Midwest Flyer Magazine

Bill Lotzer by a Cessna 170.
Photo Courtesy of William J. Lotzer family.
Gran-Aire, Inc. as it appears today.
some cases, helping to solve and fix maintenance problems,”
recalled Poberezny, describing the first fly-in. “I had also never
given a speech in front of a very large group, and admit to
being more than a little nervous before doing so.”
Today, as host of the largest general aviation event in
the world, EAA’s annual “AirVenture” fly-in convention
at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin,
attracts more than a half-million people. While today’s
EAA AirVenture is a far cry from the first fly-in 60 years
ago in Milwaukee, Curtiss-Wright Field still exists, but it is
now known as Milwaukee County’s Timmerman Airport.
Timmerman’s KMWC airport code still contains the letters
“C” and “W” from its Curtiss-Wright days.
Over the years, KMWC has played a key role in training
thousands of aviators. During the 1940s, Curtiss-Wright
Field was instrumental in developing a Civilian Pilot Training
program funded by the military. Hundreds of future Army,
Navy, and Air Force pilots received their initial flight training
at Curtiss-Wright Field.
This proud tradition of flight training continued after the
war, as thousands of pilots trained for civilian flying jobs for
the airlines, corporations, government, and agriculture. Still
others learned to fly at Curtiss-Wright just for the challenge
and satisfaction of being able to view the earth from above.
Today, many piston aircraft and a few small jets still come
and go throughout the day at Timmerman. Some pilots with
homebuilts and other experimental aircraft will undoubtedly
land at KMWC to rent a car for the quick one-hour drive to
EAA AirVenture this summer, July 29 thru August 4, 2013
(www.airventure.org).
Many visitors to Timmerman have no idea that one of the
world’s greatest aviation organizations started there. The next
time you visit, look closely. You just might catch a glimpse
of Curtiss-Wright, just above the door to the maintenance
facility of Gran-Aire.
Curtiss Wright Airport, located northwest of Milwaukee,
was established in 1929 as part of a national chain of airports
affiliated with the Curtiss-Wright Company. In one of the
great ironies of aviation history, the Curtiss and Wright
companies merged in 1929. (Neither was still owned by
their founders at that time). The Curtiss-Wright name gave
the Milwaukee airport a certain cachet, although it was
insufficient to overcome the adverse effects of the Depression.
As a result, only one hangar was constructed. Nevertheless,
Curtiss-Wright Field was a favorite site for Wisconsin air
JUNE/JULY 2013 MIDWEST FLYER MAGAZINE 29