|
TO FIND A SUBJECT ON THIS PAGE: Enter "Ctrl F" on your computer. A box will open on your screen that says "Find."
Type in what you are looking for and it will be highlighted on the page.
FLYING HISTORY
Throughout flying history, the most significant advances have generally occurred more rapidly
during times of war, especially involving technological advancements.
Before the advent of aircraft, fleets of warships from the most powerful nations on earth would travel the oceans of the globe. Most recently flying history shows that aircraft controlling the skies would often be a deciding factor in the outcome of conflicts.
Flying history reveals that at the time when airplanes were first employed as instruments of war, crews tossed small,
improvised bombs over the side on to a terrorized enemy on the ground. Hitting a target was a matter of luck.
The most recent flying history has established that modern airplanes can have the ability to employ stealth technology, arriving
over a target without being detected, all the while traveling at transsonic and supersonic speeds. They can drop their ordnance with
such accuracy as to minimize damage on surrounding areas.
In flying history, the advent of the jet engine and advances in aerodynamics mean that the airplane can fly higher and faster than ever before.
Although the speed of the airplane has increased greatly since the first ones took
to the sky, accomplishments in airplane history have also taken place with regard to maneuverability.
Most recently, exotic materials have allowed for stronger, yet lighter structures. Airplanes can travel farther
than ever before through the use of streamlining and more efficient engines.
Flying history has shown that recently, the biggest accomplishments within the earth's atmosphere have involved larger payloads being lifted to
higher altitudes. A few airplanes have set remarkable speed records, but those have been on the edge of space where a thinner atmosphere allowed less speed reducing friction.
Our wish is that in future flying history there will be enhance science that will further the development of peaceful technology.
November 21, 1783
A manned, untied hot air balloon takes flight in France.
December 17, 1903
First controlled flight of a powered aircraft - Wright Flyer
August 3, 1904
First U.S. Army dirigible takes flight - California Arrow
November 10, 1907
Controlled flight for over 60 seconds of a powered aircraft in Europe is achieved - Farman 1
November 30, 1907
First U.S. company to mass produce aircraft opens - Curtiss Airplane And Motor Co., New York
November 11, 1908
First European manufacturer of mass produced aircraft opens - Short Bros., England
May 17, 1909
First airplane routes map for France published - Cartes Guides Campbell
July 25, 1909
First airplane crosses English Channel - Bleriot XI
October 16, 1909
First airliner service started -Delag
March 28, 1910
First seaplane takes flight - Hydravion
May 30, 1910
First experimental jet powered aircraft receives a patent - Coanda-1910
August 27, 1910
First successful use of a radio in an airplane.
December 10, 1910
First experimental jet powered aircraft takes flight - Coanda-1910
February 18 , 1911
First delivery of mail by airplane - Humer-Sommer biplane
October 22, 1911
First use of aircraft in a war (scouting mission in Italo - Turkish War) - Bleriot XI
November 1, 1911
First bombs dropped (4 ea. 4.5 lbs.) from an airplane in a war (Italo - Turkish War) - Etrich Taube
November 5, 1911
Completion of first New York to California (coast-to-coast) U.S. airplane flight in 49 days - Burgess-Wright
February 1, 1912
First airplane to fly at over 100 mph - Deperdussin Monocoque
April 16, 1913
First airplane to win a Schneider Cup race - Deperdussin Racer
May 10, 1913
First four engine airplane takes flight -Sikorsky S-21
December 10, 1913
First Russian four engine strategic bomber flies - Sikorsky Illya Muromets
October 10, 1914
A dedicated fighter airplane takes flight -Vickers F.B.5 Gun Bus
December 3, 1914
Machine gun fires through airplane propeller arc - Morane Saulnier
April 1, 1915
First Russian aircraft designed as an escort fighter takes flight - Sikorsky S-XVI
May 23, 1915
First aircraft with a synchronized machine gun firing through the propeller arc Fokker Eindecker
November 6, 1915
First catapult launch of an aircraft from a moving ship - Curtiss AB2
January 1, 1916
First flight of an aircraft built mainly from metal - Junkers J1
July 15, 1916
William E. Boeing establishes himself in the aviation business by opening the Pacific Aero Products Co.
