created by Curtis.
In the subsequent years, Curtis continued to develop aircrafts that were more advanced and covered longer distances. He won several rewards, including the Scientific American Trophy, where he flew at 5080 ft, the first preannounced heavier-than-air flying machine in America (Trimble, 2010) . Between 1909 and 1910, aviation competitions provided a platform for Curtis to showcase his products. In 1910, he simulated a bombing demonstration to naval officers at Hammondsport (Trimble, 2010) . Together with Lt. Jacob E. Fickel, they demonstrated a shooting scenario from a plane, with Curtis being the pilot. His relationship with the Navy began in November 1910 when his demonstration pilot Eugene Ely took off from a temporary platform mounted on the forward deck of the cruiser USS Birmingham and ensured the flight reached the shore (Trimble, 2010) . He continued to train the navy on aviation matters while continuously developing new machines such as the seaplane that could take off and land on the sea in January 1911 dubbed the seaplane. Together with a British naval officer, Curtis developed the first flying boat in 1914, a two-engine plane, meant for a transatlantic crossing. Porte returned to the Royal Navy following the start of World War 1 and continued improving Curtis’ creations. These improved were sold to the U.S. Forces by the British, or built by Curtis as the F5L.
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During the World War 1, Curtis created a total of “68 Large Americas” that evolved to H-12, the only American-designed, and built aircraft to see combat in World War 1. In 1916, Curtis was ordered to develop a simple easy to fly and maintain two-seater plane (Trimble, 2010) . He created JN-4 for the Army and JN-9 for the navy. He was later commissioned to by the U.S. Navy in 1917 to build a long range-four engine flying boat that could hold a crew of 5 (Goldstone, 2015) . He created the four NC flying boats that successfully crossed the transatlantic in 1919 (Goldstone, 2015) . His designs continued to be used during the World War 1 across the nations. He, however, faced a patent dispute with the Wright brothers that the U.S. government pushed to closure following a shortage of combat aircrafts (Goldstone, 2015) . This was followed by a contract by the U.S. government to Curtis to build aircrafts for the army.
After the end of World War 1, the contracts expired. Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company underwent a financial reorganization in 1920 that saw Curtis cash his stock in the company for $32 million and retired in Florida. He continued serving as a design adviser and director in the company (Trimble, 2010) . He later founded 18 corporations that served civic commissions in Florida, including donating extensive land and water rights.
References
Goldstone, L. (2015). Birdmen: The Wright brothers, Glenn Curtiss, and the battle to control the skies .
Trimble, W. F. (2010). Hero of the air: Glenn Curtiss and the birth of naval aviation . Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press.
