Lost Wings it is FLIGHTThe continued sight of aircraft that once captured the imagination of pilots but have quietly disappeared from the flight line. These machines—some daring experiments, others everyday workhorses—represent the restless innovation and craftsmanship that shaped the past of general aviation. Each installment revisits a design that aimed high, flew well, and for one reason or another slipped into history.
The post-war GA boom is rightly credited as a pioneering moment in aviation history when enthusiasm for flight was at an all-time high.
Creativity and innovation ushered in a new era where the prevailing sentiment was that if anything could be imagined, it could be achieved. Soldiers were returning from overseas, and with them a whole new economy of well-trained pilots ready to fly for none other than Uncle Sam.
As a result, approximately 30,000 new general aviation aircraft were built in 1946 alone.
While the boom sparked the GA movement in the US, it was unrealistic that every one of the new models entering the most saturated aircraft market would ever stick the landing.
Still fondly remembered for its polished looks and high-performance capabilities, the Globe GC-1 Swift is a classic story of demand exceeding hype.
Development and history
Originally developed by RS “Pop” Johnson in Fort Worth, Texas, when Johnson built the first Swift as an experimental aircraft it featured a fabric fuselage, along with wings and a tail made of Duraloid, a plastic-bonded plywood construction that appeared in other designs at the time.
Johnson was associated with Bennett Aircraft Corp., which, after losing a government contract for the AT-10 from Beech Aircraft Corp. to serve as a trainer for the US military, he quit. In early 1941, Bennett Aircraft Corp. restructured as Globe Swift Aircraft Corp., where it began advertising the new plane as capable of carrying two people 600 miles at 130 mph.
Disagreements between Johnson and Globe Swift officials over the design of future GC-1s led to Johnson’s departure from the company in July 1941. But due to the excitement generated around the aircraft, Globe Swift had received orders totaling more than $1 million, and 40 dealers lined up to sell the plane.
Type-certified in May 1942, the Globe GC-1 was later scrapped as the US entered World War II. Globe Swift subcontracted with Beech to build 600 AT-10s for the war effort.
As the war drew to a close in 1944, Globe Swift sought to overhaul the GC-1 and, after modifications were made to the aircraft, quickly came up with two designs – the GC-1A and GC-1B. The GC-1A was fitted with an 85 hp Continental C-85 engine, as opposed to the 125 hp Continental C-125 in the GC-1B, which increased performance in the Swift’s heavy airframe.
The maximum weight of the GC-A1 was limited to 1,570 pounds, while the GC-1B was increased to 1,710 pounds.
Thousands of orders came in for the GC-A1, but only 408 were built before the GC-1B went into production shortly after. During six months in 1947, 833 aircraft were built – 503 by Globe Swift and 329 by Texas Engineering & Manufacturing Company (TEMCO), which had been hired as a subcontractor.
Due to a serious accounting error, both manufacturers discovered that it took more time and money to build the GC-1 than originally anticipated. The planes had to be sold at a loss and at the same time the excitement of the initial GA boom began to wane. The lots at both facilities filled with stalled aircraft.
The Globe Swift, like its predecessor in Bennett Aircraft, folded. TEMCO took over the rights to produce the GC-1 and, using the parts inventory already purchased, continued production of the aircraft until 1951, when parts became scarce and the focus shifted to military production for the Korean War.
In all, a total of 1,500 GC-1As and Bs were built over its lifetime.
Lasting legacy
Featuring a 42-inch-wide all-metal frame, two-seat cockpit, and butterfly doors to mimic a canopy, the Globe GC-1 Swift could punch its weight in the performance category.
Speaking to The Aviation Consumer, John Davis, a retired airline pilot with over 1,000 hours logged in a Swift, put the aircraft in a different class.
“The Swift is not just another tailwheel airplane,” Davis said. “This is a high-performance, retractable-gear airplane. While many other tailwheel airplanes are fixed-gear with fixed-pitch propellers, they are not considered high-performance.”
Davis said that for pilots with no tailwheel experience, he would recommend first logging some time in a Citabria or Piper Cub before jumping into a Swift.
“The Swift is not an airplane that tries to kill you, but it does require skill and respect,” he said. “And you can’t quit flying it until you’re in the hold and shut down.”
Over the years, even though no new models were produced, the aircraft’s design remained so important that, according to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, a small number of Swift-based twin trainers were built for the US and Saudi Arabian militaries.