March 22, 1917
First airline company to provide scheduled flights is formed - Red Arrow Flying Service
August 2, 1917
Airplane lands on a moving ship - Sopwith Pup
September 22, 1917
First aircraft built by the new Supermarine Co. -P.B. 31E Nighthawk quadraplane
August 21, 1918
First flight of what will be the fastest fighter aircraft of its time and the primary French Air Force fighter. It will also be
used in large numbers by the air forces of Belgium, Italy, and Japan -Nieuport-Delage NiD-29
February 5, 1919
Passenger airliner service between France and England begins - Farman F60 Goliath
May 15, 1919
U.S. postal air service commences.
May 31, 1919
Completion of the first flight from New York to England with stops along the way - Navy-Curtiss NC-4
June 15, 1919
Completion of first non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean - Vickers Vimy
June 25, 1919
First non-military commercial transport built entirely without wood takes flight - Junkers F 13
July 21, 1919
Fokker Aircraft Co. is started.
October 7, 1919
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is started.
November 15, 1920
First airplane with retractable landing gear takes flight - RB-1 Racer
July 21, 1921
First battleship sunk by airplanes -Martin NBS-1
August 3, 1921
First crop duster - Curtiss Jenny
March 20, 1922
First U.S. aircraft carrier - U.S.S. Langley
September 4, 1922
First U.S. coast-to-coast flight in less than 24 hours - Airco DH4
February 23, 1923
First landing and take off of a Japanese fighter plane from an aircraft carrier - Mitsubishi 1MF
March 5, 1923
Sikorsky Aero Engineering begins operating in the U.S.A.
May 3, 1923
First U.S. coast to coast flight without landing is completed - Fokker T-2
June 23, 1924
Flight of the first aircraft built by the newly formed Focke Wulf Co. - A-16
September 28, 1924
First flight circumnavigating the world is completed - Douglas World Cruisers
November 26, 1925
First Soviet all-metal heavy bomber - Tupolev ANT-4 / TB-1
April 6, 1926
Lufthansa Airlines begins flight operations.
May 9, 1926
First flight crossing the North Pole - Fokker Trimotor
March 14, 1927
Pan American World Airways opens for business.
May 21, 1927
Completion of first solo non-stop flight acorss the Atlantic from New York to Paris- Ryan NYP
September 7, 1927
Cessna Aircraft Co. begins business.
June 11, 1928
First successful rocked powered airplane flight - Lippisch Ente
August 29, 1929
Civilian airplane tops front line military airplane in a race - Travel Air Mystery Ship
November 29, 1929
First flight crossing South Pole - Ford Trimotor
October 25, 1930
TWA starts regular scheduled transcontinental flights in the U.S.A.
December 22, 1930
World's first modern four engine monoplane bomber -Tupolev
TB-3
November 29, 1931
Japanese aircraft attack Manchuria -Mitsubishi G3M Rikko
February 8, 1933
First of a generation of "modern" airliners takes flight -Boeing 247
July 15, 1933
First Atlantic crossing by a large aircraft squadron - Savoia Marchetti
S.55
July 22, 1933
Completion of first solo circumnavigation of the world - Lockheed Vega
October 31, 1933
First single wing with no external bracing fighter aircraft that has retractable landing gear - Polikarpov I-16
July 1, 1934
World record of an airplane to fly a total of 635 hours, 34 minutes before landing - Curtiss Robin
October 23, 1934
The still standing propeller driven seaplane speed record of 440.68 MPH is established - Macchi Castoldi MC-72
March 23, 1935
World's first successful retrieval in flight of a parasite fighter by its mothership - Soviet Zveno Project
July 17, 1935
Mass produced modern four engine U.S. bomber takes to the sky - Boeing B-17
December 17, 1935
The world's most advanced airliner to date takes to the sky - Douglas DC-3
March 4, 1936
The largest vehicle ever to fly - Zeppelin LZ 129 Hindenberg
July 20, 1936
The first mass military air transport of the Spanish Civil War begins - Junkers Ju 52
