Biographical Sketches

THOMAS WESLEY BENOIST

Born: December 29, 1874    In: Irondale, MO
Died: June 14, 1917    In: Sandusky, OH

Thomas Wesley Benoist moved with his family to St Louis in 1983, where he had his first experience with flight on a balloon ride in 1904. He and his brother, Charles, started in business first in 1907 as an automobile supply house, but a year later changed their direction as the Aeronautic Supply Co, the first of its kind in the USA. Aerosco, as it became popularly known, sold not only raw materials, parts, and motors, but featured Curtiss and European biplanes in its 52-page catalog. There Tom developed his newfound interest in designing flying machines.

By 1909 he had his first airplane, an old Curtiss pusher that he had rebuilt and modified as a prototype for three others, but he had never flown any of them. So, his first flight in September 1910 was his solo flight -- a journey of 600’ at an altitude of 50’ -- which also made his the first St Louis resident to fly. With skills evolved from subsequent flights, Benoist opened a flying school at the city’s new Kinloch Field, where by mid-1911 more than a dozen students from around the world had learned to fly -- one of them was Tony Jannus, who would become his chief instructor and collaborator in designing aircraft.

Production was mostly undocumented, and only one report of a total 106 aircraft built by the various Benoist operations was noted, but the products were well-known and the company was a major manufacturer of the period. Benoist and Jannus also received U.S. patent #1,053,182 for their invention of a tethered parachute "dispenser," which Bert Berry used to make the world’s first successful jump from a plane on March 1, 1912.

In early 1913, the pair made plans for a mid-year transatlantic flight to try for the $50,000 prize announced by Lord Northcliffe, in which Jannus would follow a steamship until 100 miles from the Irish coast, then fly ahead to land. However, their plans fell through when the Roberts Co would not to loan them a vital 100hp motor. Things began looking up when a three-month contract was awarded for a St Petersburg-Tampa airline to begin New Year’s Day 1914, the world’s first scheduled passenger service. Service ended on March 30, and while losing money in the venture, they proved the feasibility of commercial air service by carrying 184 passengers safely on 97 trips.

Business went back into a slump, and Jannus left. Without city support, Kinloch Field became virtually deserted, so in January 1915 Benoist moved operations to Chicago. There he reached an tentative agreement with the St Louis Car Co to build 5,000 airplanes to sell at $6,100 each; however, only two prototype Model 15s came of the idea, and Benoist moved his shrinking business into the Roberts Motor Co factory at Sandusky OH, where only four aircraft were reported built.

Struggling to pay bills and keep remaining employees from deserting him, there was a sudden bright ray when in December 1916 he was approached by the government about an order, and Admiral Peary was scheduled for a meeting with Benoist and the Roberts people in late June 1917. Benoist was also negotiating with financial backers about his eight-passenger, twin-engine Model 17, when he hopped off a moving trolley one fateful day and struck a light pole. He died within hours at age 43.

REFERENCES:
Morehouse Early Pioneers

Denotes an individual known to have soloed an aircraft prior to December 16, 1917, whether they were members of the "Early Birds of Aviation" Organization or not.