The Command-Aire was an American aircraft manufacturer from the late 1920s and early 1930s based in Little Rock, Arkansas.
History
The company was founded on August 26, 1926 by Major J. Carroll Cone and W. F. Moody as the Arkansas Aircraft Corporation.[1][2] Aircraft were built in the former Climber Motor Company Factory at 1823 East 17th Street in Little Rock, Arkansas.[3]
After a failed attempt by their first engineer to produce their design, they attempted to arrange the purchase of a production licence for the Heinkel HD 40, and when that fell through they hired a Heinkel engineer, Albert Vollmecke, who would be responsible for the rest of the company's designs.[2]
In September 1928, the company was purchased by Robert B. Snowden and the name was changed to Command-Aire. With rapidly declining sales due to the Great Depression, and with no acceptable offers for a merger, the company declared bankruptcy in 1931 and its remaining assets were sold off.[1]
Juptner, Joseph P. (1962). U.S. Civil Aircraft Vol. 1 (ATC 1 - 100). Los Angeles, CA: Aero Publishers. pp. 139–140. LCCN62-15967.
Juptner, Joseph P. (1964). U.S. Civil Aircraft Vol. 2 (ATC 101 - 200). Los Angeles, CA: Aero Publishers. pp. 242–244. LCCN62-15967.
Smith, William M. (1992). "The Right Plane at the Wrong Time: A Brief History of the Command-Aire Aircraft Company". The Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 51 (3): 224–246. doi:10.2307/40023098. JSTOR40023098.