Did you Know...
...that Guy Menzies flew the first solo trans-Tasman flight (from Sydney to New Zealand) in 1931, but landed upside-down in a swamp?
...the study of airmail is known as aerophilately?
...in 1931 Amelia Earhart flew a Pitcairn PCA-2 autogyro to a then world altitude record of 18,415 feet (5613 m)?
...that a Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar was used in the 2004 film Flight of the Phoenix?
...that British Airways unveiled a new corporate identity in 1997 which involved repainting its fleet with around 20 daring tailfin designs by world artists?
...that the mysterious objects known as Black Triangles may actually be hybrid airships?
...that the Brimstone missile, an anti-tank guided missile, is carried by three Royal Air Force aeroplane types?
...that four planes were simultaneously hijacked in the 1970 Dawson's Field hijackings?
...that after the Red Baron, French ace René Fonck had the most confirmed World War I aerial victories?
...that the hyper engine was a hypothetical aircraft engine design meant to deliver 1 horsepower from 1 cubic inch of displacement?
...that the Vickers machine gun was the standard weapon on all British and French military aircraft after 1916?
...that Swedish adventurer Saloman Andrée died in 1897 while trying to reach the geographic North Pole by hot-air balloon?
...that the Fairey Seafox was a Second World War reconnaissance floatplane of the Fleet Air Arm?
...that in 1929 the Graf Zeppelin completed a circumnavigation of the globe in 21 days, 5 hours and 31 minutes?
...that in the late 1940s the USAF Northrop YB-49 set both an unofficial endurance record and a transcontinental speed record?
...that George H. W. Bush flew a TBF Avenger while he was in the U.S. Navy?
...that BŻ-1 GIL was the first Polish experimental helicopter?
...that Astro Flight, Incorporated of Marina del Rey, California created the world's first practical electric-powered radio controlled model airplane and the world's first full-scale solar-powered airplane?
...that Suriname's worst air disaster was Surinam Airways Flight 764, which crashed after the pilots ignored repeated warnings that they were flying too low?
...that Ansett Airlines Flight 232 from Adelaide to Alice Springs in 1972 was the first aircraft hijacking to take place in Australia?
..that an aircraft's pitot-static system allows a pilot to monitor airspeed, Mach number, altitude, and altitude trend?
...that Alejandro Maclean, Spanish television producer and Red Bull Air Race World Series pilot, is nicknamed "The Flying Matador"?
...that among the earliest accounts of the use of a man-lifting kite is in the story of Ishikawa Goemon's robbery from Nagoya Castle?
...that the Heinkel He 46, designed for the Luftwaffe in 1931, was still being used to fight the Soviets in 1943?
...that during the Winter War, a Swedish fundraising drive paid for the purchase of a Fokker F.VIII airliner for the Finnish Air Force?
...that the Soviet spotter aircraft Sukhoi Su-12, though approved, was never produced due to lack of manufacturing capacity in the USSR?
...that sailplane winglets were first successfully implemented by American inventor Peter Masak?
...that on October 5, 1914, a French Voisin III pilot scored the first air-to-air kill of World War I?
...that Luftwaffe ace Erich Rudorffer flew more than 1000 missions during World War II, and was shot down sixteen times by enemy flak and fighters?
...that Communist Romania's Foreign Minister, Grigore Preoteasa, was killed in an aircraft accident after refusing to wear a seat belt during landing?
...that Chris Phatswe committed suicide by crashing his Air Botswana plane into two other planes belonging to the airline, effectively crippling operations?
...that five USAAF airmen were awarded the Medal of Honor following Operation Tidal Wave, a low-level bombing of Romanian oil refineries on 1 August 1943?
...that in 1943 British Overseas Airways Corporation Flight 777 was shot down by German Junkers Ju 88s, killing actor Leslie Howard and leading to speculation that it was an attempt to assassinate Winston Churchill?
...that the pioneer American airman Lowell Smith participated in the first mid-air refueling, the first aerial circumnavigation and held 16 records for military aircraft in speed, endurance and distance?
... that the Air Zoo in Kalamazoo, Michigan houses the only SR-71B Blackbird in existence?
...that one of the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic was the Italian Savoia-Marchetti S.55 flying boat, which went on to serve in the Luftwaffe in WWII?
...that the Tenerife disaster remained the deadliest aircraft incident in history until the September 11, 2001 attacks and neither plane was in flight when the accident occurred.
...that the Ryan X-13 Vertijet aircraft landed by using a hook on its nose to hang itself on a wire?
