Moye Stephens
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Moye Wicks Stephens (February 21, 1906 – 1995) was an American aviator and businessman. He was a pioneer in aviation, circumnavigating the globe with adventure writer
Richard Halliburton Richard Halliburton (January 9, 1900 – Declared death in absentia, presumed dead after March 24, 1939) was an American travel writing, travel writer and adventurer who swam the length of the Panama Canal and paid the lowest toll in its hi ...
in 1931, and co-founding Northrop Aircraft, Inc.


Family

His father was also named Moye Wicks Stephens; his mother was Mary Hendrick Stephens. His grandparents, Judge and Mrs. Albert Moye Stephens, had a ranch in the mountains near
Pomona, California Pomona is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 151,713. The main campus of California State Polyte ...
. He married Contessa Gadina de Turiani, an aviator from
Trieste, Italy Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...
, who had divorced millionaire aviator Ross Hadley. In later years Stephens lived in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico; he died in
Calistoga, California Calistoga (Wappo: ''Nilektsonoma'') is a city in Napa County, in the Wine Country of California. Located in the North Bay region of the Bay Area, the city had a population of 5,228 as of the 2020 census. Calistoga was founded in 1868 when th ...
in 1995.


Friends and acquaintances

Stephens knew
barnstormers Barnstormer, Barnstorm or Barnstorming may refer to: __NOTOC__ Sports * Barnstorming, aerial stunts performed for entertainment, popular in the 1920s * Barnstorming (sports), athletic practice of traveling and playing exhibition matches outside of ...
and
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
s, pioneers of early aviation. These were people such as Frank Clarke,
Pancho Barnes Florence Lowe "Pancho" Barnes (July 22, 1901 – March 30, 1975) was a pioneer aviator and a founder of the first movie stunt pilots' union. In 1930, she broke Amelia Earhart's air speed record. Barnes raced in the Women's Air Derby and was a m ...
, Sandy Sandblom, Leo Nomis, Bud Creeth, Eddie Bellande, Ross Hadley, and Stephens's lifelong best friend, Dick Rinaldi. He knew movie stars such as
Richard Arlen Richard Arlen (born Sylvanus Richard Mattimore, September 1, 1899 – March 28, 1976) was an American actor of film and television. Biography Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Arlen attended the University of Pennsylvania. He served in Canada as a ...
,
Ramon Novarro José Ramón Gil Samaniego (February 6, 1899 – October 30, 1968), known professionally as Ramon Novarro, was a Mexican-American actor. He began his career in silent films in 1917 and eventually became a leading man and one of the top box ...
, Sue Carol, Reginald Denny,
Wallace Beery Wallace Fitzgerald Beery (April 1, 1885 – April 15, 1949) was an American film and stage actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill in ''Min and Bill'' (1930) opposite Marie Dressler, as General Director Preysing in ''Grand Hotel'' (193 ...
, and
Dolores del Río María de los Dolores Asúnsolo y López Negrete (3 August 1904 – 11 April 1983), known professionally as Dolores del Río (), was a Mexican actress. With a career spanning more than 50 years, she is regarded as the first major female Latin Am ...
. He also knew movie executives and directors such as
Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...
,
Victor Fleming Victor Lonzo Fleming (February 23, 1889 – January 6, 1949) was an American film director, cinematographer, and producer. His most popular films were ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'', for which he won an Academy Award for Best ...
,
Howard Hawks Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896December 26, 1977) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is not a household name." A v ...
, and
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
.


Early life


First encounter with planes

Not quite four, he saw his first planes in 1910 at the Los Angeles International Air Meet at Dominguez Field, in today's Dominguez Hills, California, on the southern outskirts of Los Angeles, and the boy became enamored of aeroplanes. His most vivid image was of a French Blériot flown by
Louis Paulhan Isidore Auguste Marie Louis Paulhan (; 19 July 1883 – 10 February 1963), was a French aviator. He is known for winning the first ''Daily Mail'' aviation prize for the first flight between London and Manchester in 1910. Biography Paulhan was b ...
into the Southern California sky; in 1910 it was the only monoplane to have successfully flown, including the first flight across the English Channel.


