Allan Lockheed
A visionary tinkerer who, with his brother, built wooden seaplanes in a garage and founded the aerospace giant that bears their name.
1889–1969 (age 80)·American aviation engineer and industrialist·Birthday: January 20·The Lost Generation
Biography
Allan Lockheed's legacy is etched into the sky. Born Allan Haines Loughead, he and his younger brother Malcolm were California dreamers obsessed with the new frontier of flight. With little formal training but boundless mechanical ingenuity, they built their first aircraft, the Model G seaplane, in a rented garage in Santa Barbara. It was a success, leading to the formation of the Loughead Aircraft Manufacturing Company in 1916. After that venture faltered, Allan bided his time in real estate before reuniting with Malcolm and a brilliant young engineer named Jack Northrop to try again. In 1926, they founded the Lockheed Aircraft Company (adopting the phonetic spelling to avoid mispronunciation). Their first product, the sleek wooden Vega, became a legend, used by explorers like Amelia Earhart and Wiley Post for record-breaking flights. Allan's role was that of the organizer and driving force, securing capital and direction. Though he sold his interest in 1932, years before the company became a military aviation titan, the spark he lit in that small garage grew into one of the most famous names in aerospace history.
The Lost Generation
1883–1900
Came of age during World War I. Disillusioned by the carnage, they rejected the certainties of the Victorian era and built modernism from the wreckage — in art, literature, and politics.
Allan was born in 1889, placing them squarely in The Lost Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Allan Was Born
The biggest hits of 1889
Allan's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1889Born
Eiffel Tower opens in Paris
President: Benjamin Harrison
1894Started school
President: Grover Cleveland
1902Became a teenager
The eruption of Mount Pelee kills 30,000 in Martinique
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1905Could drive
Einstein publishes the theory of special relativity
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1907Could vote
Financial panic grips Wall Street
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1910Turned 21
Halley's Comet makes its closest approach
President: William Howard Taft
1919Turned 30
Treaty of Versailles signed; Prohibition ratified
President: Woodrow Wilson
1929Turned 40
Wall Street crashes, triggering the Great Depression
Gas: $0.21/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Singin' in the Rain" — Cliff EdwardsBest Picture: The Broadway Melody
1939Turned 50
World War II begins; The Wizard of Oz premieres
Gas: $0.19/galMin wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Over the Rainbow" — Judy GarlandBest Picture: Gone with the Wind
1949Turned 60
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1959Turned 70
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1969Turned 80
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
Key Achievements
- Co-founded the Lockheed Aircraft Company in 1926, which grew into the global aerospace and defense leader Lockheed Martin.
- With his brother Malcolm, designed and built the successful Model G seaplane, their first commercial aircraft, in 1913.
- Oversaw the development of the Lockheed Vega, a high-wing monoplane that set numerous speed and distance records in the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Did You Know?
The Lockheed surname was originally 'Loughead'; he and his brother changed the spelling for their company to prevent common mispronunciation.
He worked as a mechanic for the famous pilot Lincoln Beachey, which fueled his passion for aircraft design.
After leaving the aviation company, he had a successful second career as a real estate developer in Southern California.
He legally changed his own surname from Loughead to Lockheed in 1934, fully embracing the brand he helped create.
“The sky was the limit, so we built machines to reach it.”
