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HAROLD D. KANTNER
Early Moisant Pilot - Aeronautical Engineer

Harold D. Kantner was born at Meadville, Pennsylvania February 23, 1886. Mechanically inclined he loved automobiles and did considerable race driving. He later became interested in aviation and in 1911 joined the Moisant Flying School at Mineola, Long Island, New York, where he learned to fly on a Moisant-Bleriot type monoplane. Kantner's instructor was Andre Houpert. Also in the early summer class there that year were Harriet Quimby, T.H. Worden, Matilda Moisant, Capt. George MacKay, M.F. Bates and J. Seligman. Kantner obtained Pilot License No. 65, dated September 6, 1911, at Mineola on a Moisant monoplane with a 50 H.P. Gnome Rotary engine. 

At that time the Moisant Company had a small factory at Winfield, Long Island and Kantner assisted there on the design and construction of planes. That summer they reportedly built a biplane quite similar to the French Farman and made some monoplanes for both school and exhibition work. After completing his flight instruction Kantner became an instructor at the Moisant School for a time, then that winter started flying exhibitions in the south with a 50 H.P. Gnome Moisant monoplane.

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