Loening

Loening was an American aircraft manufacturer established in 1917 by engineer and aircraft designer Grover Loening. Organized as the Loening Aeronautical Engineering Corporation, the company became one of the early United States firms to specialize in the design and production of aircraft capable of operating from both land and water. Its work belonged to the formative period of American aviation, when manufacturers were developing practical military, commercial, and maritime aircraft and experimenting with the operational advantages of amphibious designs. The company was founded in New York City and initially operated from Long Island City in Queens. It later moved into a loft at 351 West 52nd Street in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. As production requirements expanded, Loening leased a vacant lot at 420–428 East 31st Street in Manhattan's Kips Bay area in 1921 and built a dedicated factory there. The plant opened in 1922. Its location beside the East River was strategically useful for an amphibious-aircraft manufacturer: Loening constructed a floating ramp beside the nearby pier so aircraft could taxi between the factory and the water. Before the ramp was available, completed aircraft had to be moved to the pier and lifted into the river by crane. Loening's aircraft program included early airplanes and amphibious aircraft, including the Loening OA-1A, an example of the company's contribution to the development of amphibious military aircraft. The company's designs reflected the practical demands of the period, when aircraft were increasingly being considered for reconnaissance, transport, and other operations requiring access to locations without conventional runways. The available historical record identifies Loening primarily through its aircraft production and engineering work rather than through a long-lived consumer-facing brand structure. A major corporate change came in 1928, when Loening merged with Keystone Aircraft Corporation. The business continued for a time as the Loening Aeronautical Division. In 1929, that division became the Keystone-Loening Division of Curtiss-Wright. Plans to close the New York factory and transfer operations to Keystone's plant in Bristol, Pennsylvania contributed to the departure of several Loening employees who chose to remain in the New York area. Leroy Grumman, Jake Swirbul, and William Schwendler subsequently formed Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation on Long Island, creating an important institutional link between Loening's workforce and the later Grumman aerospace business. Grover Loening also continued independently after the merger. In 1929 he established the Grover Loening Aircraft Company in Garden City, Long Island. That successor enterprise operated until 1936. The original Loening business therefore did not remain an independent manufacturer after its absorption into the Keystone and Curtiss-Wright corporate structure, but its aircraft, engineering practices, facilities, and personnel formed part of the early history of American aerospace manufacturing. The brand is now principally of historical interest, especially in connection with the evolution of amphibious aircraft and the origins of companies and engineers that later became prominent in the American aviation industry.

Grover Loening incorporated the Loening Aeronautical Engineering Company in New York City in 1917. The enterprise was initially based in Long Island City, Queens, before moving to a Manhattan loft at 351 West 52nd Street in Hell's Kitchen. These early premises reflected the modest scale of the American aircraft industry during the period immediately after the First World War, when aviation companies were still developing their production methods and identifying practical markets for powered flight. The company expanded its physical operations in 1921, leasing a vacant site at 420–428 East 31st Street in the Kips Bay neighborhood of Manhattan. Loening built a factory on the site, and the new plant opened in 1922. Its location near the East River was particularly suitable for the company's amphibious-aircraft work. Loening leased a city pier at the end of East 31st Street and built a floating ramp that allowed amphibian aircraft to taxi into and out of the water. Prior to the ramp's construction, aircraft completed at the factory had to be carried to the pier and lowered into the East River by crane. Loening produced early aircraft and amphibious aircraft, including the OA-1A. These products belonged to an era in which amphibious aircraft offered operational flexibility for military reconnaissance, transport, and missions in regions where runways were scarce or unavailable. The company's New York waterfront factory was therefore not merely a manufacturing site; it also supported the practical testing and handling requirements of aircraft designed to operate on water. In 1928, Loening merged with Keystone Aircraft Corporation. The business continued as the Loening Aeronautical Division, but its independent identity was short-lived. In 1929, the division became the Keystone-Loening Division of Curtiss-Wright. Curtiss-Wright planned to close Loening's New York factory and move its operations to Keystone's facility in Bristol, Pennsylvania. Several employees elected to remain in New York rather than relocate. Leroy Grumman, Jake Swirbul, and William Schwendler subsequently founded Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation on Long Island. This personnel movement gave Loening an indirect place in the institutional ancestry of one of the United States' best-known aerospace manufacturers. Grover Loening left the merged operation and founded the Grover Loening Aircraft Company in Garden City, Long Island, in 1929. That later company operated until 1936. The original Loening organization did not survive as an independent brand after its integration into Keystone and then Curtiss-Wright, but its technical work and personnel remained relevant to the development of American aviation. Today, Loening is chiefly remembered as an early aircraft manufacturer, as a builder of amphibious aircraft, and as a predecessor environment for engineers who later established Grumman.

• 1936

  Grover Loening Aircraft Company ceased operations

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  The successor enterprise founded by Grover Loening operated until 1936.

• 1929

  Became part of Curtiss-Wright

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  The business became the Keystone-Loening Division of Curtiss-Wright as the corporate integration of the two aircraft manufacturers proceeded.

• 1929

  Former employees founded Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  Leroy Grumman, Jake Swirbul, and William Schwendler remained in New York after the planned factory transfer and formed Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation on Long Island.

• 1929

  Grover Loening established a successor company

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  Grover Loening founded the Grover Loening Aircraft Company in Garden City, Long Island.

• 1928

  Merged with Keystone Aircraft Corporation

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  Loening merged with Keystone and continued as the Loening Aeronautical Division.

• 1922

  East 31st Street plant opened

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  The new factory opened near the East River, with a floating ramp and pier arrangement supporting the movement of amphibious aircraft between land and water.

• 1921

  New Manhattan factory site leased

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  Loening leased a site on East 31st Street in Manhattan's Kips Bay neighborhood for a dedicated aircraft factory.

• 1917

  Loening Aeronautical Engineering Company founded

  [1]Loeningen.wikipedia.org

  Grover Loening incorporated the aircraft company in New York City, initially locating its operations in Long Island City, Queens.

An early American aircraft engineering and manufacturing company with a particular association with amphibious aircraft and water-based aviation operations.

• Amphibious military aircraft

  Loening OA-1A

  The OA-1A is an example of Loening's early amphibious-aircraft work. It represents the company's focus on aircraft capable of operating from both land and water, a capability valued for military reconnaissance and transport missions during the formative years of American aviation. The type is preserved and documented in connection with the National Air and Space Museum.

• 1929

  Planned closure and relocation of the New York factoryStrategy

  Background

  Following the Keystone combination and the formation of the Keystone-Loening Division of Curtiss-Wright, the company's New York manufacturing operations were scheduled to be closed and transferred.

  Action taken

  Operations were planned to move to Keystone's plant in Bristol, Pennsylvania.

  Aftermath

  Employees including Leroy Grumman, Jake Swirbul, and William Schwendler remained in New York and formed a new aircraft company there. Grover Loening separately established the Grover Loening Aircraft Company on Long Island.

  Source

• 1928

  Merger with Keystone Aircraft CorporationM&A

  Background

  Loening was combined with Keystone Aircraft Corporation during a period of consolidation in the American aircraft industry.

  Action taken

  The company was merged into Keystone and operated as the Loening Aeronautical Division.

  Aftermath

  In 1929, the division became part of Curtiss-Wright as the Keystone-Loening Division. The planned relocation of operations from New York to Bristol, Pennsylvania also led several employees to establish Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation.

  Source

1. 1Loeningen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Loening OA-1Aairandspace.si.edu