| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1948 |
| Founders |
|
| Defunct | 1985 |
| Headquarters | |
| Parent | General Aircraft Corporation (1969–1976) |
The Helio Aircraft Company was an American aircraft manufacturer founded in 1948.
The Koppen-Bollinger Aircraft Corporation was founded by Otto Koppen and Lynn Bollinger in Massachusetts in 1948 to develop a light STOL utility aircraft. Initially located at Boston Metropolitan Airport in Canton, Massachusetts, [1] it was renamed the Helio Aircraft Corporation by the time manufacture of the Helio Courier commenced in the early 1950s at a plant in Pittsburg, Kansas. [2] The plant, located at the Atkinson Municipal Airport was acquired by Helio from Mid-States Manufacturing Company in July 1956 and was almost destroyed by a wildfire in March 1966. [3] [4] In 1959, the company announced it was moving its factory to Tucson, Arizona. [5]
The business was bought by the General Aircraft Corporation in 1969, was renamed Helio Aircraft Company and continued production until 1974, when General Aircraft commenced legal proceedings against the CIA, alleging that the agency had planned to ruin the business through organizing unlicensed production of the Courier. [6] [ failed verification ]
The production rights were sold by General Aircraft to Helio Aircraft Ltd in 1977. [7] Despite an abortive attempt to restart production, the company remained essentially inactive until 1980. [8] [9] The Courier was returned to production, but only 18 aircraft were built.[ citation needed ] In 1984, the company was forced to lay off 100 workers and the following February it was evicted from its factory. [10] [11]
The rights to the Courier and Stallion were bought and sold a number of times more before being purchased by Helio Aircraft LLC of Prescott, Arizona, which announced plans in 2004 to return both types to production.[ citation needed ]
| Model name | First flight | Number built | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helio Courier | ~500 | Single engine utility airplane | |
| Helio H-500 Twin Courier | 1960 | 7 | Twin engine utility airplane |
| Helio HST-550 Stallion | 1964 | 20 | Single engine utility airplane |
| Helio Rat'ler | 1 | Single engine agricultural airplane | |
Beechcraft is an American brand of civil aviation and military aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of Beech Aircraft Corporation, an American manufacturer of general aviation, commercial, and military aircraft, ranging from light single-engined aircraft to twin-engined turboprop transports, business jets, and military trainers. Beech later became a division of Raytheon and then Hawker Beechcraft before a bankruptcy sale turned its assets over to Textron. It remains a brand of Textron Aviation.
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Stearman Aircraft Corporation was an aircraft manufacturer in Wichita, Kansas. Although the company designed a range of other aircraft, it is most known for producing the Model 75, which is commonly known simply as the "Stearman" or "Boeing Stearman".
The Helio Courier is a cantilever high-wing light STOL utility aircraft designed in 1949.
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The General Aircraft Company was an American aircraft design and manufacturing company that was formed in the late 1930s and ceased involvement with aircraft in 1976.
Otto C. Koppen was an American aircraft engineer.
E. M. Laird Airplane Company was an American aircraft manufacturer of commercial aircraft and custom race planes.
Knoll Aircraft Company was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Wichita, Kansas.
Yunker Aircraft Company was an American aircraft manufacturer of the late 1920s
The history of Wichita details the history of Wichita, Kansas from its initial settlement in the 1860s to the present day.
The Freedman-Burnham Engineering Corporation was a manufacturer of light aircraft propellers located in Cincinnati, Ohio.
They call their plane a helioplane because it combines the advantages of both the present small plane and the helicopter.
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