Flying lessons

After classes at Hollywood High, Stephens rushed to Rogers Airport
Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields is an online database An online database is a database accessible from a local network or the Internet, as opposed to one that is stored locally on an individual computer or its attached storage (such as a CD) ...
: California - West Los Angeles Area
at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue to look at the biplanes and to talk with the pilots. (Today, not a trace of the airport remains.) As months passed, the men came to like the lad, and taught him what they knew, even taking him on short hops. Eventually, Jim Webster, airport manager, agreed—with parental permission—to give him flying lessons in exchange for work around the hangars. In his lessons he was a quick learner, and after logging more cockpit time he finally soloed. This, of course, was an era before the
Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
, with its requisite ground courses and instruction hours. When a pilot first took him aloft, he saw a Los Angeles unrecognizable today. He looked down on a Wilshire Boulevard surrounded by countryside, bordered by "a row of stunted palms." He sometimes flew out of Mines Field, one day to become
Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the W ...
. In 1923, he flew for the first time in an
OX-5 The Curtiss OX-5 was an early V-8 American liquid-cooled aircraft engine built by Curtiss. It was the first American-designed aircraft engine to enter mass production, although it was considered obsolete when it did so in 1917.Smith, 1981, page ...
-powered
Standard J-1 The Standard J is a two-seat basic trainer two-bay biplane produced in the United States from 1916 to 1918, powered by a four-cylinder inline Hall-Scott A-7a engine. It was constructed from wood with wire bracing and fabric covering. The J-1 ...
from Rogers Airport at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue. That same year he persuaded the manager to allow him flying lessons in exchange for work. As a sixteen-year-old at Hollywood High in Los Angeles, he was taught to fly by pilots such as
Leo Nomis Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts an ...
.Leo Nomis
/ref>


First plane purchased

His first plane was a
Thomas-Morse S-4 The Thomas-Morse S-4 Scout was an American biplane advanced trainer, operated by the United States Army and the United States Navy. Dubbed the "Tommy" by pilots who flew it, the aircraft became the favorite single-seat training airplane produced ...
C Scout,Thomas-Morse Scout - USA
/ref> A single-seat biplane with fabric-covered wooden airframe it had been an advanced trainer for World War I pilots. Its engine was quite common at the time, while being most unusual today - a rotary Le
Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
Rotary, in which the engine crankcase with cylinders rotate and drive the propeller, while the crankshaft is stationary, being attached to the firewall. Moye paid movie stunt pilot Leo Nomis $450 for the Scout after his father relented and allowed the boy to buy the plane. (In 2007 a "Tommie" was on sale for $125,000.) Stephens' plane weighed 961 pounds empty and had no throttle. It did have two power-control levers, or manettes, in its place, which served in lieu of carburetor, one controlling air intake, the other, fuel. Engine speed was controlled by a so-called blipper, a switch. To manage speed as he taxied for take off, the pilot cut ignition with the blipper switch, then let it start again. With this plane Moye really learned how to fly. In 1926, he bought his first airplane for $450, a war surplus Thomas-Morse S-4C Scout from
Leo Nomis Leo or Léo may refer to: Acronyms * Law enforcement officer * Law enforcement organisation * ''Louisville Eccentric Observer'', a free weekly newspaper in Louisville, Kentucky * Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity Arts an ...
, a leading motion picture stunt pilot. In 2007, a "Tommie" was listed for sale at $125,000. Link to a picture of a Thomas-Morse S-4 Scou


Education

He graduated Hollywood High School at age 17. His parents kept him from college for a year. He attended
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, Palo Alto, California, graduating in 1928 with an AB in law, then entering Stanford graduate school for a JD so he could one day practice law in his father's firm, mainly to satisfy his father. In 1924 he began study at
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, Palo Alto, California, and majored in law. His father, an attorney, had plans for his son to join his law firm. That summer Stephens returned to his flying lessons at Rogers Airport. In the fall he resumed his studies at Stanford.


