Eddie Stinson: a True Pioneer in the Early Years of Aviation

By Alan Smith

Stinson 108-3, the last Stinson design. (Larry Westin)Edward (Eddie) Stinson was born in 1894 in Ft. Payne Alabama. Nine years later, he learned of the success of the Wright brothers in their mission to build and fly a powered airplane at Kitty Hawk North Carolina and his fascination with aviation was born.

At age 16, he dropped out of school, and headed for St. Louis where two men were building their own powered aircraft. There he convinced them that he should be their test pilot. He didn’t mention that their kite-like airplane was the first airplane he’d ever seen. He did manage to get it into the air but stalled and crashed, destroying one wing. The two gentlemen of St Louis decided aviation was not for them and gave Eddie Stinson Detroiter, the first Stinson. (PilotFriend)the wrecked aircraft as payment for his attempt to fly it.

The accident made Stinson realize that there was more to flying an airplane than he knew. In 1911, he enrolled in the Wright brothers’ flying school in Dayton, Ohio, and quickly developed into what we like to call a “natural.” He received a signed pilot’s license and began a career as a barnstormer and stunt pilot, earning as much as $100,000 a year, a sum that was a small fortune in those days,

In 1920, at Dayton, he began designing and building airplanes on his own and established the Stinson Aircraft Company. After five years of experimentation he decided to move operations to Detroit, Mich. because the business community there had become interested in him. Stinson 108-3 (Larry Westin)Stockholders were obtained and the corporation formed as the Stinson Aircraft Syndicate in 1925. The Detroit Board of Commerce’s aviation committee kicked in $25,000 to finance the design and construction of a large monoplane that was named the SM-1 Detroiter. Ten of these were sold in 1926. It was a good, stable airplane and demand increased. One hundred twenty one were sold in 1929.

Then E.L. Cord whose front wheel drive automobiles were unusual and spectacular bought into Stinson Aircraft and wound up with 60 percent of the stock. He put in more working capital so Stinson prices could stay competitive while money was spent on new designs. By 1930 the A 1939 Stinson 105 (also called the HW-75.) (Arpingstone)company had six different models in the marketplace, ranging from the SM-2 “Junior” four seater for private pilots to the SM-6000, a tri-motor airliner.

Sadly, in 1932, Eddie was killed in a crash in Chicago’s Jackson Park in the southeast section of the city.  He was flying a demonstration in a six seat SM-1 Detroiter with four other men and was just offshore over Lake Michigan when the engine gave up. Eddie headed in toward the park’s golf course for a forced landing but hit a flag pole on approach, seriously damaging the right wing. The four passengers were slightly injured in the crash, but Stinson’s injuries proved fatal. He had about 16,000 hours of flying time, more than any other pilot in that year.

The SM-6000 Airliner (Creative Commons)The company carried on, maintaining Eddie Stinson’s standards of quality and originality. It became a subsidiary of the Cord corporation but kept the Stinson name. More new models were introduced and, despite the struggling U.S. economy, sales continued. The model 105 Voyager, a three-seat high winged light plane, was introduced and was immediately popular. A little known Stinson, the model O was offered as a military trainer. It was an open cockpit two seater with a parasol wing. Only ten of these were built and were purchased by foreign air forces. The 105 Voyager became the L-5 Sentinal for the U.S. military. Five hundred thirty five had been sold in 1939 and 1940 before World War II and it was redesigned to become the Sentinel. During the war, 3,950 L-5s were delivered to the military.

One famous Stinson is the SR Reliant. First introduced in 1933 as the SR-1, it is a four to five seat airplane powered by Lycoming, Pratt & Whitney and Wright radial engines. There are many variations of the Reliant, ranging from the SR-1 to the SR-10 and 1,327 were built between 1933 and 1941. It saw service during WW II in both American and British armies and navies.

When the Cord Corporation was dissolved, the company was acquired by the Aviation Corporation (AVCO) and later by Consolidated Vultee. The Stinson name was retained by both.

The last Stinson design was the 108 Voyager that went into production shortly after the war. It was a four-seat personal aircraft and very popular with its cruising speed of 120 mph.  The Stinson name finally disappeared when the company was acquired by Piper Aircraft in 1950. Piper got an inventory of 325 108s in the deal and sold these over time. Piper also got the design of the “Twin Stinson,” and introduced it as the Piper Apache.

There are still plenty of Stinsons in the sky everywhere in the U.S., Canada, and overseas. They are well built, comfortable and easy to fly. As a student pilot, I flew one from Oberlin, Ohio to Columbus to see a girlfriend in 1951. The checkout had taken less than an hour to transition from Aeronca 7AC’s to the Voyager.