| (1892
- 1981) |
| Inducted: |
1978 |
| Region: |
West |
| Industry: |
Transportation
|
|
Donald W. Douglas opened his airplane shop with $600. He was the designer and the entire engineering department. His DC series transformed the aviation industry dramatically increasing flight speeds and range. Investors and pilots trusted the quiet man who read poetry and dreamed dreams but never lost a shrewd appreciation of dollars and cents. Douglas was a man of his word. He concluded his sale of 25 DC-3s to American Airlines’ C.R. Smith with a handshake--no written contract, no lawyers. Douglas produced almost 30,000 aircraft during World War II, one of the greatest feats of industrial history. |
