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James Howard 'Dutch' Kindelberger (1895 – 1962) was an American aviation pioneer. He famously led North American Aviation (1934-60). He was not only an emensely competent aviatiin engineer, but a colorful character famous for demanding hard work, orderliness and punctuality. He was born in Wheeling, West Virginia (1895). The fa,ily was descended from German (Deutsch) immigrants originating in from Nothweiler, Pfalz. The Dutch knick name results is also why the Pennsyvanian Germans are called Dutch. His parents were Charles Frederick Kindelberger, a steelworker, and Rose Ann Kindelberger. Kindelberger dropped out of high school in the 10th grade and began working in the steel industry along with his father. He soon decided that a career in ythe steel mills was not going to be his future. He took correspondence courses to gain his high school certificate. He then manafed to not only enter Carnegie Institute of Technology to pursue engineering (1916). At the time working class children did not commonly enter high school, and here Futch managed to enbter one if the most prwsstigiuous engerring universuties in America. Nit ionly that, but he was elected class president. When America declared war on Germany, he would elist and wound up in the air corps (1917). Among the individuals he became associated with were Hap Armnold and American ace Billy Mitchell. He married Thelma Knarr after the War (1919) They had two children. He was associated with an amazing number of aviatioon achievenments beginning with helping designed the bomber Gen Mitchell famouslu=y used to sink a World War I battleship. He went on to run North American aviation during World War II. And was chosen by the industry to head the Aircraft War Production Council. North Anerican produced a staggeing 42,000 aircraft to help win the War, including the fabulous P-51 Mustang, but Kindelberger played a key role in expanding prduction throughout America's aviation industry.
The family was descended from German (Deutsch) immigrants originating in from Nothweiler, Pfalz. The Dutch knick name results is also why the Pennsyvanian Germans are called Dutch. His parents were Charles Frederick Kindelberger, a steelworker, and Rose Ann Kindelberger.
Dutch was born in Wheeling, West Virginia (1895). We know very littke about his childhood except that he grew up dirt poor. Here we see him with bis brother, mother, and grandmoter about 1900 (figure 1). We do know that he saw and early flight about 1908. He was hooked on aviation. But that did noit was not something a poor working class boy could really aspire to. And there was not yet an aviation industry.
Kindelberger dropped out of high school in the 10th grade and began working in the steel industry along with his father. He soon decided that a career in ythe steel mills was not going to be his future. He took correspondence courses to gain his high school certificate. He then manafed to not only enter Carnegie Institute of Technology to pursue engineering (1916). At the time working class children did not commonly enter high school, and here Futch managed to enbter one if the most prestigious engerring universuties in America. Not only that, but he so impressed his fellow students mistly from well0helked families that vhe was was elected class president.
When America declared war on Germany, he left college and elist and wound up in the air corps (1917). He became a pilot, some that he had dreamed of since his boyhood. He was a pilot instructor based at Park Field in Memphis, Tennessee. Among the individuals he became associated with were Hap Armnold and American ace Billy Mitchell.
Kindelberger married Thelma Knarr after the War (1919) They had two children.
He was associated with an amazing number of aviation achievenments. And this began immeditely after World War I. He managed to got a job with Glen L. Martin Company. He had no money for a suit, so he reportsed on his first =day in his uniform. He helped design The MB-2 Bomber that Gen Mitchell famouslu=y used to sink a World War I battleship and set off a huge debate about military airpower (1922). Most importantly for Kindelberger, he is placed directlt unfer Donald Douglas--the foremost aviation expert in America. Douglas had been choden by President Wilson to oversse American aviation production during World War I. Douglas recognized his avikity and Kindelberger rose rapidkly, becoming the chief draftsman and then assistant chief engineer
Kindelberger followed Douglas to Califirnia (1925). He became the Douglas chief engineer. And eventually the company's vice president (early-1930s). He spear-head ed the development of the revolutioinary DC-3 passeger airliner thriugh the DC-1 and DC-2 developmental stahes. It would become the DC-3 and during Workd War II the C-47 Sky Train/Dakota). There he formed a lifelong working association with J. L. 'Lee' Atwood. They met as young engineers (1930) working on the DC-1 and DC-2 airliners.
