By Claudia Loucks
Geneseo Current

During Harold Neumann’s flying career of 70 years, he accomplished much more than that farm boy from Geneseo ever imagined was possible. He was an aviation pioneer during the Golden Age of Flying.

He learned to fly in 1926 at Moline, and sharpened his skills in a Jenny that he kept in a hangar on his parent’s farm.

In 1928, Neumann traded the Jenny for a Travel Air and entered his first air race the next year at Kewanee. In 1929, he moved to the Chicago area where he began teaching at flight schools while participating in air shows on the side.

In the early 1930’s, Neumann barnstormed the nation with a daredevil flying group called the American Air Aces. A 5,000-foot dive at 350 mph was one of his specialties.

His reputation as an outstanding airman grew and by 1933, he was flying competitively for Benny Howard, the Chicago-based designer/manufacturer/racer.

Neumann competed in 1933 American Air Races held in conjunction with the Century of Progress in Chicago. In 1935, he flew two of Howard’s planes in the 1935 National Air Races in Cleveland taking both the Thompson Trophy and the Greve Trophy. He was then awarded the Collier Trophy for outstanding aviation accomplishments and named “Air Race Pilot of the Year.”

In 1936, Neumann temporarily put aside show flying and accepted a position with TWA which he held for 30 years before his retirement. He began as a DC-2 copilot and moved up to captain, flying the DC-3, Constellation and Boeing 707.

After his retirement from TWA, he became active in the International Aerobatic Club, flying his 1941 Monocoupe, Little Mulligan.

He competed and won IAC competitions well into his 80’s. He also shared his skills and techniques with younger IAC members at local, regional and national meets, and served as a contest judge.

Neumann was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Hammondsport, New York, in 1971, and the International Aerobatic Club Hall of Fame in 1998. He also was inducted into the Illinois Aviation Hall of Fame in Springfield.

Throughout his career, Neumann was known for his mentoring and collaboration with younger pilots. Not only did he share his aviation and mechanical skills, but he would also impart to them his philosophy of determination and hard work to achieve their goals. He is acknowledged in the Smithsonian.

Neumann died July 5, 1995, at the age of 89.