In 1897, Short brothers Eustace and Oswald began their aviation careers as self-taught pilots of the coal-gas balloon. Following a relatively short amateur ballooning career, they received a contract to provide three balloons to the Indian army in 1905. Shortly thereafter, they began manu- facturing balloons for other independent adventurers like themselves. In 1908, brother Horace joined Eustace and Oswald in the family business, and the three officially adopted the company name of Short Brothers. Following these developments, the newly formed company began production in the town of Leysdon on the Isle of Sheppey. Inspired by the Wright brothers 1908 visit to Europe, the Shorts secured manufacturing rights to build a version of the Wright Flyer airplane. After constructing six of these airplanes, they began building aircraft of their own design in 1912. In 1919, Short Brothers began experimenting with light metal alloy stressed-skin construction which led to the development of metal hull flying boats and ultimately, to larger, long-range, multi-engine flying boats. During World War II, Short Brothers produced large numbers of multi-engine military aircraft and established a major manufacturing site at Belfast, Northern Ireland. Following the war, their company developed and produced several successful passenger, cargo, and basic pilot training airplanes. In 1989, Short Brothers was purchased by Bombardier, Inc. of Canada, and today continues to design and manufacture major aerostructures in Belfast, which are used in many of the world's leading aircraft. Short Brothers has the unique distinction of being the world's oldest aircraft company with a record of continuous production.
Inducted in 1998.
Portrait Location: Not Currently on Floor