Clyde Cessna

Clyde Cessna
Cessna circa 1920
Born	(1879-12-05)December 5, 1879 Hawthorne, Iowa
Died	November 20, 1954(1954-11-20) (aged 74) Wichita, Kansas
Residence	Kansas
Occupation	Aircraft Designer, Aviation Entrepreneur
Known for	Cessna Aircraft founder
Children	Eldon Cessna

Clyde Vernon Cessna (/ˈsɛsnə/; December 5, 1879 – November 20, 1954) was an American aircraft designer, aviator, and founder of the Cessna Aircraft Corporation.

Clyde Vernon Cessna was born in Hawthorne, Iowa, on December 5, 1879. Cessna's family was of French and German ancestry. When he was 2, he and his family moved to rural Rago in Kingman County, Kansas, along the Chikaskia River. During his boyhood he used his self-taught innovation and mechanical skills to improve farm machinery and to develop new farming methods. He later became a successful car dealer in Enid, Oklahoma.

Clyde's interest in aviation began in 1910 after witnessing an aerial exhibition in his home state of Kansas. It was this exhibition that led him in future years to pursue his career in aviation. After realizing his interest in aviation, Clyde left Oklahoma and moved to New York where he worked for a short period at the Queen Aeroplane Company where he first learned about the construction of aircraft.

In 1911, he set out to build his first airplane, an airplane he named "silverwing". His first design was a monoplane, constructed of spruce and linen and which took the form of an American version of the Bleriot XI. The engine was a modified Elbridge motorboat motor, dubbed the "aero special", which was a 2-stroke, 4-cylinder engine with a maximum of 40 hp (30 kW) and 1,050 rpm. Upon completion, he sought to test the aircraft at the Great Salt Plains (adjacent to the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge) in Alfalfa County, Oklahoma. His first attempt at flight ended in a ground loop, which required $100 to repair. After repairs, Cessna attempted flight 13 more times, each time ending in some sort of failure. Finally on his 13th attempt, Cessna got a glimpse of hope as his aircraft bounced up into the air for a short time before crashing into the trees as he attempted to turn it. After his crash, Cessna exclaimed in frustration, "I'm going to fly this thing, then I'm going to set it afire and never have another thing to do with aeroplanes!". Finally, in June 1911 Cessna had his first successful flight. The crowds that had scoffed at his failures changed their tone and began calling him a "daring hero" and nicknamed him the "Birdman of Enid". Cessna continued to teach himself how to fly over the next several months until December 1911, when he made a successful 5-mile (8.0 km) flight and a successful landing at the point of departure. He was the first person to build and fly an airplane in the Heartland of the United States—between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains.