Jack Gilberti, left, with Jeff D. Gilberti invented
the first lightweight, all-metal aircraft.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
the first lightweight, all-metal aircraft.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
A Dream Sprouts Wings
By Jeff D.
South Park, Pa.
By Jeff D.
South Park, Pa.
Summary:
More than 12 million immigrants entered the United States through Ellis Island between 1892 and 1954. Ellis Island is a small island located in New York Harbor near the Statue of Liberty. Immigrants would undergo physical testing and interviews there before being allowed to enter the country. Jeff interviewed his great-uncle Jack Gilberti, who entered the United States through Ellis Island at age 6 and later built a formidable career in the United States. Gilberti, who came from Italy, created one of the first lightweight all-metal aircrafts.
A: My full name is Jack Giacomo Gilberti.
Q: When and where were you born?
A: I was born in Calabria, Italy, on April 22, 1920.
Q: When did you come to the United States and why?
A: My father came to the United States through Ellis Island in 1924 to get established. He went to the area of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, and got a job in the steel industry. My mother brought my brother and I in 1926. Our parents wanted a better life for my brother and I and dreamed of us [entering] the medical field or engineering. Our parents were farmers who grew wheat, vegetables, and garbanzo beans. They did not want us to have a life like that.
Q: What do you remember about coming here, since you were only 6 years old? A: I remember the hardest thing was leaving and saying goodbye to my grandmother. I also remember that it took 14 days on a very big ship and my brother and I got to run around the ship. We would go to the third deck and spit into the ocean and it would fly back and hit the people on the second deck. We thought this was so funny but others did not.
Q: When you got to Ellis Island, what do you remember?
A: I remember a man laughing at my name, which was Giacomo Gilberti. He said, "What kind of name is that? You can't have that name here." They decided to call me Jack, so now my name is legally Jack Giacomo Gilberti.
Q: Where did you live?
A: We went to Aliquippa to join my father. I went all through grade school and high school in Aliquippa.
Q: After high school, you went into the service. Why?
A: At that time, many men enlisted in the service. I was not drafted; I wanted to volunteer because I wanted to be a part of things. I was a Lt. Junior grade and I enlisted in 1943. During the war, I was a flight instructor. This experience of flying got me a good job in the service and I was not sent to the battlefields because I trained others to fly.
Q: What did you do after the service?
A: I entered [the University of California at Berkley] and became an aeronautical engineer. I was fortunate to get a job with 15 other men to further train.
Q: How did you get back to Aliquippa?
A: While at Montana State University, I met your Aunt Ruth. Like many other pilots, my dream was to have my own airport. It was felt that every little town would have an airport to transport.
Q: Did you finally get your own airport?
A: Yes, we had saved my service flight pay and we headed back to Aliquippa. I had $5,600 in the bank and was fortunate to get a job with Taylorcraft, Inc. I worked as an engineer for them for nine years and finally had enough money to build my own airport.
Q: I know you invented one of the first lightweight all-metal aircrafts. Is that when you did this?
A: I left Taylorcraft and started my own company to manufacture the four passenger all-metal aircraft. I had to develop a plan for the construction, raise the necessary capital, and put it into production. The odds were against me, but I felt very secure that I had the knowledge, the experience, and the confidence to create. The odds were great, but so were the rewards. We called the company Volaire, which means "to fly" in Italian.
Q: How did your company do?
A: We designed the aircraft with features and performance far ahead of its contemporaries. We were eventually capable of producing one airplane a day. One day I was contacted by Rockwell. They were interested in buying my design. At this time, many big companies "brought out" little companies that had great products and utilized someone else's idea, plan, knowledge to their advantage. I sold my design for $1,000,000 but had to sign a blackbook that I would not work in the aircraft industry for five years. The Volaire then became known as the Aero Commander 100. Many of them are still flying today.
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Q: Why did they have you do this?
A: That way I would not be able to create any more competition for them for five years.
Q: What did you do then?
A: I got into designing homes and your grandfather worked with me as a purchasing agent.
During this interview I learned that anyone can have a dream but making it come true requires a lot of motivation, money, time, and dedication. My great-uncle Jack is a very smart man
Interview:
Q: What is your full name?A: My full name is Jack Giacomo Gilberti.
Q: When and where were you born?
A: I was born in Calabria, Italy, on April 22, 1920.
Q: When did you come to the United States and why?
A: My father came to the United States through Ellis Island in 1924 to get established. He went to the area of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, and got a job in the steel industry. My mother brought my brother and I in 1926. Our parents wanted a better life for my brother and I and dreamed of us [entering] the medical field or engineering. Our parents were farmers who grew wheat, vegetables, and garbanzo beans. They did not want us to have a life like that.
Q: What do you remember about coming here, since you were only 6 years old? A: I remember the hardest thing was leaving and saying goodbye to my grandmother. I also remember that it took 14 days on a very big ship and my brother and I got to run around the ship. We would go to the third deck and spit into the ocean and it would fly back and hit the people on the second deck. We thought this was so funny but others did not.
Gilberti built an assembly line for the Volaire construction and could construct one plane per day.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
Q: When you got to Ellis Island, what do you remember?
A: I remember a man laughing at my name, which was Giacomo Gilberti. He said, "What kind of name is that? You can't have that name here." They decided to call me Jack, so now my name is legally Jack Giacomo Gilberti.
Q: Where did you live?
A: We went to Aliquippa to join my father. I went all through grade school and high school in Aliquippa.
Q: After high school, you went into the service. Why?
A: At that time, many men enlisted in the service. I was not drafted; I wanted to volunteer because I wanted to be a part of things. I was a Lt. Junior grade and I enlisted in 1943. During the war, I was a flight instructor. This experience of flying got me a good job in the service and I was not sent to the battlefields because I trained others to fly.
Q: What did you do after the service?
A: I entered [the University of California at Berkley] and became an aeronautical engineer. I was fortunate to get a job with 15 other men to further train.
Q: How did you get back to Aliquippa?
A: While at Montana State University, I met your Aunt Ruth. Like many other pilots, my dream was to have my own airport. It was felt that every little town would have an airport to transport.
Q: Did you finally get your own airport?
A: Yes, we had saved my service flight pay and we headed back to Aliquippa. I had $5,600 in the bank and was fortunate to get a job with Taylorcraft, Inc. I worked as an engineer for them for nine years and finally had enough money to build my own airport.
Q: I know you invented one of the first lightweight all-metal aircrafts. Is that when you did this?
A: I left Taylorcraft and started my own company to manufacture the four passenger all-metal aircraft. I had to develop a plan for the construction, raise the necessary capital, and put it into production. The odds were against me, but I felt very secure that I had the knowledge, the experience, and the confidence to create. The odds were great, but so were the rewards. We called the company Volaire, which means "to fly" in Italian.
Gilberti sold his company, Volaircraft, Inc., to another company, Rockwell.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
Q: How did your company do?
A: We designed the aircraft with features and performance far ahead of its contemporaries. We were eventually capable of producing one airplane a day. One day I was contacted by Rockwell. They were interested in buying my design. At this time, many big companies "brought out" little companies that had great products and utilized someone else's idea, plan, knowledge to their advantage. I sold my design for $1,000,000 but had to sign a blackbook that I would not work in the aircraft industry for five years. The Volaire then became known as the Aero Commander 100. Many of them are still flying today.
" />The Volaire, a four-passenger, all-metal aircraft, was named for the Italian word "to fly."
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
Photo courtesy of Jeff D.
A: That way I would not be able to create any more competition for them for five years.
Q: What did you do then?
A: I got into designing homes and your grandfather worked with me as a purchasing agent.
During this interview I learned that anyone can have a dream but making it come true requires a lot of motivation, money, time, and dedication. My great-uncle Jack is a very smart man
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