The “Heavy Iron” Business Jets: Gulfstream, Dassault and Canadair

Grumman Aircraft Corporation was established in 1929. The company has a distinguished record in the development and sale of sophisticated military aircraft. Grumman’s first planes were the carrier-based, single-seat FF-1, F2F and F3F biplanes. The F4F Wildcat was developed and produced under a 1931 contract with the U.S. Navy. The Wildcat was followed by, among others, the F6F Hellcat (1942), the F7F Tigercat (1945), the F8F Bearcat (1945), the F9F Panther jet (1948), the F9F Cougar jet (1954) and the extremely well-known F-14 Tomcat (1972). Grumman was also responsible for the TB Avenger (1942), the AF Guardian (1950), the S-2 Tracker (1953), the OV-1 Mohawk (1959), the E-1B Tracer (1960), the A-6 Intruder (1963), the C-2A Greyhound (1966) and the EA-6B Prowler (1971). Above all else, Grumman was recognized as the producer of state-of-the-art naval aircraft.1