James Floyd Smith | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Smith circa 1915 in San Diego | |
| Born | October 17, 1884 |
| Died | April 18, 1956 (aged 71) |
| Resting place | Portal of Folded Wings |
| Education | Public schools in Union, Oregon and San Diego, California[1] |
| Occupation(s) | Engineer Instructor Pilot Test Pilot Parachute Manufacturer |
| Employer(s) | Glenn Martin Smith Parachute Company |
| Known for | Aviation pioneer Parachute |
| Spouse | Hilder F. Youngberg(1890-1977) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Medal of Merit from the Aero Club of America |
James Floyd Smith (17 October 1884 – 18 April 1956) was an inventor, aviation pioneer, and parachute manufacturer. With borrowed money, he built, then taught himself to fly his own airplane.
He worked as a flight instructor and test pilot for Glenn L. Martin at Bennett's bean field, which became LAX. From San Diego in 1916, Smith won the Aero Club of America's Medal of Merit by setting three altitude records, flying a Martin S seaplane reaching that aircraft's ceiling of 12,333 feet. During World War I, he formed the Floyd Smith Aerial Equipment Company in San Diego, California. In May 1920, he won a patent for the first back pack, free fall type, ripcord operated parachute, designed in response to his wife Hilder Florentina Smith's near fatal static line jump in 1914. Smith's original ripcord parachute is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Dayton, Ohio.[2][1]
- ^ a b c "Floyd Smith | The National Inventors Hall of Fame". Invent.org. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
- ^ "10 Things You Need to Know About Floyd Smith" (PDF). Invent.org. Retrieved October 26, 2021.