Engineering Division

It was formed on 31 August 1918, under the direction of Lt Col Jesse G. Vincent, to study and design American versions of foreign aircraft.

United States Armed Forces procurement of aircraft began when the Army's 1907 Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps, acquired several of the Wright Military Flyer of 1909.

[1] McCook Field established the Air School of Application in 1919 after the department became the Airplane Engineering Division on 31 August 1918 under Lt Col Jesse G. Vincent (Packard co-engineer of the 1917 V-12 Liberty engine) to study and design American versions of foreign aircraft.

[citation needed] Other aircraft modified include the Bristol F.2 Fighter, designated XB-1.

In 1920, the Engineering Division's Bureau of Aircraft Production completed the design of the Ground Attack, Experimental, (GAX) aircraft built as the Boeing GA-1, and designed the Verville-Clark Pursuit (led by Alfred V. Verville) that after redesign won the initial Pulitzer Race in 1920 at Roosevelt Field.