The Rise and Fall of Miami Aircraft Corporation and the Miami Maid
Miami dreams of building airplanes
Plans are ambitious
In the late 1920s Miami was still struggling to recover from the devastation of the Hurricane of 1926 and collapse of the Florida land boom. Aviation loomed as a lifeline in a storm and Miamians grasped it. In December 1928 the city successfully dedicated a Municipal Airport and in January 1929 Pan American Airways inaugurated its international airport at NW 36th Street. Shortly thereafter, in February 1929, Miami seemed briefly poised to add yet another facet to its rapidly expanding aviation activities — aircraft manufacturing. At the center of that ambition was the Miami Aircraft Corporation, which announced bold plans to build airplanes in South Florida.
The company established its factory in Hialeah at what was then West 9th Street and 3rd Avenue, occupying a studio building that served as its first workshop. Leading the venture was Joseph M. Smoot, a well-known sportsman and president of the Miami Jockey Club.
From the beginning, the company’s ambitions were substantial. Smoot predicted that the factory would soon produce as many as four or five custom-built airplanes per week, with each aircraft tailored to the preferences of wealthy buyers in much the same way that luxury yachts or automobiles were ordered to specification. Plans were even discussed for a large new factory building and service station capable of accommodating dozens of aircraft.
Enter the Miami Maid
The company’s first aircraft, christened the Miami Maid, was a small amphibious flying boat that embodied many of the latest ideas in aircraft design. Designed by engineer L. C. McCarthy, the plane was a cantilever monoplane with a cockpit that could be left open or enclosed. Constructed of spruce and mahogany and covered in linen fabric, the aircraft seated four passengers and a pilot and could reach a top speed of approximately 120 miles per hour.
Its engine, a Wright J-5 radial producing 225 horsepower, was mounted above and behind the wing in a pusher configuration, reducing vibration and noise in the cabin. The cabin itself reflected the company’s intention to cater to affluent customers: it was upholstered and equipped with reading lights, ventilators, observation windows, cigar lighters, and ashtrays.
Early flights and growing excitement
After a series of preliminary tests in Miami, the aircraft undertook its first major demonstration in March 1929, flying from Miami to Havana to prove its seaworthiness and performance.
Even greater attention followed in June, when the Miami Maid departed on a long-distance flight from Miami to New York. The 1,200-mile journey attracted national publicity and demonstrated the aircraft’s capabilities. As the plane passed over Atlantic City, its unusual design caught the attention of officials at the Curtiss Air Station, who immediately ordered a model at a cost of $18,000k. The result was a remarkable early success for the young company.
A wealthy owner and new ambitions
Soon afterward the Miami Maid was purchased by Colonel Edward H. R. Green of Star Island, the wealthy financier and son of famed investor Hetty Green. Colonel Green acquired the aircraft after his wife enjoyed a flight in it and decided she wanted one of her own. The plane was taken to the Greens’ summer estate at Round Hill in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where Colonel Green was constructing a private airport.
Second prototype is built
Meanwhile, work continued in Hialeah on a second aircraft of the same design. During 1929 the company focused on refining the design and obtaining government certification. After months of development, the second Miami Maid successfully passed its airworthiness tests in January 1930, receiving a Department of Commerce license that allowed unrestricted commercial use. Company officials announced that with federal approval secured, mass production would soon begin.
For a moment it seemed that Miami Aircraft Corporation was on the verge of achieving its founders’ ambitious vision.
That promise was tragically cut short the following month.
At left: Miami Herald, January 15, 1930.
Tragic crash in Biscayne Bay
On the morning of February 23, 1930, the second Miami Maid—registered NC-178-N—departed on a demonstration flight from the Municipal Seaplane Base on the Venetian Causeway in Biscayne Bay. On board were Thomas B. Ward, the company’s chief pilot; Frank J. Somers, stockholder and salesman; and Merritt S. Carlton, a Miami Beach jeweler and prospective customer.
Only minutes after takeoff, as the aircraft circled near the seaplane base at an altitude of about 200 feet, Ward attempted a steep banking maneuver. Aviation experts later concluded the plane was too low to safely execute the turn. The aircraft suddenly dove into Biscayne Bay approximately 200 yards from the base.
All three men aboard were killed.
Investigators found no evidence of mechanical failure and concluded the crash was an unavoidable accident caused by insufficient altitude for the maneuver. Smoot temporarily closed the factory out of respect for the deceased members of the enterprise.
Although hopes were expressed that production would resume, the crash effectively ended the company’s aircraft manufacturing ambitions. No additional airplanes were completed.
End of an aviation dream
In May 1931, newspapers reported that the company had turned its attention to a new product—a water bicycle, an unusual aquatic device intended for recreational use on Miami’s waterways. Like the aircraft venture before it, however, this enterprise appears to have been short-lived.
The Miami Aircraft Corporation was formally dissolved in May 1934, bringing to a close one of the earliest attempts to establish aircraft manufacturing in South Florida.