North American
designed the Navion near the end of WWII. They were originally
designed for the civilan market but attracted the attention of
the US Army, who placed an order for 83 . The US Army called
these the L-17A. The design was acquired by Ryan in 1948. They
continued to build the successful design. Today, there are
quite a few Navions flying at a number of small airports
across the United States.