He went on with Donkld Douglas' blessing to run North American Aviation (NAA) in the run up to World War II (1934). It is here that he made his great contribution as a American aviation pioneer. He was not only an emensely competent aviation engineer, but a colorful character famous for demanding hard work, orderliness and punctuality. He and Atwood left Douglas Aircraft to help NAA develop a real manufacturing capability. Atwood assumed the title of Chief Engineer, and Kindelberger was named president and General Manager. When they began NAA, the company had only one order, for a sinlge passenger aircraft. Kindelberger heard that bthe Army Air Corps wanted a new trainer. He knew thgat NAA did not yer bhave the capacity to compete with the established manufacturing comapnies for an advanced plane, but a trainer was a different matter. [Rumerman] He had barely 3-months to build and test fly their entry and the Federal Governmenbt at the time was strictly prohibited overtimne. And he mnanaged to win a $1 million order for a military trainer, the North American BT-9. It would eventually lead to the T-6 Texan, the modst important trainer of World War II. A trainer does not sound all that imoportant, but larger numbers of American and Nritish pilots leraned to fly on the Texan. And it gave NAA the technokogical and manufacturing base to develop arguabkly the most advanced propeller aircraft of the War. The most important combat airctaft NAA produced in the early years of the War was the B-25 Mitchell bomber, named after Kindelberger's World War I mentor. Kindelberger worked with Col. Doolittle to preoare the planes for a carrier take off and reaching safety in China--the famous Doolittle Raid (April 1942). The great achievement of Kindelberger negan a year before the Doolittle Raid. On his return to America, Doolittle made a stop at the NAA plant that had manufactured the bombrtrs he had used. The British government established a purchasing commission in the United States as it becamne clear Germany was going to lunch another war (1938). The British Air Ministry approched North American Aviation to build Curtiss P-40 Warhawk fighters for the Royal Air Force. This was at the time the top-of-the kline American fifhyrr. The Curtiss factory at the time was at full production with all its output already earmarked for the U.S. Army air Corps. John Attwood of North American spent much time from January to April 1940 at the British Purchasing Commission's offices in New York discussing the British specifications Kindelberger told the British that NAA could create a better design, and completed the prototype of the P-51 Mustang in only 4 months, faster than the could build the P-40s. [Parker] This would lead once mated with the British Rolls Royce Merlin engine to the war-winning P-51 Mustang. [Rumerman] Gen. Arnold and Kindelberger worked closely in the project. North Anerican produced a staggeing 42,000 aircraft to help win the War. [Herman] This was possible in part as a result of inovative assembly line mass production techniques developed by Kindelberger. This included mezadines for subassembly and monorails to speed production flows. He vurtually wrote the book on the aviation assembly line. Other aviation companies were expanding at the time, but none so rapidly as NAA. He would continue at North American during the early Cold War era, helping to develop the F-86 Sabre jet thstbplsyed a vital role in Korea.
With the shocking NAZI victory in France (June 1940), it became ckaear that America was gong ti have to cboth reae=rm and play a greater role, most priminentky assist Britain. The President after his ekectiion nvuctiry, priclaimed iun one oif hisd most important Fire Side Cgats, proclained America to be the great Aesenal of Democracy (December 1940). He told the industry that he wanted Amnerica to begin 50,000 aircraft annually. That at the time was an enormous number -- much more than all the aircraft in edxistance at the time all over the world. The Battle of Britain had just been fought out with just 3,000 aircraft on boith sides. Donald Doulas got his fellow aircraft manufacturers to meet in Santa Monica to discuss how such seemingly impossible goals could be achieved. It was nothing short of the biggest production effort in industrial history. They agreed to coopeate rather than compete. They formed the Aircraft Production Council. And they reached agreement porviding that all aircraft designs and licenses woukld be shared. This would allow the different countries to begin byuldiung eacg=h others' auirccraft to meet Government orders. This made intelectual property and resources communal. [Spencer] Douglas not only played a key role in chiebing tghis historic asgreement, but aldo suggested that Kindelberger be selected as the Council president. Kindelberger in this new role played a key role in expading prduction throughout America's aviation industry. Kindelberger was chosen by the industry to head the Aircraft War Production Council. He was the industry's voice in dealing with slow moving Federal agencies and making the raw material needs clear. He shared his expertise in assembly line techniquues. He wirked closely with Gen. Hap Arnold. Manufacturers were incouraged to open plants in the south. After serious adjustmentt, aircraft production largely succeeded in shifting from the 'job shop', where parts were built in batches, to assembly line production. The Detroit assembly line could not be easily adapted to plabr constryuction. Here Kindelberger had made considerable progres. The Ford Willow Run plant near Detroit, Michigan, would become the largest and most successful effort. Willow Run alone produced 92 million pounds of airframe weight—-more than half of Germany's total annual production and nearly equal to Japan's 12-month total (1944). All kinds of issues were addressed such asctandarduization.
Herman, Arthur. Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II (Random House: New York NY, 2012).6
Parker, Dana T. Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II (. Cypress, California: Dana T. Parker Books, 2013).
Rumerman. Judy. "North American Aviation," (United States Centennial of Flight Commission: 2003).
Spencer, Jay.
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