The Curtiss-Wright Corporation can trace its lineage back to the very dawn of aviation. Built on the legacy of the pioneering efforts of the Wright brothers and Glenn Curtiss, the company this fall will celebrate its 80th anniversary on the New York Stock Exchange. During World War II, it was one of the world’s largest manufacturers, turning out nearly 30,000 airplanes, along with engines and propellers. But now, through its Curtiss-Wright Controls division, the company’s contributions to aviation are limited to sensors, motion control and subassemblies.
On the defense side, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based firm recently announced Bristol, UK-based Claverham Ltd. (a Hamilton Sundstrand flight systems business unit) has selected it to provide multi-channel linear variable displacement transducers (LVDTs) for the fly-by-wire (FBW) systems controlling the main rotor and tail rotor on the Sikorsky CH-53K heavy lift and UH-60M helicopters. LVDTs are special pressure-sealed linear displacement transducers embedded in Claverham’s primary flight control actuators.
