The Velie Monocoupe was an American
general aviation
General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It 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 engine ...
manufactured from 1927 to 1929 by the Mono-Aircraft Corp, a division of
Velie Motors Corporation
Velie was a brass era American automobile brand produced by the Velie Motors Corporation in Moline, Illinois from 1908 to 1928. The company was founded by and named for Willard Velie, a maternal grandson of John Deere.
Velie founded Velie Ca ...
(founded by
Willard L. Velie, maternal grandson of
John Deere).
Design and development
The Velie Monocoupe was a wooden framed,
doped
fabric
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not th ...
-covered
monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes.
A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
, seating two people side-by-side in an enclosed cabin (hence the name).
Conceived by pilot/businessman Don A. Luscombe, who developed a mock-up in 1926, and developed into a flying airplane by farmer-turned-plane-designer Clayton Folkerts—first produced by Central States Aircraft Corp in Davenport, Iowa—the little plane was a revolution in personal aviation: small, relatively inexpensive, quick and efficient (70-80 mph on just 55 horsepower), and with an enclosed cockpit (protected from the weather) for two people. In an era of big, costly, lumbering, open-cockpit biplanes, the Monocoupe was like a flying sports car coupe.
[Harris, Richard]
"Monocoupe: Speed for the Common Man"
''AAHS Journal,'' Vol. 56, No. 4 (Winter 2011), American Aviation Historical Society
In all there were 350 Velie Monocoupes produced under the approved type certificate number 22. Upon W. L. Velie's death, his son had planned to continue production of the aircraft but he died within months of his father. The company, and design, survived, however.
Company change
Upon the death of Velie's founder, in 1929 the Mono Aircraft Division was transferred to the holding company Allied Aircraft Co., which split the airplane division into Mono Aircraft Co. and Lambert Motors Co. Mono Aircraft would continue to produce the Monocoupe, in various versions—ultimately changing its name to Monocoupe Corp. The company producing the Monocoupe line changed ownership and location several times from 1926 to the early 1950s.
["Mono, Monocoupe"](_blank)
summary data on ''Aerofiles.com''
Surviving aircraft
![Velie-powered Monocoupe 70 Moline](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Velie-powered_Monocoupe_70_Moline.jpg)
* 31 – Model 70 airworthy with the Kelch Aviation Museum in
Brodhead, Wisconsin.
* 85 – Model 70 on static display at the
Quad Cities International Airport
Quad Cities International Airport is a public airport in Rock Island County, Illinois, three miles (5 km) south of Moline, partly in Blackhawk Township and partly in Coal Valley Township. In 2012 it was named "Illinois Primary Airport o ...
in
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 and Rock Island ...
. It was flown in 1928 by female aviation pioneer
Phoebe Omlie
Phoebe Jane Fairgrave Omlie (November 21, 1902 – July 17, 1975) was an American aviation pioneer, particularly noted for her accomplishments as an early female aviator. Omlie was the first woman to receive an airplane mechanic's license, the ...
to set an altitude record at the airport.
* 132 – Model 70 airworthy with Kenneth R. Hetge of
Tehachapi, California
Tehachapi (; Kawaiisu: ''Tihachipia'', meaning "hard climb") is a city in Kern County, California, United States, in the Tehachapi Mountains, at an elevation of , between the San Joaquin Valley and the Mojave Desert. Tehachapi is east-southeas ...
* 133 – Model 70 on static display at the
California Science Center
The California Science Center (sometimes spelled California ScienCenter) is a state agency and museum located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, next to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the University of Southern California. ...
in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. It is on loan from the
National Air and Space Museum.
* 134 – Model 70 airworthy at the Golden Age Air Museum in
Bethel, Pennsylvania.
* 156 – Model 70 airworthy at the
Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum
The Western Antique Aeroplane and Automobile Museum (WAAAM) is located in Hood River, Oregon, United States, adjacent to the Ken Jernstedt Memorial Airport. WAAAM is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization committed to the preservation of, and educatio ...
in
Hood River, Oregon
The city of Hood River is the seat of Hood River County, Oregon, United States. It is a port on the Columbia River, and is named for the nearby Hood River. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 8,313. It is the only city in Oregon whe ...
.
* 247 – Model 113 on static display at the
EAA Aviation Museum
The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum (or Air Adventure Museum), is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is lo ...
in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
* 248 – Model 113 airworthy with Robert J. Coolbaugh of
New Market, Virginia.
* 304 – Model 113 airworthy with Walter C. Bowe of
Sonoma, California
Sonoma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Sonoma is one of the principal cities of California's Wine Country and the center of the Sonoma Valley AVA. Sonoma's p ...
.
* 322 – Model 113 (original registration ''NC8955'') under restoration to airworthiness at the
Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome
The Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome is a living museum in Rhinebeck, New York. It owns many examples of airworthy aircraft of the Pioneer Era, World War I and the Golden Age of Aviation between the World Wars, and multiple examples of roadworthy antiqu ...
in
Red Hook, New York
Red Hook is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 9,953 at the time of the 2020 census, down from 11,319 in 2010. The name is supposedly derived from the red foliage on trees on a small strip of land on the Huds ...
.
Specifications (Monocoupe Model 70)
See also
*
Monocoupe Aircraft
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 They in ...
*
Monocoupe Model 22
*
Monocoupe 70
Notes
{{refend
External links
Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome's Golden Age aircraft listing on their ''NC8955'' Model 113 Monocoupe* Davisson, Budd
from the “Peanut Pireps” section, at author's ''Airbum.com'' website
* Early Birds Foundation
"Velie 'Monocoupe,'" Early Birds Foundation
1920s United States civil utility aircraft
High-wing aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1928
Manufacturers based in Grantville, Pennsylvania