August Euler on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
August Euler (20 November 1868 – 1 July 1957) was a pioneer German aviator, aircraft constructor and the holder of the first German 
Euler was born at
pilot's license
Pilot licensing or certification refers to permits for operating aircraft. Flight crew licences are regulated by ICAO Annex 1 and issued by the civil aviation authority of each country. CAA’s have to establish that the holder has met a specifi ...
, issued in 1909. After the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...
, he became German Secretary of State for Air, until he retired in 1922.
Euler was born at Oelde
Oelde () is a town in the district of Warendorf, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near Beckum.
Geography
Division of the town
Oelde consists of 5 districts:
* Oelde
* Stromberg
* Lette
* Sünninghausen
* Kirchspiel (with far ...
in Westphalia
Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants.
The territory of the regi ...
and was educated at Oelde and at public schools in Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
and Aachen and from 1885 started a career in engineering. He worked for Seidel & Neumann, originally a sewing machine company, which later made cycles and motor cars. Euler took up cycle racing and then motor racing and became interested in aviation. In 1908 he started a company to build Voisin aircraft under licence. In February 1908 August Euler erected a building on the site of the Griesheim Airport
Griesheim Airport is a private airfield in Germany, located southwest of Griesheim (Hessen); approximately southwest of Berlin.
Formerly a NATO military airfield, it was closed in 1992. In 1996, a large part of the airfield site was placed u ...
, which he relocated from Mainz castle, costing him 2,400 Marks. In that building he began aircraft production. In 1910 he set a German flying duration record by staying airborne for 3hr 6min. 18sec On 31 December 1909 he obtained German Pilot's brevet No. 1 and started a flying school. Before the First World War he moved his factory to Frankfurt and helped set up a German aircraft manufacturers' association. After the war he was appointed Secretary of State for Air with instructions to create a ministry for transportation, but with the restrictions of the Versailles Treaty they had little to do, and when the treaty was ratified in 1920 Euler resigned.
Euler built a house in the Black Forest on the Feldberg mountain where he lived in retirement until his death in 1957. Although his services were requested by the Nazi government during the Second World War he resisted due to his age and remained retired. He was associated with many of the country's motoring and aviation associations and received many honorary distinctions for his early work.
References
External links
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Euler, August 1957 deaths 1868 births German aviators People from Warendorf (district) Engineers from North Rhine-Westphalia Burials at Frankfurt Main Cemetery Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany German aviation record holders