Name: Abhi Yammanuru

Paideia Research Paper

Date: November 30, 2017

Mrs.Molloy

Aerospace and Engineering in Connecticut

Flying from California to New York may have seemed impossible 200 years ago.

As a matter of fact, many people believed that it was impossible to fly in the first place.

But humans have built machines that have done the impossible. Many of these

individuals are from Connecticut. Two famous individuals include, Igor Sikorsky and

Frederick Rentschler. They have built many things that have taken aviation to the next

levels. The U.S government also still uses their inventions. The helicopter was also a

major invention. The aerospace innovations in Connecticut during the 20th century

improved the quality of life for people nationally.

Famous Individuals

Igor Sikorsky impacted the aerospace industry in CT and America positively. The

highlight of Sikorsky’s career has to be the helicopter. He flew it first in Stamford,

Connecticut in 1939. It was called the Vought-Sikorsky 300, (VS-300) and it captured

the attention of many people, including military personnel (Wyckoff 10). The VS-300

was a baseline for all of his other helicopters. When Sikorsky was showcasing the VS-

300, it did not fly straight. It flew in all directions but straight (Haar)! Sikorsky

demonstrated resilience even though his helicopter didn’t work the first time. It didn’t

work because the engine failed, and this also gave him the idea to build a multi-engine
plane. The government of the United States were not too impressed with Sikorsky’s first

helicopter, but he was able to catch their eye when he fixed the problems. “Helicopters

would never work” said Wilbur Wright (Wyckoff). Wright (along with his brother Orville)

were the ones who flew the first working plane. This made Sikorsky unconfident about

his helicopter, but he showed perseverance and despite criticism he made the

helicopter. Igor Sikorsky had built many other things as well. Sikorsky also built the first

multi-engine plane. It was called Grand It was revolutionary because it gave ideas to the

modern airplanes (Wyckoff 13). Because Sikorsky’s first helicopter failed, he realized

that there is safety in numbers (for engines). Modern passenger airplanes borrow ideas

from Sikorsky’s plane because they also are powered with more than one

engine.Modern planes have impacted the way people transport till date. To conclude

Igor Sikorsky made many inventions that impacted people. He was resilient when

people did not believe in him and got back up. Sikorsky was not the only one who

changed the aerospace industry in America.

Frederick Rentschler changed the aerospace industry in Connecticut and in

America as well. He is famous for his engines. With his unique air-cooled engines (in

contrary to the popular liquid-cooled engines) he was also able to catch the U.S

government's attention. Frederick Rentschler graduated from Princeton University and

joined the Navy (Richard DeLuca). After finishing his work in the Navy, he started

working in an Aerospace Company in Michigan. Since being in the navy Rentschler

learned a lot from their airplanes and he applies those concepts to make his own

engines. He started working with a man named William E. Boeing. Rentschler

eventually decided that he would start his own company, and came to Connecticut.
Their first engine, called Wasp, was a major success. The Wasp produced 400

horsepower and weighed less than 650 pounds. This was revolutionary at the time

because engines back then weighed over 1000 pounds (Richard DeLuca). The U.S

military decided that all of their bombers would use the wasp engine. They ordered

almost 800 engines! The Wasp engine gave America the advantage over other

countries in the world. Connecticut suddenly became a major facility that would produce

engines for the U.S. Soon Pratt & Whitney increased their workforce from a humble

3000 to a whopping 40,000 (Richard DeLuca)! More people were required because the

sole 3000 people could not do all of the work. Most of these people were hired from

automobile companies. Companies like Chevrolet, Buick and General Motors. They

started manufacturing other engines as well. Their next engine was called ‘Hornet. By

this time, Pratt and Whitney was a well established and a reliable engine company, so

many people already knew how great this engine would be. Hornet produced 525

horsepower.The U.S Navy were content with the wasp, but didn’t mind an upgrade so

they ordered 200 Hornets. Rentschler started building bigger and bigger engines. Soon

eventually his biggest engine, The Twin Turbo Wasp, produced 3600 horsepower!

William E. Boeing (who founded Boeing Inc.) started using Rentschler’s Engines for his

passenger planes as well (Richard DeLuca). Boeing. Inc is now a major player in the

Aerospace field. Boeing borrowed ideas from Sikorsky's multiengine plane as well, as it

is the predecessor of the modern passenger plane. Frederick Rentschler got inducted

to the National Aviation Hall of fame in 1982. To conclude, Rentschler made engines

that gave America the lead in terms of military power.

Role in Military
 Both of Sikorsky and Rentschler’s inventions helped America’s Military in many

ways. During World War II , the American MIlitary decided to use Sikorsky’s Helicopter

(Wyckoff). This gave America the advantage in many aspects. Firstly, they could

transport soldiers with ease because the helicopter did not need a runway to land,

(unlike planes) so they can drop them or make an emergency landing anytime. The

helicopter could be used to rescue soldiers as well. It was innovative at the time

because America could treat their soldiers faster. This would mean that they could have

more people fighting at the same time. Rentschler’s engines gave America the

advantage over other countries (NAHOF). His J-57 engine, which was a turbojet

engine, gave 2 times the thrust of any other engine in the world! This would put

America in front in terms of military power. America at the time was becoming a major

power in the world (along with Russia) and would need powerful engines like this one.

Sikorsky made the very famous “Black Hawk” helicopters, these helicopters were the

best of the best when it came to stealth and efficiency (Cook). The Blackhawks were by

far the most recognizable helicopters till 2017. They were so successful that the military

is still using them. They were used for the Osama Bin Laden Raid. Other countries did

not have helicopters that were as stealthy as the Blackhawks so once again America

got the advantage. To conclude, inventions made by Sikorsky and Rentschler made a

positive impact in the American Military.

The Helicopter

The helicopter is an invention that has a lasting impact till 2017. Since Sikorsky

worked hard on his helicopter and disproved many people, he celebrated. "To top it off,
Mr. Sikorsky held up his hat and I speared it with the nose of the craft," pilot Les Morris

wrote in his 1945 book (Haar). Pilot Les Morris is one of the people that doubted

Sikorsky’s helicopter at first. He then was astonished at how the helicopter actually

worked and Sikorsky’s helicopter baffled many people and showed how useful his

invention could be. All the presidents since Dwight Eisenhower used Sikorsky’s

helicopter as transportation. “I always have believed that the helicopter would be an

outstanding vehicle for the greatest variety of life-saving missions and now, near the

close of my life, I have the satisfaction of knowing that this proved to be true”(Igor

Sikorsky). As Sikorsky mentioned, the helicopter is being used, and probably will be

used in the future for many good reasons. LIFESTAR is a helicopter used in the

Hartford hospital. LIFESTAR is only used for severe instances and it saves many lives

because of it. The part where Sikorsky feared the most was that the helicopter would be

used for destruction. There aren’t too many instances for this but in wars, many oeople

die from helicopters. To conclude, the helicopter is an invention that impacts the lives of

many people, both in good and bad ways.

In conclusion, aerospace and engineering in Connecticut in the 20th century

improved the quality life and played a role in the military. There were two individuals at

the time, Frederick Rentschler and Igor Sikorsky. These two were the ones that put

Connecticut on the map and gave Connecticut a major role in the aerospace industry till

date. Aerospace in Connecticut had a lasting impact because many people can do

things they never had dreamed they could do. It also gives us a guideline in order to

build more transportation in the future.