Hamilton Standard
Hamilton Standard (Now UTC Aerospace Systems AKA UTAS[1] ), an aircraft propeller parts supplier, was formed in 1929 when United Aircraft and Transport Corporation consolidated Hamilton Aero Manufacturing and Standard Steel Propeller into the Hamilton Standard Propeller Corporation. Other members of the corporation included Boeing, United Airlines, Sikorsky, and Pratt & Whitney. At the time, Hamilton was the largest manufacturer of aircraft propellers in the world.
History
Standard Steel Propeller had been formed in 1918 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Hamilton Aero Manufacturing had been formed in 1920 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin by Thomas F. Hamilton. Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis used a propeller made by Standard Steel Propeller Company in his historic solo crossing of the Atlantic Ocean.
In the early 1930s Frank W. Caldwell of Hamilton Standard led a team that developed a variable-pitch propeller, using hydraulic pressure and centrifugal force to change the angle of attack of the blades. Caldwell received the 1933 Collier Trophy for this advance in flight propulsion. Later advances included full-feathering and reversible propellers.
Hamilton Standard was a division of United Aircraft Corporation (1934) along with Pratt & Whitney (engines).
In the early 1950s Hamilton developed the technology to accurately meter fuel in jet engines, and its fuel controls were employed on Boeing 707's and Douglas DC-8's as well as most other Pratt & Whitney jet engines. In 1952 Hamilton Standard opened its plant in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. In 1958 Hamilton's first environmental control system entered service on the Convair 880. In 1968 Hamilton began delivering automatic, electronic systems for control of cabin pressure in aircraft. Hamilton's mechanical fuel controls, in use since the 1950s, evolved into electronically controlled fuel controls and, eventually, to Full Authority Digital Electronic Controls (FADEC) for jet engines and are in use today on many commuter, airline and military engine applications. Hamilton's environmental systems and early association with NASA were highlighted in the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landing - supported by environmental control, fuel cell and life support systems manufactured by Hamilton Standard.
Merger
In 1999, Hamilton Standard merged with Sundstrand Corporation to become Hamilton Sundstrand, a division of United Technologies Corporation. Sundstrand brought a long history and portfolio of quality aerospace products to the newly named company, and Hamilton Sundstrand products are in use on most commercial aircraft produced throughout the world today. Hamilton Sundstrand continues to provide aerospace components and systems to most of the world's aircraft manufacturers, including Boeing, Airbus, Bombardier and Embraer.
In 2012 Hamilton Sundstrand merged with Goodrich Corporation to become UTC Aerospace Systems.[2]
See also
- List of aircraft propeller manufacturers
- Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529
- Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 2311
References
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