Early work

During his summer vacations, he soon started flying in movies as a paid stunt pilot. This included work in
Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...
's Cecil B. DeMille's Biography
/ref> film,
Corporal Kate ''Corporal Kate'' is a 1926 silent film comedy romance directed by Paul Sloane and starring Vera Reynolds and Julia Faye. The film was produced by C. Gardner Sullivan, with production at De Mille Pictures Corp., and released by Producers Distri ...
and in
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
' Howard Hughes
/ref>' Hell's Angels,Hell's Angels (1930)
/ref> famous today for its harrowing World War I aerial combat scenes. In summer 1928 he taught the donor of the Los Angeles
La Brea Tar Pits La Brea Tar Pits is an active paleontological research site in urban Los Angeles. Hancock Park was formed around a group of tar pits where natural asphalt (also called asphaltum, bitumen, or pitch; ''brea'' in Spanish) has seeped up from the gro ...
, Captain G. Allan Hancock, to fly in an
OX-5 The Curtiss OX-5 was an early V-8 American liquid-cooled aircraft engine built by Curtiss. It was the first American-designed aircraft engine to enter mass production, although it was considered obsolete when it did so in 1917.Smith, 1981, page ...
-powered
Travel Air The Travel Air Manufacturing Company was an aircraft manufacturer established in Wichita, Kansas, United States in January 1925 by Clyde Cessna, Walter Beech, and Lloyd Stearman. History The company initially built a series of sporting and tr ...
2000. Hancock backed the Kingsford-Smith Southern Cross Pacific flight. Jack Northrop, Jerry
Vultee The Vultee Aircraft Corporation became an independent company in 1939 in Los Angeles County, California. It had limited success before merging with the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation in 1943, to form the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporatio ...
, and
Cliff Garrett John Clifford Garrett (1908 in Seattle, Washington - 1963) was an American entrepreneur who founded a company in Los Angeles in 1936 which came to be known as Garrett AiResearch. The company was first named Aircraft Tool and Supply Company, then ...
, each eventually founding, respectively, Northrop Aviation,
Vultee Aircraft The Vultee Aircraft Corporation became an independent company in 1939 in Los Angeles County, California. It had limited success before merging with the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation in 1943, to form the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporati ...
, and
Garrett AiResearch Garrett AiResearch was a manufacturer of turboprop engines and turbochargers, and a pioneer in numerous aerospace technologies. It was previously known as Aircraft Tool and Supply Company, Garrett Supply Company, AiResearch Manufacturing Compa ...
, were given their initial flying instruction by Moye Stephens in the same OX-5 Travel Air.
Moye Stephens Moye Wicks Stephens (February 21, 1906 – 1995) was an American aviator and businessman. He was a pioneer in aviation, circumnavigating the globe with adventure writer Richard Halliburton in 1931, and co-founding Northrop Aircraft, Inc. Family ...
was a stunt pilot for Hollywood movies produced by
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
and
Cecil B. DeMille Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American film director, producer and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cine ...
. He gave Hughes flying lessons, and knew
Victor Fleming Victor Lonzo Fleming (February 23, 1889 – January 6, 1949) was an American film director, cinematographer, and producer. His most popular films were ''Gone with the Wind (film), Gone with the Wind'', for which he won an Academy Award for Best ...
,
Gone With The Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Win ...
director, as well as various movie stars. In 1926 with J.M. Hiatt, a Stanford classmate, he wrote stories, "The Assault Upon Miracle Castle", and "Ghosts of the Air", both published in ''
Weird Tales ''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, prin ...
'', a magazine still in existence. He also co-authored science-fiction for
Weird Tales ''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, prin ...
, gave flying lessons to
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
and flew as a stunt pilot in Hughes' silent movie extravaganza, Hell's Angels.


Maddux

In 1928 he left Stanford just when beginning law school as he was hired as captain for Maddux Airlines to fly Ford Tri-Motors, although he had no multi-engine experience. He had no co-pilot at Maddux. Instead the right hand seat was occupied by a mechanic with the title "mate." For aircraft checkout, he rode shotgun on a trip to San Diego, and a trip to Alameda, California. He handled the controls while in the air. He was checked-out for take off and landing by doing a quick circuit of
Grand Central Air Terminal Grand Central Airport is a former airport in Glendale, California. Also known as Grand Central Air Terminal (GCAT), the airport was an important facility for the growing Los Angeles suburb of Glendale in the 1920s and a key element in the deve ...
in
Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...
, with the pilot observing from the right-hand seat. Then the pilot got out and Stephens did three quick solo circuits. The pilot had not stayed to observe. In June 1929 he resigned from Maddux to join
Transcontinental Air Transport Transcontinental Air Transport (T-A-T) was an airline founded in 1928 by Clement Melville Keys that merged in 1930 with Western Air Express to form what became TWA. Keys enlisted the help of Charles Lindbergh to design a transcontinental network t ...
(TAT) which eventually became
Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...
(TWA). TAT was the first United States transcontinental passenger airline. At TAT he flew
Ford Tri-Motor The Ford Trimotor (also called the "Tri-Motor", and nicknamed the "Tin Goose") is an American three-engined transport aircraft. Production started in 1925 by the companies of Henry Ford and ended on June 7, 1933, after 199 had been made. It w ...
s. In 1929 he was elected to a term as president of the Professional Pilots Associationbr>
In the same year he became one of the founders of the Los Angeles Hangar of the
Quiet Birdmen The Quiet Birdmen is a secretive club in the United States for male aviators. Founded in 1921 by World War I pilots, the organization meets in various locations, never announced to the public. Members, called QBs, must be invited to join, and they ...
.


