Lawrance, Charles L. (Charles Lanier), 1882-

Charles Lanier Lawrance was the inventor of the air-cooled radial engine that powered Charles Lindberg's airplane he piloted in 1927 across the Atlantic Ocean. Lawrance was born in 1882 and graduated from Yale University in 1905. He served in the Navy during World War I. He became president of Wright Aeronautical Corporation in 1924, and in 1929, when Wright merged with Curtiss Aviation to become the Curtiss-Wright Corporation, he became the vice-president. In addition to Lindbergh, the engine Lawrance developed was used by Richard E. Byrd, Amelia Earhart, and many other aviators. Lawrance retired in 1948 and died at his home in Islie, New York in 1950.

Charles Lanier Lawrance was the inventor of the air-cooled radial aviation engine used by Charles A. Lindbergh in his pioneering flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927. Lawrance was born September 30, 1882, in Massachusetts and graduated from Yale in 1905. He began working on an air-cooled engine for airplanes to replace previous water-cooled ones prior to World War I. During the war, he continued this work while serving in the Navy. He was president of the Wright Aeronautical Corporation from 1924 to 1929 and became vice president of Curtiss-Wright Corporation after that company absorbed Wright Aeronautical in 1929. The air-cooled Wright Whirlwind engine he developed was used by Richard E. Byrd, Amelia Earhart, and many other aviators in addition to Lindbergh. Lawrance retired from business in 1948 and died in 1950 at his home in Islip, New York.