August 7, 1936
First Luftwaffe fighter aircraft are deployed to aid Franco's forces in Spain - Heinkel He 51
May 6, 1937
World's largest Zeppelin lost while attempting to land - LZ 129
July 4, 1937
Fully controlled helicopter long duration flight - Focke Wulf FW-61
August 11, 1937
British fighter aircraft with more than four machine guns takes to the sky - Boulton Paul Defiant
November 2, 1937
British fighter intercepts another aircraft using ground based radar - Glouster Gauntlet
October 11, 1938
British single seat twin engine fighter aircraft flies - Westland Whirlwind
December 31, 1938
World's first passenger airliner with interior pressurization - Boeing 307
January 26, 1939
First U.S. fighter plane capable of speeds over 400 mph - Lockheed P-38 Lightning
April 26, 1939
German racer aircraft sets a world speed record of 469 mph - Messerschmitt Me 209
August 27, 1939
Experimental jet takes flight - Heinkel He 178
December 17, 1939
First air-to-ground rockets - Ilyushin IL-2
December 17, 1939
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan enacted - de Havilland Tiger Moth
July 28, 1940
Radar intercept of an enemy aircraft: Bristol Blenheim
August 3, 1940
Transport helicopter flies - FA-223
August 27, 1940
First Italian jet powered aircraft - Caproni Campini N1
September 22, 1940
Jet fighter takes flight - He-280
December 7, 1940
Monoplane RAF dive bomber takes to the sky - Fairey Barracuda
October 1, 1940
First single engine U.S. fighter with a top speed over 400 mph - F4U Corsair
October 26, 1940
Prototype of what will become the premier escort fighter of WW II flies - North American P-51 Mustang
March 12, 1941
Four engine bomber flies World War II missions against German forces - Halifax
April 6, 1941
First aircraft ejection seat - Heinkel He 280
April 17, 1941
First ever lift off and landing of a helicopter on water - Vought-Sikorsky VS-300
August 8, 1941
Soviet aircraft bomb Berlin for the first time - Ilyushin IL-4
September 23, 1941
The Soviet battleship Marat sinks after being hit by a 2,200 lb. bomb dropped by a Luftwaffe dive bomber - Junkers Ju-87
December 7, 1941
Japanese carrier launched aircraft attack Pearl Harbor Hawaii, sinking or seriously damaging most of the U.S. Pacific Fleet - Aichi Val
December 18, 1941
Lt. Col. Boyd Wagner becomes first U.S. ace of WW II - Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
December 28, 1941
Test flight of a cruise missile - Fieseler Fi 103 V-1
January 14, 1942
First time that a helicopter lands on a ship at sea - Sikorsky R-4
March 17, 1942
The Luftwaffe fits their dive bombing aircraft with 37 mm anti-tank cannons - Junkers Ju-87 Stuka
April 28, 1942
U.S. aircraft raid on Japan after the start of World War II - North American B-25
May 21, 1942
Airplane designated from the start as a night fighter takes to the air - Northrop P-61
June 11, 1942
Dedicated Soviet night bomber regiment aircraft begin harrassment missions against German troops -Polikarpov Po-2
June 12, 1942
First U.S. bomber raid on Ploesti - B-24 Liberators
July 18, 1942
Operational jet aircraft flight - Me-262
September 9, 1942
Air attack by Japan on U.S. mainland - Yokosuka E14Y
October 3, 1942
First successful flight of German long range ballastic missile - V-2
December 4, 1942
First U.S. planes bomb Italy - B-24 Liberators
December 10, 1942
First successful flight of a German cruise missile - V-1 Fieseler Fi 103
December 23, 1942
Long range bomber designed to attack U.S. East Coast takes flight - Messerschmitt Me 264
June 15, 1943
Jet bomber flies - Arado Ar 234
June 23, 1943
Operational aircraft with ejection seats - Heinkel He-219
August 18, 1943
Dedicated rescue helicopter takes flight that would eventually be used in the Antarctic - Sikorsky H-5
August 31, 1943
U.S. Navy's newest fighter plane flies first sorties - F6F Hellcat
September 9, 1943
