Schweizer brothers
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Paul, Bill, and Ernest Schweizer were three brothers who started building gliders in 1930. In 1937, they formed the Schweizer Metal Aircraft Company and sold the SGU 1-7 glider to Harvard's Altosaurus Glider Club. A photo of Eliot Noyes and John Nichols sharing experiences in the SGU1-7 glider can be found on page 2 of the November 2005 issue of SKYLINES, a monthly newsletter published by the Skyline Soaring Club, LLC. That glider was later restored and currently resides at the National Soaring Museum in Elmira, New York.
In 1939 the Scweizer brothers relocated to Elmira, New York, and incorporated as Schweizer Aircraft. Best known internationally for their gliders, these remarkable men never forgot the importance of the folks who worked with them and for them. Over their nearly 70 years, they enabled creation of all manner of interesting flying machines; from gliders to crop dusters to helicopters while contributing immeasureably to the aircraft industry as a whole, and the Southern Tier of New York especially. A 1999 photo of these gents as well as an excellent timeline of their company's accomplishments and significant historical events can be found at Schweizer's corporate history page.
According to a recent editorial in the Elmira Star-Gazette, when it came time to sell the company the brothers wanted to find a buyer who respected their values and their folks ... and a better choice could not be found than in the Sikorsky company (a UTC subsidiary) in Connecticut. The sale was a strategic success and provided even greater growth opportunities for Schweizer.
