Wipaire is a third-generation family-owned

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

aircraft manufacturing and repair company, best known for its

aircraft floats A floatplane is a type of seaplane with one or more slender floats mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy. By contrast, a flying boat uses its fuselage for buoyancy. Either type of seaplane may also have landing gear suitable for land, ...

History

The company was founded shortly after

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 ...

by Ben Wiplinger, a veteran of the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. He returned to his native

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

and set up shop at South St. Paul Airport to convert surplus military aircraft (usually transport types; sometimes bombers) into civilian executive aircraft. Wiplinger was an avid

floatplane A floatplane is a type of seaplane with one or more slender floats mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy. By contrast, a flying boat uses its fuselage for buoyancy. Either type of seaplane may also have landing gear suitable for land, ...

pilot, and he was familiar with the dominant line of light-aircraft floats of the era,

EDO Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

. He sought an EDO dealership, but was turned down. He formed Wipline, Inc. to fabricate his own line of aircraft floats. The production of Wipline floats commenced in 1960, though the first set wasn't sold until 1962. By 2013 the company had delivered over 2000 sets of floats, ranging in capacity from Cubs to Twin Otters. However, along with the manufacture and installation of floats, the company gradually returned to its original role of aircraft servicing, maintenance, modifications, painting and interior completions. Bob Wiplinger, Ben's son, established Wipaire, Inc. in 1974. Both companies (Wipaire, Inc. and Wipline, Inc.) were combined in 1979 when Bob purchased Wipline, Inc. from Ben. Today, the company president is Chuck Wiplinger, Bob's son and Ben's grandson, who took over the role in 2011. Until 2013 the company was based entirely in Minnesota. In late January 2013, it opened a floatplane service and repair facility at Leesburg International Airport in Lake County, Florida.

Aerial firefighting modifications

A current example of the company's blended line of offerings is the Fire Boss, an Air Tractor AT-802F that is equipped to provide initial response to industrial or forest fires. Its amphibious floats can scoop 820 gallons of water as the plane flies low over a small lake, then the plane can dump the water on a fire. By January 2013, 50 such units were in service worldwide. As of May 2017, company advertising stated that over 80 units had been delivered and put into service globally.

Aircraft modifications for float installations

In March 2015 Wipaire announced its new modification/re-engining program for existing

Cessna 182 The Cessna 182 Skylane is an American four-seat, single-engined light airplane built by Cessna of Wichita, Kansas. It has the option of adding two child seats in the baggage area. Introduced in 1956, the 182 has been produced in a ...

landplanes. The company developed a series of engine and propeller replacements, and obtained increases in maximum allowable weights, for the aircraft type. It will either upgrade a customer's existing airplane, or will procure used aircraft on the market and upgrade them for sale on the market.

Airplane floats

As of 2017 the company's aircraft floats are made of

aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

. The company website lists eight different models of floats available for sale, most available in both

seaplane A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff, taking off and water landing, landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their tech ...

or amphibious versions depending upon the needs of the buyer.

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.wipaire.com/ Companies based in Minnesota Aircraft component manufacturers of the United States Manufacturing companies established in 1974 1974 establishments in Minnesota