Carl Anson Cover (26 April 1893 – 27 November 1944) was the chief test pilot and first to fly the

Douglas Aircraft Company The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and military, defense company based in Southern California. Founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr., it merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell D ...

DC-1, DC-2, DC-3, DC-4, and the DC-5 airliners. Cover became Senior Vice President and general manager for Douglas Aircraft and later Vice President of

Bell Aircraft The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many i ...

Early life

Cover was born on 26 April 1893, to Hugh and Helen Cover in Roxbury, Pennsylvania. He attended high school in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...

and worked as a millwright machinist at

Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...

, where his father was a foreman. Cover had three younger sisters, Margaret, Mary, and Anna.

Aviation career

US Army Air Service

Cover enlisted in the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

on 1 August 1917, and was sent to

Kelly Field Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-use airport, Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he ...

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

for pilot training. He was initially assigned to the 50th Aero Squadron, but was transferred to the 110th Aero Squadron later that same month. Cover was sent to the Military School of Aeronautics at

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

in November 1917. He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in June 1918, and was assigned to Brooks Field as an instructor. In 1923, Cover was stationed at Langley Field in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

Inter-Island Airways

In 1929, Cover was flying for the Army Reserves in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

, Hawaii. He was approached by Stanley Kennedy Sr. to be the Operations Manager and first employee for his start-up airline Inter-Island Airways (re-named

Hawaiian Airlines Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. ( ) is a commercial U.S. airline headquartered in Honolulu, and a subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group. It is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the island state of Hawaiʻi, and the tenth largest ...

in 1941). Kennedy was impressed by his background as an Army test pilot and his history of aero-engineering work. One of Cover's initial tasks was to fly Inter-Island Airways' first airplane, a Bellanca Pacemaker, from Delaware to San Francisco where it was shipped to Hawaii. Cover and Kennedy hired Navy pilot Charles Elliott as Chief Pilot. Cover, Kennedy, and Elliott, all being WWI veterans, decided on Armistice Day to be the inaugural scheduled airline flight between the

Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...

. On 11 November 1929, Elliott and Cover flew Inter-Island Airways' Sikorsky S-38 amphibious seaplanes in formation from

Maui Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...

, then on to Hilo, introducing air travel to the residents and visitors of Hawaii.

Douglas Aircraft Company

Major Cover left the Army and Inter-Island Airways in 1930 to become a test pilot for the

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. He soon became the Chief Test Pilot and Vice President of Sales, and eventually Senior Vice President and general manager of Douglas Aircraft. In 1931, a TWA Fokker F-10 tri-motor airplane had a fatal crash killing Notre Dame University football coach Knute Rockne. The cause of the crash was failure of the wooden wing spar. TWA's Jack Frye lead the campaign for aircraft manufacturers to develop rugged airliners using metal construction. Douglas Aircraft responded to this request with the DC-1. On 1 July 1933, Cover flew the first test flight of the DC-1. Shortly after take-off both engines quit; Cover pushed the nose over and the engines re-started. Cover safely managed to get the airplane back on the ground after a short 12-minute flight, to find the carburetors had been installed backwards. After TWA gained experience with the DC-1, they created a list of improvements for the airliner resulting in the creation of the DC-2. On 11 May 1934, Cover flew the first test flight of the DC-2. The DC-2 was a commercial success, selling 198 aircraft.

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

approached Douglas Aircraft with more improvements for the DC-2. American wanted an aircraft that was bigger, could fly farther, and wide enough to accommodate sleeping berths. These design changes lead to the DC-3. On 17 December 1935, Cover flew the first test flight of the DC-3. The DC-3 is credited as one of the most significant airliners ever produced, helping create the modern airline industry and aid the Allies victory in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. There were over 16,000 DC-3's and military version C-47's built. On 7 June 1938, Cover flew the first test flight of the four-engine DC-4. Two days later, Cover flew the plane on a demonstration flight for

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

with

Orville Wright The Wright brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), were American aviation pioneers generally credited with inventing, building, and flying the world's first succes ...

onboard. The prototype DC-4 had three tail-fins and was overly complex for airlines to make a profit. The plane was re-engineered with one tail-fin, simplified systems and entered service in 1942. Douglas built 1,241 civilian and military versions of the DC-4. The prototype was renamed the DC-4E for experimental. On 20 February 1939 Cover flew the first test flight of the DC-5. There were only 12 DC-5's built, and it has been called "The Forgotten Douglas."

World War II and Bell Aircraft

During World War II, General Hap Arnold requested that Cover return to active duty and help with the production and testing of the

B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to ...

. Cover was made Colonel and put in charge of United States Air Force Plant 6 at Dobbins Air Force Base in

Marietta, Georgia Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...

. Plant 6 was subcontracted to

for the production of the B-29 under license of

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

. He was released from active duty in August 1944. In September 1944, Cover accepted an offer from Bell Aircraft as Vice President and the civilian general manager of Plant 6.

Death and honors

On 27 November 1944, Cover died in a plane crash while trying to land during a snow storm in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

. He is buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

. Cover Street in the Douglas Industrial Park at the Long Beach Airport is named in his honor. Lawrence Bell, founder of Bell Aircraft, said about Cover, "In my opinion no single individual in the aircraft industry has contributed more to commercial and military aviation than Carl Cover. His abilities encompass all phases from engineering and flight test to sales direction and over-all organization."

References

External links

Davis-Monthan Airfield Register, Carl CoverThis Day in Aviation, Carl Cover
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cover, Carl 1893 births 1944 deaths Bethlehem Steel people Accidental deaths in Ohio American test pilots Aviators from Pennsylvania Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States American commercial aviators Hawaiian Airlines people American aviation pioneers American aviation businesspeople United States Army Air Service pilots of World War I United States Army Air Forces bomber pilots of World War II United States Army Air Forces colonels Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1944