Engineering Division
| Founded | 31 August 1918 |
|---|---|
| Parent | United States Department of War |
The Engineering Division was a division of the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps in the United States Department of War. It was formed on 31 August 1918, under the direction of Lt Col Jesse G. Vincent, to study and design American versions of foreign aircraft. It was later renamed Engineering Division, Air Service and then in 1926 Material Division Air Corps. It was based at McCook Field, and in October 1927 moved to Wright Field.
United States Armed Forces procurement of aircraft began when the Army's 1907 Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps, acquired several of the Wright Military Flyer of 1909.
The Airplane Engineering Department was established by the Equipment Division, U.S. Signal Corps in 1917 for World War I experimental engineering. The department had a 1917 Foreign Data Section, and the Airplane Engineering Department was on McCook Field at Dayton, Ohio (the 1917 Patterson Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot were nearby.) In June 1917 Major Raynal Bolling lead a Bureau of Aircraft Production mission to France, investigating if it was possible to build British and French aircraft in the United States and which aircraft should be bought from the Allies. McCook Field established the Air School of Application in 1919 after the department became the Airplane Engineering Division on 31 August 1918 under Lt Col Jesse G. Vincent (Packard co-engineer of the 1917 V-12 Liberty engine) to study and design American versions of foreign aircraft. It combined a number of existing divisions of the Air Service, including the Engineering Department and the Airplane Experimental Department.
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