Colonel Carl J. Crane

Carl J. Crane was born in October 1900. He was a flight instructor and pioneer proponent of instrument flying. In 1932, he co-authored the first book of its kind, Blind Flight In Theory And Practice. As Director of the Instrument and Navigation Laboratory at Wright Field from 1934-1940, he designed the B-3 gyro drift meter and the panoramic sextant, and he is credited with the development of the very first flight simulator. He also designed, co-engineered, and test flew the world?s first fully automated instrument landing system for which he received the Mackay Trophy in 1937 and the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1939.

Although Carl retired from active duty in 1948, he never ceased his work for the improvement of flight procedures and instrument displays. He would also lead an effort to save the only remaining World War I aircraft hangar in the United States from demolition - Hangar 9 at Brooks AFB. Carl Crane received the Flight Safety Foundation Pioneer Award in 1979 and was recognized posthumously as a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics in 1982.

While Carl Crane dedicated much of his life's work to instrument flying, he was above all else a complete pilot and a dedicated Air Force officer. We often refer to him as a true renaissance man. Many members belong to Stinsons Flight #2 because of him.


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