Giovanni Agusta
Count Giovanni Agusta (1879–1927) came from family of Sicilian origin.[1] He invented the drogue parachute and formed the Agusta company in 1923 (full name Construzioni Aeronautiche Agusta Spa)[2] which became part of AgustaWestland. He died in 1927. His son, Count Domenico Agusta, followed in the family business, AgustaWestland.[3] The MV Agusta motorcycle manufacturer began as an offshoot of the Agusta aviation company at the end of the Second World War as a means to save the jobs of employees of the Agusta firm.
In 1907 Agusta designed and built a biplane called the Ag1, and in 1912 he volunteered for the Italian-Turkish War in Libya; in 1913 he was hired by Caproni as an inspector in charge of delivering bombers to the front.[1]