After Italy joins the Allies, their battleship Roma sinks after being hit by two radio control bombs dropped by Luftwaffe bombers - Dornier Do 217
September 12, 1943
Italian dictator Benito Mussolini is rescued from captors by aircraft - Fieseler Fi 156
October 20, 1943
Experimental bomber intended to fly to and drop bombs on the U.S. flies for the first time - Junkers Ju 390
November 2, 1943
Multi-engine U.S. Navy fighter flies - Grumman F7F
November 5, 1943
U.S. carrier aircraft begin attacks on Japanese warships near Truk Island - Douglas SBD Dauntless
January 8, 1944
First flight of what will become the U.S.A.F. first operational jet fighter- P-80 Shooting Star
January 18, 1944
U.S. aircraft anti-submarine patrols launched over the Strait of Gibraltar- PBY Catalina
February 17, 1944
U.S. Carrier aircraft launch night raids on Japanese targets on and around Truk Island - Grumman Avenger
May 22, 1944
Kamikaze attacks launched - Ki-45
June 14, 1944
Production rocket propelled fighter plane becomes operational - Me163
June 15, 1944
U.S. heavy bombers begin strategic bombing of Japan - B-29 Superfortress
August 14, 1944
Allies begin parachuting troops into France - Douglas C-47 Skytrain
September 5, 1944
German plan to kill Soviet leader Stalin is aborted when their transport airplane is damaged beyond repair upon landing - Arado Ar 232
March 21, 1945
Japanese rocket plane deployed for the first time - Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka
September 6, 1945
Flight of a helicopter across the English Channel - FA-223
June 25, 1945
First U.S. sheduled cargo transport company, National Skyway Freight, begins operations - Budd C-93 Conestoga
August 6, 1945
U.S. bomber drops atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima - Boeing B-29
November 6, 1945
First ever jet power airplane landing on an aircraft carrier - Ryan FR Fireball
December 3, 1945
British jet airplane lands on an aircraft carrier - de Havilland Vampire
January 10, 1946
A Sikorsky helicopter climbs to 21,000 feet, making it the highest flying helicopter of the time - H-5
June 1, 1946
Pan American World Airways begins regular service from New York to London - Constellation
June 21, 1946
First pure jet to land on U.S.Navy carrier - McDonnell Phantom
June 25, 1946
Flying wing bomber takes flight - XB-35
August 17, 1946
First U.S. test of manned ejection seat during aircraft flight - P-61 Black Widow
September 29, 1946
Non-stop flight distance record set - P2V Neptune
September 2, 1947
British Navy jet flies - Sea Hawk
October 14, 1947
Aicraft goes supersonic in level flight - Bell X-1
November 24, 1947
Grumman jet fighter takes flight -F9F
December 17, 1947
Swept wing bomber deployed by the U.S.A.F. - Boeing B-47
June 26, 1948
Berlin Airlift commences - C-54 Skymaster
July 16, 1948
First mid-range turboprop aircraft used for passenger transportation - Vickers Viscount
September 5, 1948
Weight of cargo carried aloft record set - Martin Mars
December 8, 1948
U.S.A.F. bomber flies 9,400 non-stop without refueling - B-36
December 8, 1948
Smithsonian Institute takes possession of first aircraft to achieve controlled powered flight - Wright Flyer
March 2, 1949
Completion of the first around the world airplane flight with mid-air refueling - Boeing B-50
April 16, 1949
American production jet aircraft with afterburner and operational all weather interceptor - F-94
May 13, 1949
First British jet bomber - English Electric Canberra
February 1, 1950
First jet landing on an U.S. aircraft carrier at night - F9F Panther
June 25, 1950
North Korean aircraft bomb the airport at Kimpo marking the start of the Korean war - Yak-9
June 27, 1950
U.S. fighter downs three enemy aircraft in one of the first U.S. air actions of the Korean war - F-82
June 27, 1950
U.S. jets down four enemy aircraft in the first jet U.S. air action of the Korean war - P-80 Shooting Star
September 4, 1950
First rescue by a U.S. helicopter of a pilot behind enemy lines - Sikorsky H-5