The ''Flying Carpet'' expedition

A few years after
Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
's New York City to Paris flight, Stephens flew an open cockpit biplane around the world. He was approached by travel-adventurist
Richard Halliburton Richard Halliburton (January 9, 1900 – Declared death in absentia, presumed dead after March 24, 1939) was an American travel writing, travel writer and adventurer who swam the length of the Panama Canal and paid the lowest toll in its hi ...
, who proposed up to two years away, visiting well-known and less known places. Stephens chose a Stearman C-3BStearman C-3B - The Museum of Flight pictures from washington photos on webshots
/ref> with Halliburton, taking eighteen months, and reaching places such as
Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...
in Africa,
Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heig ...
in the Himalayas, The
Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...
in India,
Petra Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to t ...
in Jordan, Singapore in Southeast Asia, and
Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...
in Borneo. The two men simply shook hands. Moye had no pay, but would cover all expenses. When Crown Prince
Ghazi of Iraq Ghazi ibn Faisal ( ar, غازي ابن فيصل, Gâzî ibn-i Faysal) (21 March 1912 – 4 April 1939) was the King of Iraq from 1933 to 1939 having been briefly Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Syria in 1920. He was born in Mecca, the only son ...
was a boy, Stephens and Halliburton flew the lad over a school yard so classmates could see the Prince in an open-cockpit airplane. They performed acrobatics for the Maharajah of Nepal. They were feted by
Sylvia Brett Sylvia Leonora, Lady Brooke, Ranee of Sarawak (born ''The Hon. Sylvia Leonora Brett'', 25 February 1885 – 11 November 1971), was an English aristocrat who became the consort to Sir Charles Vyner de Windt Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak, the last of ...
, wife of the
White Rajah The White Rajahs were a dynastic monarchy of the British Brooke family, who founded and ruled the Raj of Sarawak, located on the north west coast of the island of Borneo, from 1841 to 1946. The first ruler was Briton James Brooke. As a reward f ...
of Sarawak. In a January 23, 1932, letter to his parents, Halliburton wrote, "Moye continues to be the world's best pilot. Once we are in the air, no matter where, everything goes like clock-work." For Halliburton, he piloted a Stearman C-3B biplane, named The ''
Flying Carpet A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet and common trope in fantasy fiction. It is typically used as a form of transportation and can quickly or instantaneously carry its users to their destination. In literature One o ...
'', and Halliburton wrote a book of the same name, published in 1932, which became a best seller. They flew to
French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...
outposts, and across the
Sahara , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...
to
Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...
. Their flight took them to Asia, including India, Persia, Malaysia, and other countries. In Iran, they met young German aviator
Elly Beinhorn Elly Beinhorn (30 May 1907 – 28 November 2007) was a German pilot. Life Early life She was born in Hannover, Germany on 30 May 1907. In 1928, she attended a lecture by famed aviator Hermann Köhl, who had recently completed a historic E ...
, famous in her day, who had also flown to Timbuktu in a
Klemm The Klemm Leichtflugzeugbau GmbH ("Klemm Light Aircraft Company") was a German aircraft manufacturer noteworthy for sports and touring planes of the 1930s. The company was founded in Böblingen in 1926 by Dr. Hanns Klemm, who had previously work ...
, although her plane had been forced down because of mechanical failure. In 1931,
Richard Halliburton Richard Halliburton (January 9, 1900 – Declared death in absentia, presumed dead after March 24, 1939) was an American travel writing, travel writer and adventurer who swam the length of the Panama Canal and paid the lowest toll in its hi ...
, a famous travel-adventure writer of the time, asked Stephens to pilot and mechanic for him in an around the world flight. The purpose was to gather material for Halliburton's next book, '' The Flying Carpet'', which became a best seller. The trip in a biplane called The Flying Carpet, a Stearman C-3B, took eighteen months, covered 33,660 miles, visited 34 countries, and included France, the Sahara, Persia, Singapore, and the Philippines. In that global flight, Stephens performed aerobatics for the first air meet in Oran, Algeria, aerobatics for the first air meet in Fez, Morocco, rescued
Elly Beinhorn Elly Beinhorn (30 May 1907 – 28 November 2007) was a German pilot. Life Early life She was born in Hannover, Germany on 30 May 1907. In 1928, she attended a lecture by famed aviator Hermann Köhl, who had recently completed a historic E ...
a famous German aviator, and flew aerobatics for the Maharajah of Nepal. Among the highlights of his trip was the first aerial photograph of
Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heig ...
. He and Halliburton were the first Americans to fly to the Philippines. He flew Crown Prince
Ghazi of Iraq Ghazi ibn Faisal ( ar, غازي ابن فيصل, Gâzî ibn-i Faysal) (21 March 1912 – 4 April 1939) was the King of Iraq from 1933 to 1939 having been briefly Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Syria in 1920. He was born in Mecca, the only son ...
. In Persia, Princess Mahin Banu climbed into the front cockpit for a ride with him. In Borneo, he took
Sylvia Brett Sylvia Leonora, Lady Brooke, Ranee of Sarawak (born ''The Hon. Sylvia Leonora Brett'', 25 February 1885 – 11 November 1971), was an English aristocrat who became the consort to Sir Charles Vyner de Windt Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak, the last of ...
, known as Ranee Sylvia of Sarawak, for a ride, the first woman to fly in that country. At the Rajang River there, he took the chief of the Dyak head-hunters for a flight.


