Editing Keystone Aircraft

{{Short description|American airplane manufacturer}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Keystone Aircraft Corporation
| logo = File:Keystone Aircraft Corporation Logo.png
| image = File:Keystone B-3A (SN 30-281).jpg
| image_caption = The first Keystone B-3A bomber built, serial number 30-281
| type = 
| industry = [[Aerospace]]
| fate = Merged into [[Curtiss-Wright]] in 1929
| predecessor = [[Huff-Daland Aero Corporation]]
| successor = [[Curtiss-Wright]]
| founded = 
| founders = 
| defunct = {{End date|1929}}
| hq_location_city = [[Bristol, Pennsylvania]]
| hq_location_country = 
| area_served = <!-- or: | areas_served = -->
| key_people = [[James Smith McDonnell|James McDonnell]]
| products = 
| owner = <!-- or: | owners = -->
| num_employees = 
| num_employees_year = <!-- Year of num_employees data (if known) -->
| parent = 
| website = <!-- {{URL|example.com}} -->
}}

'''Keystone Aircraft Corporation''' was an early American airplane manufacturer.

== History ==
Headquartered in [[Bristol, Pennsylvania]], the company was formed as "Ogdensburg Aeroway Corp" in 1920 by Thomas Huff and [[Elliot Daland]], but its name was quickly changed to "[[Huff-Daland Aero Corp]]", then to "Huff-Daland Aero Company". The company made a name for itself in agricultural aircraft, and then in the [[United States Army Air Corps]]' early bomber aircraft. From 1924, [[James Smith McDonnell|James McDonnell]] was the chief designer.

In 1926, Huff left the company, and it was soon purchased by [[Hayden, Stone & Co.]], who increased capital to $1 million (United States) and renamed it Keystone.<ref>{{cite book|title=Delta Air Lines: 75 Years of Airline Excellence|author=Geoff Jones|page=10}}</ref> In 1928, it merged with [[Loening]] and was known as '''Keystone–Loening'''.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Keystone & Loening Companies Merge |magazine=Aero Digest |date=November 1928 |page=960 |url=https://archive.org/details/aerodigest1319unse/page/960 |accessdate=31 May 2021}}</ref> In 1929, it was taken over by [[Curtiss-Wright]]. Also in 1929, the Keystone–Loening plant on the East River in New York City was closed by Curtiss-Wright and the operation was moved to the Bristol, Pennsylvania. Keystone plant. A small band of the top Loening management, design and shop workers (all New Yorkers) did not want to go to Bristol. They instead started their own aircraft company in a small rented shop in Baldwin, NY in Jan. 1930. The principal players were [[Leroy Grumman|Leroy R. Grumman]], [[Jake Swirbul|Leon "Jake" Swirbul]] and [[William Schwendler]]. [[Grumman]] Aircraft went on to stellar heights with some of the best aircraft in US Navy history. Grumman also designed and built the [[Lunar Excursion Module]] (LEM) that landed US astronauts on the Moon.

In 1932 the Army Air Corps issued a Circular design proposal for an advanced new heavy bomber which Ford, Martin, Boeing, Fokker, Douglas and Keystone submitted designs.  The Keystone entry was for an all metal low winged monoplane bomber with retractable landing gear.  The bomber would be powered by two Curtiss V-1570 geared Conqueror engines.  With a crew of 5 it was armed with up to 3 x .30 caliber machine guns and could carry 2,000&nbsp;lbs (907&nbsp;kg) of bombs on external racks.  A mock-up of the aircraft was inspected by the Air Corps in April and was withdrawn by Keystone after it was determined it could not meet the requirements.  The contract was ultimately won by Martin for their Model 139, known as the [[Martin B-10|B-10 Bomber]].  This was to be the last design submitted to the military by Keystone.<ref>David D Gravermoen, ''B-10 - The Martin Bomber''</ref>

Keystone itself became a manufacturing division of Curtiss-Wright and ceased production in 1932.<ref>{{cite web |title=Subseries VIII: Keystone Aircraft Corporation |url=http://www.nasm.si.edu/research/arch/findaids/cwright/cwright_sec_15.html |website=National Air and Space Museum |access-date=1 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009125741/http://www.nasm.si.edu/research/arch/findaids/cwright/cwright_sec_15.html |archive-date=9 October 2007}}</ref> The former Keystone plant was purchased by [[Fleetwings]] in 1934.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Fleetwings Buys Keystone Plant |magazine=Aero Digest |date=October 1934 |page=68 |url=https://archive.org/details/aerodigest2519unse/page/n311 |accessdate=18 May 2021}}</ref>

Lieut. Comdr. Noel Davis and Lieut. Stanton H. Wooster were killed in their [[Keystone Pathfinder]] ''American Legion'' while conducting a test flight, just days before they were to attempt a [[trans-Atlantic flight]] for the [[Orteig Prize]].

== Aircraft ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Model name
! First flight
! Number built
! Type

|-
|align=left| [[Huff-Daland TW-5]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 26
|align=left| Single engine biplane trainer
|-
|align=left| [[Huff-Daland XB-1]]
|align=center| 1927
|align=center| 1
|align=left| Prototype twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Naval Aircraft Factory PN|Keystone PK]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 18
|align=left| License built version of Naval Aircraft Factory PN
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone XLB-3]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 1
|align=left| Prototype twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone LB-5]]
|align=center| 1927
|align=center| 36
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone LB-6]]
|align=center| 1927
|align=center| 18
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone B-3]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 36
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone B-4]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 30
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone B-5]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 30
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone B-6]]
|align=center| 
|align=center| 44
|align=left| Twin engine biplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone Pathfinder|Keystone K-47 Pathfinder]]
|align=center| 1927
|align=center| 2
|align=left| Trimotor biplane airliner
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone Pronto|Keystone K-55 Pronto]]
|align=center| 1927
|align=center| 
|align=left| Single engine biplane mail plane
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone–Loening Air Yacht|Keystone–Loening K-85 Air Yacht]]
|align=center| 1928
|align=center| 4
|align=left| Single engine biplane flying boat
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone NK]]
|align=center| 1928
|align=center| 20
|align=left| Single engine biplane trainer
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone Patrician|Keystone K-78 Patrician]]
|align=center| 1929
|align=center| 3
|align=left| Trimotor monoplane airliner
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone Commuter|Keystone–Loening K-84 Commuter]]
|align=center| 1929
|align=center| 
|align=left| Single engine biplane flying boat
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone XO-15]]
|align=center| 1930
|align=center| 1
|align=left| Prototype single engine observation biplane
|-
|align=left| [[Keystone XOK]]
|align=center| 1931
|align=center| 1
|align=left| Single engine biplane floatplane
|-
|align=left| Keystone Bomber Design (USAAC XB-908)
|align=center| 1932
|align=center|0
|align=left| Twin engine monoplane bomber
|-
|align=left| [[Loening XS2L|Keystone–Loening XS2L]]
|align=center| 1933
|align=center| 1
|align=left| Single engine biplane flying boat
|-
|}

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
{{commons category|Keystone Aircraft}}
*[http://www.aerofiles.com/_keys.html Aerofiles]

{{Keystone aircraft}}

[[Category:Companies based in Bucks County, Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1932]]
[[Category:American companies established in 1920]]
[[Category:Defunct aircraft manufacturers of the United States]]
[[Category:Defunct manufacturing companies based in Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1920]]
[[Category:1929 mergers and acquisitions]]
[[Category:1920 establishments in Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:1932 disestablishments in Pennsylvania]]