September 5, 1950
First successful bomb drop from an aircraft flying at over 500 mph - B-45 Tornado
November 8, 1950
U.S. F-80 downs North Korean jet in first jet to jet encounter of Korean War - Mig-15
December 1, 1950
Helicopters assigned to U.S. MASH facilities - Bell H-13 Sioux
December 18, 1950
Newest swept wing U.S. jet fighters deployed in Korea - F-86 Sabre
January 23, 1951
U.S. jet fighters claim victories over four MiG-15's in one day - Republic F-84
January 5, 1952
Pan Am introduces all cargo transport from New York to London - Douglas DC-6
April 15, 1952
First flight of what is still the backbone of the U.S. heavy bomber fleet - Boeing B-52
May 2, 1952
First jet powered passenger airliner to fly regular service - de Havilland DH 106 Comet
July 31, 1952
First helicopter to cross the Atlantic - Sikorsky S-55
November 2, 1952
First U.S. jet night victory using radar - F3D Skyknight
May 25, 1953
U.S. production aircraft capable of supersonic speeds in level flight - F-100
September 18, 1953
Soviet aircraft capable of supersonic speeds in level flight - MiG-19
October 3, 1953
US Navy aircraft capable of supersonic speeds in level flight - F4D
October 29, 1953
International jet aircraft speed record of 754 mph set - F-100 Super Sabre
March 4, 1954
Aircraft sets simultaneous records for speed, altitude and time to climb - F-104
May 1, 1954
USAF AWAC flights begin - EC-121
August 3, 1954
Experimental jet powered seaplane goes supersonic - F2Y Sea Dart
August 26, 1954
Experimental turbine powered helicopter sets 155.9 mph speed record - Sikorsky XH-39
November 5, 1954
First non-rotorcraft successful transition from vertical take-off to horizontal flight and back - Convair XFY Pogo
December 19, 1954
Supersonic all-weather interceptor and operational delta-wing aircraft - F-102
March 25, 1955
Supersonic carrier-based aircraft - F-8
May 31, 1955
Jacqueline Auriol sets aircraft woman's speed record of 715 mph - Dassault Mystere
June 6, 1955
Highest helicopter landing and takeoff of 15,772 ft. with pilot Jean Moine at Mt. Blanc - Bell 47
October 15, 1955
Aircraft 500 km. course speed record of 695 mph set - Douglas A4 Skyhawk
August 24, 1956
First ever U.S. helicopter flys non-stop coast-to-coast - Piasecki H-21
January 18, 1957
Jet airplane flight around the world without landing - Boeing B-52
August 28, 1957
British aircraft sets altitude record - English Electric Canberra
August 31, 1957
British delta-wing jet bomber flies - Avro Vulcan
December 6, 1957
First U.S. built turboprop airliner flies - L188 Electra
December 12, 1957
World aircraft speed record is now 1,207 mph - F-101 Voodoo
January 14, 1958
Quantas Airlines now has around the globe flights - C-121
May 7, 1958
New aircraft altitude record of 91,243 feet set - F-104 Starfighter
May 16, 1958
New aircraft speed record of 1,403 mph set - F-104 Starfighter
May 30, 1958
First jet airliner built by Douglas Aircraft takes flight - DC-8
June 4, 1959
Still standing single engine light aircraft distance record set - Piper PA-24 Comanche
July 14, 1959
New aircraft altitude record of 94,659 feet set - Sukhoi Su-9
August 26, 1959
First woman, Jacqueline Auriol, flies faster than Mach II - Mirage III
October 31, 1959
New aircraft speed record of 1,484 mph set - MiG 21 Ye66
December 6, 1959
New helicopter altitude record of 29,846 feet set - HH-43 Huskie
December 14, 1959
New aircraft altitude record of 103,389 feet set - F-104 Starfighter
December 15, 1959
New aircraft speed record of 1,525 mph set - F-106 Delta Dart
May 1, 1960
U.S. spyplane, capable of continuous flight at altitudes in excess of 60,000 feet, downed by surface launched missiles over Russia - Lockheed U-2
August 12, 1960
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship reaches an altitude of 136,000 feet - North American X-15
May 4, 1961
Still standing manned balloon altitude record of 113,740 feet set.