Northrop Corporation

In the ''Northrop News'', March 27, 1981, Stephens is described as "one of the founders of
Northrop Corporation Northrop Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its 1994 merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, most successfully the B-2 Spiri ...
." Stephens said, "Tom Ellsworth was talking to my brother-in-law Wesley LeFevre. He said, 'It's a shame for that fellow Northrop to be working for other people. He should head his own company.'" In 1939, Stephens used his lawyerly skills to scout the countryside for a site to erect Northrop Aviation's first buildings. He was one of the men who brought John K. "Jack" Northrop together with Gage H. Irving and La Motte Cohu. Stephens was appointed to the board as secretary and was chief of the flight division. As chief test pilot, he flew the first
flying wing A flying wing is a tailless fixed-wing aircraft that has no definite fuselage, with its crew, payload, fuel, and equipment housed inside the main wing structure. A flying wing may have various small protuberances such as pods, nacelles, blis ...
, the
Northrop N-1M The Northrop N-1M (''Northrop Model 1 Mockup''), also known by the nickname "Jeep", is a retired American experimental aircraft used in the development of the flying wing concept by Northrop Aircraft during the 1940s. Design and development J ...
, prototype of today's B-2 bomber. In 1939 he was instrumental in the promotion and organization of Northrop Aircraft, Inc., in consideration of which he was awarded stock interest in the company and was made Assistant Corporate Secretary. Following the departure of the original secretary, he was moved into that position by the board of electors. The
Northrop N-1M The Northrop N-1M (''Northrop Model 1 Mockup''), also known by the nickname "Jeep", is a retired American experimental aircraft used in the development of the flying wing concept by Northrop Aircraft during the 1940s. Design and development J ...
br>
was the first aircraft Northrop produced. The "M" stood for "mock-up", as the craft was intended to explore the controllability and stability of the all-wing aircraft concept. Stephens did most of the experimental test flying in the two-year test program. The ship was vastly overweight, severely underpowered, and was plagued with constant engine problems. Still, it fulfilled its design purpose. The test program produced the general configuration for the subsequent Northrop flying wings. Stephens also tested other experimental Northrop aircraft: the N-3PB float plane patrol bomber, the
A-31 Vengeance The Vultee A-31 Vengeance was an American dive bomber of World War II, built by Vultee Aircraft. A modified version was designated A-35. The Vengeance was not used operationally by the United States, but was operated as a front-line aircraft by ...
dive bomber, and the
P-61 Black Widow The Northrop P-61 Black Widow is a twin-engine United States Army Air Forces fighter aircraft of World War II. It was the first operational U.S. warplane designed as a night fighter, and the first aircraft designed specifically as a night fight ...
night fighter. In the 1920s he had given Jack Northrop flying lessons. (He also taught Jerry
Vultee The Vultee Aircraft Corporation became an independent company in 1939 in Los Angeles County, California. It had limited success before merging with the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation in 1943, to form the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporatio ...
, of Vultee Aircraft, maker of jets such as the
F-102 The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair. Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpos ...
,
F-106 The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft of the United States Air Force from the 1960s through to the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it proved to be the last specialist interceptor i ...
and B-58.)


