Dating from the 1950s, this film narrated by Lowell Thomas, shows the many innovations produced by the Curtiss Wright Corporation in aviation history. The film includes many experimental weapon systems developed during World War II, including images of flying bombs, German V-2 Rockets, and even the YB-49 Flying Wing being tested.

Formed in 1929, the Curtiss-Wright Corporation was a leading American manufacturer of aircraft, engines, and propellers on the eve of World War II. The corporation’s contribution to the war effort was unparalleled in terms of quantity production. Despite that success, Curtiss-Wright was effectively out of the aerospace business by the 1960 and remains today a small-scale subcontractor to various industrial concerns.

The Curtiss-Wright Corporation resulted from the merger of companies originally founded by the greatest names in early American aviation: Glenn Curtiss and Wilbur and Orville Wright. The Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Corporation, the largest American airplane manufacturer during World War I, produced highly innovative military and racing aircraft during the 1920s. The Wright Aeronautical Corporation led in the development of one of the new aeronautical technologies of the 1920s: the radial, air-cooled engine.

The only American manufacturer capable of immediately meeting the demands of the Allied aviation programs of 1938-43, the corporation concentrated on the quantity production of aircraft that were soon obsolete in light of the rapid pace of technological change. Instead of cross-licensing designs and subcontracting other producers for component parts, the corporation overextended its managerial and engineering resources to expand its own production facilities. Consequently, when Curtiss-Wright attempted to introduce new designs, such as the C-46 transport or the R-3350 radial engine, there were significant developmental problems.

Curtiss-Wright emerged from World War II in a sound economic state, but its leaders were unsure of the direction the corporation should take . Failing to find a suitable product for the aerospace market after 1960, Curtiss-Wright became a subcontractor of aircraft subassemblies and component parts for its former competitors.

This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com