A Second Look; The Gee Bees Of Springfield

Those daring young men with their flying machines the jeebies of Springfield coming up next on a second look a second look is brought to you by the members of WG Y and by the program was for the program in the spring. Do people wind up. Thank you. I am Lindbergh and ski the late 1920s to the mid 1930s was the golden age of air racing and aircraft were produced for one purpose. Speed and in the pursuit of speed Springfield was in the forefront. The Granville brothers were successful by plane builders in the 1920s but the Great Depression virtually ended the private plane market. So they began to make racing planes billed as the fastest and most maneuverable airplane for its horsepower planes like this replica of a G.B. model I wanted to New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks Jew attention wherever

they went. The Jesus Springfield are part of a proud tradition of Pioneer Valley industry and that's why we think this show is worth a second look. People in Springfield really don't realize what took place here back in the early 30s. These men are really pioneers and they were our space right at the time. All of us are still here at the airport were kids. We watch what they did and we didn't realize at the time that the impact was going to have to see this story get pushed out of shape because it's a great story. All that done I said is very true. But for me the spirit of enterprise that the graveled brothers and her so she has demonstrated is really important. It illustrated in a you know hostile economic climate with no government subsidy or funding from anybody that a small group of people could and did shake the aviation world and

watching a real show today starting with Jimmy Doolittle the little plain blocks of the Springfield and Racing Association proud of Springfield in the next few minutes we expect to make an attempt on the world. Good morning. This is July 26 1978. And Don Foster moral ring in myself now and you are in the backyard at the home of Bob and Eva Granville in Cornhill Maine morning. Your mama done and I and several others got together to try and save whatever memorabilia or information

could be saved first hand from the survivors of the period. There aren't too many people left the who are directly involved in these aircraft back in the early 30s obviously ricotta figure we better do this now. At the time that we moved in it was. Their manager of a dance hall and it had a nice hardwood floor which was nice to walk on just north of Melbourne and the first thing we did was set up a line shaft to have power on the tolls on some capitol Sanibel small offices on the front of it. Shouted questions in a few seconds I have tools to work with in addition to what we brought from Boston. We bought everything and we had lost the Tate family very interested in aviation a socially prominent wealthy family here and they they actually negotiated and brought the Granville brothers to this airport which had already

been had already been purchased and developed by them by the Tate family and they sort of recruited the Granville's here who actually did their work first of what's now Logan and he's lost and this was a very prosperous period for Springfield at the time they actually arrived it changed quite dramatically. Soon thereafter. The production of the biplane was kind of curtailed with the crash in November in one thousand twenty nine a stock market crash and the decline of the economy which dried up the market for private airplanes. But the people that they could continue to sell airplanes to were young wealthy young students. For example people that were flying in the Harvard flying club had a Model X was important because it was the first of the low wing Sportster is built at Springfield.

To compete specifically in the Cirrus Derby or all American Derby of 1930 it was mostly Bob Hall's idea he he thought would be a great thing to do and got everybody in the Senate he was a chief engineer at the time in 1930 then the Model X was built for a little Bales to fly in the Sirius or all-American Derby right. How did he make out he made over well. I know when Bales returned he landed at Westfield so that the Springfield Flyers could come over and escort him home. And that really put the name GP in any aviation map. Oh yes and somebody did. Everybody was like um yeah very nice and I spent a lot of time with him and he was an instructor at

Boston airport when we were at the flying school down there and you know and then when he was flying to the ford tri motor is why they used to come into Boston for service and I used to service up to the Troy motor form low roll bales and I are very very good friends. All pay is very good I took some flight instruction from him. He was strictly a racing pilot an aerobatic pilot. He didn't care too much by giving flight instruction to students. He got to. The patients you resigned I think are on the go all the time you know why they didn't do it quick enough. He want to do it. What happened to prep the cop need to get into the big time the National Air Races. Well it was still just a matter of money that it wasn't quite a lot of money the national average citizen granny and Bob Ball between them decided we ought to have some of it when it was really decided to build a city

Springfield we only had a little over two months before the race. Springfield the Racing Association had to be formed in order to raise money to build a separate grand will brother didn't have any money and I'm sure that the Tates weren't particularly interested in putting up a lot of dough on such a fly by night idea or this one was. So I had to go out and organize a Springfield erasing Association and then go out and sell stock in it that people did buy shares in fact I had bought a couple myself in the in the Racing Association. The Springfield people did because they knew the people. The pilots here and you know it's just like a family deal. I designed the airplane on a morning and go out in the afternoon and pound the pavement the wall of big companies in Springfield and say hey come on buy some shares a hundred