Further career and recognition

In 1932, shortly after the return of the ''Flying Carpet'', he was invited to become an inaugural member of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Aero Squadron. In 1937 he became a founder and board member of the Aviation Country Club of California, Inc. That same year he took leave of absence from Pacific Aircraft Sales, and enjoyed his honeymoon on a lengthy business trip: Lockheed sent him to New Zealand and Australia to promote sales and to check out the pilots of
Union Airways Union Airways of South Africa was the first South African commercial airline. It operated as an independent company for five years, from 1929 to 1934, before being taken over by the government as South African Airways. History Union Airways w ...
and
Ansett Airways Ansett Australia was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne, Australia. The airline flew domestically within Australia and from the 1990s to destinations in Asia. After operating for 65 years, the airline was placed into adminis ...
in their new
Lockheed Model 10 Electra The Lockheed Model 10 Electra is an American twin-engined, all-metal monoplane airliner developed by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation in the 1930s to compete with the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-2. The type gained considerable fame as one was fl ...
airplanes. In 1942, he was presented an award of Distinguished Service by the
Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce The Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce is Southern California's largest not-for-profit business federation, representing the interests of more than 235,000 businesses in L.A. County, more than 1,400 member companies and more than 722,430 employ ...
in recognition of this work. At the close of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Stephens and Ted Coleman, Northrop sales manager, left Northrop to start an
air cargo Air cargo is any property carried or to be carried in an aircraft. Air cargo comprises air freight, air express and airmail. Aircraft types Different cargo can be transported by passenger, cargo or combi aircraft: * Passenger aircraft use the ...
business in the interior of Brazil. They obtained a franchise from the Brazilian government, but the climate severely affected his young son's health so Stephens returned to the United States. In 1948, John K. Northrop awarded him a lifetime membership in the Flying Wing Club as "one of a small group of distinguished pilots who have participated in the historical development and pioneered in the public acceptance of this revolutionary and highly efficient type of aircraft". In 1982, he was made a member of the
OX-5 The Curtiss OX-5 was an early V-8 American liquid-cooled aircraft engine built by Curtiss. It was the first American-designed aircraft engine to enter mass production, although it was considered obsolete when it did so in 1917.Smith, 1981, page ...
Aviation Pioneers. In 1989, he was elected to the OX-5 Aviation Pioneers
Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...
; he was chosen to join
Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
,
Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...
,
Jimmy Doolittle James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II. He also made early coast-to-coast flights ...
and some 50 other "carefully selected...eminent individuals in the aerospace field" "Moye Stephens: Aviation Pioneer and Adventurer" by Ronald Gilliam, originally published in the July 1999 issue of ''Aviation History''. In 1983, he was elected an Honorary Fellow of The
Society of Experimental Test Pilots The Society of Experimental Test Pilots is an international organization that seeks to promote air safety and contributes to aeronautical advancement by promoting sound aeronautical design and development; interchanging ideas, thoughts and suggest ...
in the
San Diego Aerospace Museum San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
. In 1990, his interview as a pioneer aviator appeared on a
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
television series, ''
The American Experience ''American Experience'' is a television program airing on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in the United States. The program airs documentaries, many of which have won awards, about important or interesting events and people in American his ...
'',The American Experience , Lindbergh , Enhanced Transcript
/ref> on the life of
Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
, produced by
Ken Burns Kenneth Lauren Burns (born July 29, 1953) is an American filmmaker known for his documentary film, documentary films and television series, many of which chronicle United States, American History of the United States, history and Culture of the ...
.


References


Further reading

*Alt, John H. ''Don't Die in Bed: The Brief, Intense Life of Richard Halliburton''. Atlanta: Quincunx Press, 2013. Chapters on Moye Stephens from his private papers. *Gilliam, Ronald, "Moye Stephens Piloted More Than 100 Types of Aircraft and Flew Around the World in the Flying Carpet." Aviation History, vol. 9, issue 6 (July 1999). *Max, Gerry, ''Horizon Chasers - The Lives and Adventures of Richard Halliburton and Paul Mooney''. Jefferson, NC: McFarland Publishers, 2007. *Root, Jonathan, ''Halliburton - The Magnificent Myth''. New York: Coward-McCann, 1965. *Schultz, Barbara H., ''Flying Carpets, Flying Wings - The Biography of Moye Stephens'' (PlaneMercantile, c2011) *Taylor, William R., ''A Shooting Star Meets the Well of Death, Why and How Richard Halliburton Conquered the World.'' Moonshine Cove Publishing, 2013


External links


History Net
(About Moye Stephens) {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Moye W. 1906 births 1995 deaths American aviators