Warbirds Online » Blog Archive » This Week In Military/Aviation History 26 October

Damn Folks, that was a quick seven. I had to run like heck to keep up with it. Seems I got here just in time to get down to some serious history with you, so, shall we? Yes, I think we shall.

Tom K.:)

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26 October 1907
Henry Farman sets the official distance record of 771 meters (2,530 feet) in a Voisin-Farman I.

26 October 1909
2nd Lieutenant Frederic E. Humphreys of the United States Army becomes the first pilot officer to fly solo, at College Park in Maryland, with a flight lasting 3 minutes in a Wright biplane.

27 October 1909
Mrs Ralph H. van Deman becomes the first American woman passenger in an aeroplane when she is taken aloft by Wilbur Wright.

November 1909
The first flight of the Etrich Taube monoplane. This bird-like Austrian-designed aircraft is produced in a number of versions and many become early military aircraft in Austria and Germany.

26 October 1910
A Lebaudy airship purchased by the British government flies a 230 mile flight from Aldershot to Moisson in France.

28 October 1910
Monsieur Tabuteau performs a closed circuit record of 465 kilometers(289 miles) in a Maurice Farman biplane, ending the supremacy of the Wright biplanes.

1 November 1911
2nd Lieutenant Giulio Gavotti of the Italian Air Flotilla becomes the first aviator to drop bombs from an aeroplane in war when he drops Cipelli grenades on Turkish forces at Taguira Oasis and Ain Zara.

26 October 1912
American Lieutenant John H. Towers conducts trials into the use of aeroplanes for anti-submarine duties.

27 October 1913
Eugene Gilbert flies a closed-circuit course in a Derperdussin monoplane at St-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, at 95mph to win the Deutsch de la Meuthe cup.

November 1913
The world’s first aerial combat takes place in Mexico when 2 American mercenary pilots, Dean Ivan Lamb, flying for Panco Villa, and Philip Rader, flying for President Huerta, exchange pistol shots in mid-air, neither is hit.

Lincoln Beachey demonstrates loops and upside-down flying in a Curtiss biplane at Los Angeles.

31 October 1914
Russia declares war on Turkey.

28 October 1916
German ace, Hauptmann Oswald Boelcke is killed when his Albatros fighter collides with another, flown by his comrade, Leutnant Boehme.

28 October 1917
A German Fokker DrI triplane, with Leutnant Heinrich Gontermann in the cockpit, breaks-up in flight. The type is grounded pending an investigation which reveals deficiencies in the construction of the fighter’s wings.

26 October 1918
The Inter-allied Independent Air Force is created and Marshal Foch of France is made the supreme commander, with Britain’s General Sir Hugh Trenchard as commander in chief

29 October 1918
The Czechoslovak Army Air Force is formed.

30 October 1918
The Allies and Turkey agree to an Armistice.

November 1918
Canadian Air Force is formed.

1 November 1919
The United States airline West Indies Airways begins services between Key West, Florida and Havana. It later merges with Aeromarine Airways to form Aeromarine West Indies Airways.

1 November 1920
Aeromarine West Indies Airways becomes first foreign organization to be granted a contract by the United States Post Office for the carriage of airmail.

26 October 1940
The North American NA73 fighter prototype, better known as the ‘Mustang’, makes its first flight.

30 October 1941
A Consolidated B-24 Liberator, with Major Alva L. Harvey at the controls, completes a round-the world flight, carrying personnel of the Harriman Mission.

30 October 1943
In order to evaluate the capability of the helicopter, the United States Navy (USN) acquires a single example of the Sikorsky YR4B from the United States Army Air Force (USAAF).

31 October 1943
The United States Navy (USN) achieves the first aerial victory with the use of airborne interception (AI) radar, when an AI equipped Vought F4U2 Corsair destroys a Japanese aircraft in New Guinea.

27 October 1944
The 9th Fighter Squadron of the United States Army Air Force (USAAF) operates from Tacloban airstrip, in first American air operations from the Philippines since 1942.

1 November 1944
A United States Army Air Force (USAAF) F13 reconnaissance variant of the Boeing B29 Superfortress aircraft becomes the first American aircraft to fly over Tokyo since the Doolittle raid of 1942.

1 November 1946
United States Navy non-rigid airship XM1 completes a flight of 170 hours 3 minutes establishing a world record for a flight un-sustained by any form of refuelling.

29 October 1953
A world record of 754mph over a 15 kilometer course is set by Lieutenant Colonel F.K. Everest flying a North American F-100 Super Sabre fighter.

1 November 1954
The last Boeing B-29 Superfortress is withdrawn from service.

1 November 1955
United Air Lines DC6MB explodes over Colorado killing all 44 passengers. The explosion is caused by a bomb.

The first guided missile cruiser, the USS Boston, is commissioned.

Jordan announces its intention to re-equip its forces with heavy modern weapons and form an efficient air force.

31 October 1956
British and French forces begin an offensive against Egyptian air bases and other military targets.

The first ten Douglas DC7C airliners ordered by the British Overseas Aircraft Corporation (BOAC) arrive at London Airport.

31 October 1959
Flying a Mikoyan Type Ye66 Colonel G. Mosolov establishes a new world speed record of 2,681kph (1,665mph).

31 October 1968
In an effort to help peace talks President Johnson orders a cessation of all air and naval bombardment of North Vietnam.

29 October 1972
A Lufthansa Boeing 727, flying from Beirut to Ankara is hijacked by a terrorist, demanding the release of three Palestinians held for murdering Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games.

28 October 1975
To demonstrate the maneuverability and short field ability of the Franco-German Alpha Jet, test pilot Jean-Marie Saget lands on and takes off from a stretch of motorway linking Paris and Le Mans.

29 October 1982
Air France terminates its Concorde service to Washington, but maintains flights to New York.

26 October 1988
The United States Air Force (USAF) receives its first Hughes Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile, (AMRAAM).

November 1988
Antonov displays the An225 Mriya transport aircraft. Powered by six Lotarev D18T turbofans and weighing 600 tonnes, the aircraft is nearly half as heavy again as the previous world’s heaviest aircraft.

31 October 1990
Deregulation of Australian airlines allows operators to choose their own routes and set passenger fares.

1 November 1991
United Airlines inaugurates ‘Connoisseur Class’ on its long-distance flights. The luxury extras provided for passengers include gourmet food, vintage wines, piped CD music and more comfortable seats.

31 October 1992
The Italian Navy buys thirteen Hawker Siddeley/British Aerospace (BAe) AV8B Harrier II Plus aircraft for use on the helicopter carrier Garibaldi.

31 October 2000
A Singapore Airlines Boeing 747-412 crashes on take-off from Taipei Chiang Kai Shek airport, on a flight bound for Los Angeles. 81 of the 159 passengers and 20 crew lose their lives when the aircraft inadvertently attempts to take off from a closed runway and collides with a barrier

November 2000
Coinciding with its 80th anniversary, Qantas announces an order for twelve Airbus A3XX aircraft and six Airbus A330-200 airliners. The order means Airbus has 44 of the 50 aircraft orders needed before it can commit to production. Qantas is traditionally one of Boeing’s most loyal customers.

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That’s it for this week Folks. See ya in seven.

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