bucks a share. And then sold about $5000 worth which was enough to build a surplus. And the reason it was an office because we got so much from the manufacturers without having to pay for it like the engine wouldn't he want us the engine brag when he primarily goes for public relations purposes and advertising. After all if a wasp Binion won the Thompson throw he would drive the great speed classic at that time that people all over the country were interested in watching or hearing about. Would life be a good idea. My motto was I was a two suiter above all my Tate was the daughter of one of the Tate

brothers the founders of the airport. She was an excellent aviator tricks and took to flying like a duck to water. She owned a G.B. biplane and she was frequently seen in the air over the Pioneer Valley and soon became very skilled and one of the foremost and prime female fliers in the window and I don't know how she got interested but I know what she did she stay with it and see. She loved it and she was very good very good. Mary the stop was there a feeling among the GV people that you could build an airplane to win that race did you really believe that you could beat the best in the world. I think so. Of the best well I wasn't too good in those days. I mean not to speedy access we done with the sponsors and the scene as opposed to what should turn out to be really going to apply and look quite

possible. I don't know a lot of people didn't believe that along the way have a plane could take a bite by a long term. They figured the biplanes would have a big advantage on Latin everybody probably win the race. Remember that celebration. I remember distinctly. Yeah planes all commando and those of Springfield and pawed and then the city put on a banquet that night it was really big. Everybody that was able to made a speech. Granny Granny made a pretty good speech given the credit to the boys who

worked their heads off to get the airplane built in time. We got back and we were able to Racing Association 100 percent dividend and have them because we came home with $17000. In late fall or early winter of 1931 after the big success at Cleveland the Grammys decided to go after some absolute speed records. France that held the speed record for land planes for eight years and so the city of Springfield was re-engineered with a big 750 or spar was I remember we put it in and they all sat stopped and after recess granny who always was a very conservative man he has molded take it up. Well if I know whether it could take the lead and not

before he done the race and whether made in the world speed of damson male student was gone for a couple hours and he came back all smiles and he said she'll hold together you are who I have been about that. I remember that very distinctly. Might take a little bells went out to Wayne County airport in Detroit where Mog was going to join bales in trying to attempt a new speed record for Lady pilots. And even though she exceeded the existing record she didn't break it by the amount required to set a new record and was frustrated in her bit Bales did indeed set a new world land plane speed record but the timing equipment failed on one pass and the Try had to be aborted and the speed wasn't recognized. So early in December he went back alone in the gravels always felt that it was significant that Bales went out there alone without any ground

any gravel personnel the defective timing equipment was repaired and can you tell us what happened then. Oh I think that it was the third attempt. When the time and equipment went out he had to he had to do it again it was cold. Well I really want the same time he had a noisy simmer 58 yeah 31 right. Yeah that's right. I think it was on the very last lap of the course and something terrific happened. Right now only he was just approaching me Marco when he seemed to explode. So little bills was lost to Springfield. If you Nation exit the grand he was killed instantly. He always said that when he when he want to go quick. And he certainly did. They had a movie camera set up at that point on and they had taken beautiful pictures of it they had absolutely clear pictures of it

and Granny Run those pictures over and over and over trying to find out what the cause was and they were great friends. And there's been a lot of people said that your granny only only can about speak. Had no thought for the safety of his pilots but that was absolutely a fabrication. Yes and nobody ever tried How did a little airplane that a man when you kill them they're going to need it. This is the only airplane crashes and documented from the is that the airplane came apart to the point that it the ground disintegrated. If you think back you can. Even during World War Two you can think of it this if it were an airplane has been documented from beginning to end and as a result any time throughout the years an airplane crash is needed for a movie or for whatever purpose. That was a crisis that was shown. Along with that came a bad rep. Or the accident farside Binny would you determine you were really human error there pilot

error or mechanical or some mechanic error. Of course the public airplane bad airplane crashed you know. Somebody got killed. You know we're always looking into all of the facts. I do feel that the racers have a no prayer reputation after the tremendous win one thousand thirty one in the return of all the money to the stockholders of the Springfield air race Association. You probably think that they were an easy street now but the sale of airplanes didn't pick up. Chief Engineer and designer Bob Hall left the gravel brothers in a reason he left is that the gravel brothers couldn't afford to pay and the $75 a week that he felt he needed. With ha gone the refinement of the design went to Pete Miller who added a lot of innovations of its own and really created another very

improved version of the airplane. I stress that I was in the right too. Navy and the army was using facts and anyone new birth we see any power but again they were of revolutionary design. They were the run of the mill race of players they were streamlined to this degree. They had been put through in total tests to prove out their design. They were good some racing airplanes but they still needed money and a fellow named Russ Boardman a noted long distance flyer came and invested significant amount of money $6000 into to

