Ted R. Smith

Who was Ted R. Smith?

Ted R. Smith was an American aircraft designer. He worked for the Douglas Aircraft Company, Aero Design and Engineering Company, and Rockwell Standard Corporation. In 40 years, his designs included the Douglas A-26 Invader, and the first all metal small twin engine business aircraft for Aero Commander, a company that he helped to start. The Aero Commander line included one of the first twin engined business jets, the Jet Commander. In the 1960s he designed and manufactured the Aerostar line, under his own name. The Aerostar was later built by Piper Aircraft, as the Piper Aerostar.

Smith was born in Oroville, California. His family later move to Oakland in 1916 where he graduated Oakland technical high school in 1925 and soon developed his first aircraft, a tube and fabric glider. In 1929 Smith graduated from the Boeing School of Aeronautics. In 1935 Smith started his career at Douglas as a tool designer that would lead him to work on the B-18, B-23, and finally lead engineer on the A-20 project supervising 500 employees before leaving to form his own company.

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Douglas A-26C Invader on aerial firefighting duty

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Ted Smith Aerostar 600