November 9, 1961
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 4,092 mph - North American X-15
November 22, 1961
New aircraft speed record of 1,606.3 mph set - F-4 Phantom
June 27, 1962
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 4,104 mph - North American X-15
July 7, 1962
New aircraft speed record of 1,665.9 mph set - Mikoyan Ye-152 prototype
July 17, 1962
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship reaches an altitude of 314,688 feet - North American X-15
January 17, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship reaches an altitude of 271,392 feet - North American X-15
May 1, 1963
Woman's aircraft speed record of 1,203.7 mph set by Jacquelin Cochran - F-104
June 25, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 3,910 mph - North American X-15
June 27, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship reaches an altitude of 284,592 feet - North American X-15
July 18, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 3,925 mph - North American X-15
July 19, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship reaches an altitude of 347,424 feet - North American X-15
November 13, 1963
Largest aircraft lands on and takes off from an aircraft carrier - C-130
December 5, 1963
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 4,017 mph - North American X-15
April 17, 1964
Geraldine Mock completes first woman's aerial global solo circumnavigation - Cessna 180
December 21, 1964
Operational aircraft employing variable geometry wings takes flight - F-111
December 22, 1964
First flight of speed and altitude setting jet aircraft with records which are still standing today - SR-71 Blackbird
March 6, 1965
Helicopter distance record of 2,116 miles set - Sikorsky Sea King
May 1, 1965
New aircraft speed record of 2,070.1 mph set - SR-71 Blackbird prototype YF-12A
September 7, 1965
Dedicated attack helicopter and first to have tandem crew seating flies - AH-1 Cobra
November 15, 1965
Pole to pole around the world flight completed - Boeing 707
July 28, 1966
Still standing aircraft speed record of 2,193.2 mph set - SR-71 Blackbird prototype YF-12A
September 24, 1966
New woman's aircraft speed record of 1,270 mph set by Marina Solovyeva - MiG-21
November 18, 1966
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship flies at a speed of 4,250 mph - North American X-15
January 2, 1967
American jets down a total of seven enemy fighter aircraft in a single day over Vietnam - F-4 Phantom
February 26, 1967
U.S. aircraft begining mining of North Vietnam targets - A-6 Intruder
June 5, 1967
The 1,000 airliner to be powered by jet engines is produced by Boeing - Boeing 707
August 11, 1967
U.S. fighter bombers attack and cut the North Vietnam Paul Doumer Bridge - F-105 Thunderchief
October 3, 1967
U.S. rocket powered aircraft launched from a mother ship sets the still standing speed record of 4,520 mph - North American X-15
October 8, 1967
U.S. dedicated attack helicopter in combat for the first time - AH-1 Cobra
December 4, 1967
New U.S. Navy attack aircraft fly their first combat missions over Vietnam - A-7 Corsair
October 24, 1967
Airborne radar aircraft directs an attack successfully on an enemy airplane - EC-121
December 31, 1968
Airliner capable of speeds over Mach 1 takes flight - Tu-144
October 28, 1972
World's first twin engine wide cabin airliner takes flight - Airbus A300
January 21, 1976
Regularly scheduled supersonic flights commence - Concorde
August 13, 1976
America's first light twin helicopter takes flight - Bell 222
April 25, 1978
Helicopter outside of the Soviet Union certified for all-weather operations flies - SA330
Sept. 30, 1982
Helicopter around the world flight - Bell
206
December 14, 1984
Forward swept wing (FSW) aircraft exceeds the speed of sound - X-29
December 23, 1986
Completion of flight of only airplane to circumnavigate the earth without landing or refueling - Rutan Voyager
February 22, 1987
Flight of sub-sonic airliner using fly by wire controls - A320
October 9, 1988
Aircraft flies fully automated from takeoff to landing - Condor
December 7, 1988
F-15B development aircraft modified by NASA for flight control research - F-15 S/MTD
December 21, 1988
First flight of world's heaviest airplane - Antonov An-225 Mriya
March 19, 1989
Production tilt-rotor aircraft flies - V-22
February 17, 1991
Civil aviation four seat airplane with a pressurized cabin flies - Lancair IV-P
June 14, 1994
Jetliner 100% digitally designed using three dimension computer graphics takes to the sky - Boeing 777
April 24, 2001
Drone aircraft successfully flies across the Pacific - RQ-4
August 13, 2001
Solar powered aircraft sets altitude record - NASA Helios
June 21, 2004
Non-government manned aircraft reaches space - SpaceShipOne
April 27, 2005
First flight of the world's largest ever mass produced airliner - Airbus A380
|