Springfield Air Racing Association and became its head. You also demand the right to fly the R1 in the upcoming national air races. But he was in the race in part. And fate stepped in where they are winners ready to go to Cleveland. I was at balls finishing the tale and was told that when it was ready to fly to call him back that which I did have to go pretty sure I didn't we didn't bother to put the numbers on there and they were just going to fly into song as it was ready. I'm Rodman and his guy and he was going to drive all of what Granny said to him Why don't you take a sponsor when I saw you I was standing right on the ramp in front of the buildings where they used to roll the airplanes out and he took off with one of the small sports stars. He started to spin then but he being such a very good pilot

he stopped to spend almost immediately but reversed it with the opposite direction anyway. Corrected that very fast faster and perhaps some people are good and came out of it but he didn't have quite enough room to clear the ground. He'd had another 50 feet I think he declared but he did so he plowed right into the what a dump or by the airport. Well as soon as Baldwin was able to talk Granny went down to his home down the Cape. After a few days and he stayed down there a couple of days with him and they finally talked the situation over and to find out why do we want to get pilots and Grant I can't believe yell back and and Jimmy Doolittle Doolittle haven't just grabbed up his land solution a few days before was out of an airplane and sold was a good situation for Walt but if you're excited we knew he was a grandpa and

he had a master's degree and a doctor from MIT. Things from over there. And then that's when we consider he's not here was a guy who was a great pilot with no airplane and it was a great airplane looking for a great guy. Doolittle came to Boles airport inspected the airplane plane did and I'm told he flew right straight to Cleveland. That's right he could short test time. Less than two hours later we got a telegram for women and just a few words always had landed Cleveland OK. Watching the real today starting with Jimmy Doolittle with a new record two

hundred ninety three miles an hour the hyphenated expected to be in the vicinity of 300 miles an hour a landing speed about 90 cited a high speed train and the high speed of the plane. It handled very well in the air on the ground and I feel that we'd like to make an attempt on the world. After winning everything in one thousand thirty two again at the Thompson trophy races and bringing that Thompson trophy back to Springfield for the second consecutive year the gravels had an entire year for which prepare for one thousand thirty three. So they modified both successful airplanes the R1 got a larger engine. Very few other modifications they knew it would handle the engine it was fine and the car to which go back had flown to fourth place in one thousand thirty two races took the engine from the previous years are one.

And as race time approached there was a lot of confidence in Springfield that we could do it again. With the loss of Russ Boardman there there are major financial backer and a president of the Springfield Air Racing Association the gravels really took it on the chin again. Yeah about all we had left. Then there was no way of Panama often that stuff was all sold off and a sheriff's sale. We just hope and be able to get back again in the spring and saw about November we close down completely and went looking for jobs. But then early in 134 the curtain really rang down with the loss of Zen for Granville. While delivering a Sportster to the south.

Another needless acts of some nut brown across the runway in front of him and he stalled it John oh boy I'm going to kill people Miller told me that Sanford Randall was probably the greatest intuitive engineer he ever knew and he didn't have a terrible lot of education but he had lost a lot of common sense and he had beat me to Grand combination working together. Pete had the education grant he had the ideas. How does a lot of my would say beat the move I do is do. But between them they made a great team. In March in 1978 we decided to send invitations to people we thought might be interested in helping with a project like this. In attendance there were the director and the physicals. The curator of physical science from the Springfield museum and they showed interest in creating a permanent exhibit there at the museum. We started to gather material for the museum and we've been pleased with the results.

The significance of the of the jeebies to the area I think points up sort of the entrepreneurial spirit that used to be here in the valley. And I used to be a center of machine tools. And here we had a small group of people who really put on an industry started an industry that had an impact upon the whole world and you know you hear about success stories happening here. And here's a perfect example of just a few guys a small company and they had an impact on an industry which was made Springfield the center of the aviation industry at that time and had repercussions all around the globe. The economy here was falling apart industries were cutting back were running at losses. People even officers of companies were taking voluntary salary cutbacks. So so we were surrounded by losers and in doubt these winners stood out more dramatically then and she and Shawn Moore I think because in effect they were they were beating the Depression and they wore their goggles and their helmets

and all. I think they were dashing figures sort of like the horse Calvary and Napoleon Steinman or the space people today maybe maybe even more so because the backdrop had become gray and grim and these people stood out against it I think that was a bad time for the ground rather hysterically than any other time they really would have gone to town as they did. They did anyway considering what they had to go up against the name VB there seemed to it was outstanding you know and I mean and it was on everybody's mind or something you know with the workforce rarely numbering more than 20. They set world speed records and carried to city of Springfield to be the pinnacle of the aviation world. And we were very proud of that. It's a. Well the best times of my

life I'll tell you what was really gratifying to be able to do what I wanted to do was just right on point. And I had no interference. And Danny was a great leader and I had joys of my few years ago that I think you can learn more about the Granville brothers their aircraft and all the area's aviation history right here at the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks Connecticut. Join me next time we take a second look at structures and stories. Thanks for watching. A second look is brought to you by the members of WG Y and by the preceding program was funded by a grant from the

Springfield people and.