Monocoupe Aircraft was a manufacturer of light airplanes originally produced in the late 1920s and 30s.Richard Harris
"Monocoupe: Speed for the Common Man"
''AAHS Journal,'' Vol. 56, No. 4 (Winter 2011),

American Aviation Historical Society The American Aviation Historical Society (AAHS) is a non-profit organization "dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of he history ofAmerican aviation.""AAHS Mission," Winter 2019, ''AAHS Journal,'' vol.64, no.4, page 242, retrieved May 1 ...

They introduced relatively inexpensive, compact, and sporty aircraft in an era of large, maintenance intensive, open-cockpit biplanes, and the Monocoupe series was one of the first economical, closed-cabin, two-seat, light aircraft in the United States. As a result, the Monocoupe soon became a successful brand.

History

Original company

Central States Airplane Company was established in 1927 to build Don Luscombe's Monocoupe. In January 1928, the company became the Mono Aircraft Division of Velie Motor Corporation. Following Willard Velie's death in March 1929, the Velie interests were sold to

Allied Aviation Industries An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or sovereign state, states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alli ...

, a holding company. By May, these interests were divided into two separate companies: the Lambert Aircraft Engine Corporation and the Mono Aircraft Company of

Moline, Illinois Moline ( ) is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 42,985 in 2020, it is the largest city in Rock Island County. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline, Illinois, East M ...

. Both companies passed into receivership in 1931, reemerging in 1932 as the Lambert Engine and Machine Company and the Monocoupe Corporation. In July 1934, the two companies joined under the newly formed Lambert Aircraft Corporation with ''Monocoupe'' continuing to operate under its own name. The company was dissolved in 1940 and its assets passed to the Monocoupe Aeroplane and Engine Corporation of Orlando, Florida.Bell, 2002. p. 207. Later, in September 1941, ''Monocoupe'' acquired the Bristol Aircraft Corporation of

Bristol, Virginia Bristol is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,219. It is the twin city of Bristol, Tennessee, just across the state line, which runs down the middle of its main street, State S ...

and its Canadian subsidiary ''Bristol Aircraft Products Ltd.'' The operations of these three companies were combined under the Universal Molded Products Corporation with ''Monocoupe'' forming a separate division of the company. Aircraft production halted during World War II, resuming briefly in 1948-1950 under the name Monocoupe Airplane and Engine Corporation. In 1955, the corporate assets were acquired by a

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

aviation group, which reorganized the company as Monocoupe Aircraft of Florida, Inc. and transferred operations to

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando. As of th2020 Decennial Census there was a population of 84,678. The municipality is the second-largest in the county by both size and population. ...

Modern companies

The company name re-emerged as Mono Aircraft, Inc. briefly in 1992, in Cheney, Kansas, with the Monocoupe type certificate acquired by Saturn Aircraft & Engineering, Oxnard, California.

Aviat Aircraft Aviat Aircraft Inc. is an American manufacturer of sport and utility aircraft based in Afton, Wyoming.Bayerl, Robby; Martin Berkemeier; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2011-12'', page 94. WDLA UK, Lancaster UK, 2011. ISSN 1368-485X ...

developed a modernized variation of the Monocoupe 110 as the 200-horsepower 110 Special, and sold a few with modern 200-horspepower engines. The Monocoupe Aeroplane Corporation was again re-established in

Grantville, Pennsylvania Grantville is an unincorporated community in East Hanover Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Harrisburg– Carlisle Metropolitan Statistical Area. Points of Interest * Hollywood Casino at Penn National Ra ...

, in late 2016, to build reproduction Monocoupe 110 Specials with Warner 185 engines and modern technology.

Aircraft

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Bell, Dana ed. ''The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Directory of Airplanes their Designers and Manufacturers''. Stackpole Books Mechanicsburg, PA, 2002. .

External links

{{commons category, Monocoupe aircraft
Monocoupe.com (archived)
Defunct aircraft manufacturers of the United States Manufacturing companies based in Pennsylvania Defunct companies based in Pennsylvania Manufacturers based in Grantville, Pennsylvania