...that Indra Lal Roy of the Royal Air Force became India's first flying ace after he achieved 10 victories in thirteen days during World War I?
...that passengers aboard JetBlue Airways Flight 292 were able to watch their own malfunctioning aircraft circle Los Angeles International Airport on the satellite television screens at each seat until the flight crew disabled the system in preparation for the aircraft's successful emergency landing?
...that Roy Marlin "Butch" Voris, founder of the United States Navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration team, chose the name based on a nightclub advertisement in The New Yorker magazine?
...that Berlin Airlift "Candy Bomber" Gail Halvorsen would wiggle the wings of his plane to identify himself to children below?
...that Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney was only twenty-eight years old when he helped found Pan American World Airways?
...that the fighter pilot Aleksandr Kazakov destroyed 32 German and Austro-Hungarian planes during WWI, while his formal tally of 17 is explained by the fact that only planes crashed in the Russian-held territory were officially counted?
...that the Zagreb mid-air collision over Croatia in 1976 was one of the deadliest mid-air collisions?
...that Frenchman Jean-Marie Le Bris accomplished the world's first powered flight in 1856, with a glider that was pulled behind a running horse?
...that the Alexander Aircraft Company, which produced Eaglerock biplanes in Colorado, was the largest aircraft manufacturer in the world for a brief period between 1928 and 1929?
...that the Aerocar Coot was a two-seat amphibious aircraft designed for home-building by Moulton Taylor?
...that Pepsi offered a Harrier fighter jet in their Pepsi Billion Dollar Sweepstakes game and the Pepsi Stuff game for people accumulating a certain number of points?
...that the airfields captured in the battle of Tinian were used for the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
...that the Cessna 165 aircraft was instrumental in the recovery of the Cessna Aircraft Company in the years following the Great Depression?
...that the crash of Crossair Flight LX498 was initially attributed to cell phone use, and led to bans of cell phones in airplanes in several countries?
...that Theo Osterkamp was the first German reconnaissance pilot to fly a land-based aircraft to England during World War I?
...that Garuda Indonesia flight 152 was the deadliest air disaster of 1997, claiming the lives of over 230 people?
..that Elm Farm Ollie in 1930 became the first cow to be milked while flying in an airplane?
...that PWS-10 designed in late 1920s was the first Polish fighter to enter serial production?
...that the Blohm und Voss Bv 144 was an attempt by Nazi Germany to develop an advanced commercial airliner for post-war service?
- ...that the Aichi D1A (pictured) was a carrier-borne dive bomber primarily used by the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Second Sino-Japanese War?
- ...that the Bede BD-4 (pictured) was the first homebuilt aircraft to be offered in kit form?
...that the BAE Systems HERTI is the first and only fully autonomous UAV to have been certificated by the United Kingdom?
...that during World War II, Marine Fighting Squadron 215 established four new U.S. Marine Corps records in the South Pacific including having the most ace pilots?
...that Wing Commander Stanley Goble and Flying Officer Ivor McIntyre, piloting a single-engined seaplane (pictured), became the first men to circumnavigate Australia by air in 1924?
... the Safety Promotion Center, established by Japan Airlines after the worst single aircraft accident in history, has passengers' farewell letters and wreckage on display to educate employees about safety?
...that the strategic bombing campaign used in the 1990 Operation Instant Thunder served as a model for subsequent American military conflicts?
...that Washington Senators outfielder Elmer Gedeon, who pulled a crew member from a burning wreck, died while piloting a B-26 bomber over France?
...that the Silver Centenary biplane, built in Beverley, Western Australia in 1930, received its airworthiness certificate 77 years after its first flight?
...that a Cambridge University society has launched high altitude balloons that have taken a picture of the earth's curvature from a height of 32 km?
...that François Denhaut built the world's first flying boat, or seaplane with a hull?
...that during Operation Deep Freeze II in 1956, US Navy Rear Admiral George J. Dufek commanded the first aircraft to land at the South Pole, the C-47 Skytrain “Que Sera Sera”?
...that the Pterodactyl Ascender (pictured) has been one of the most influential designs in ultralight aviation?
...that the Lockheed NF-104A (pictured), equipped with a reaction control system as well as a rocket engine to supplement a jet engine, was a low-cost training vehicle for American astronauts in the 1960s?
...that Yekaterina Zelenko was the only woman to perform an aerial ramming and the only female pilot in the Winter War?
... that a USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft crashed shortly after take-off at Bakers Creek, Queensland in 1943, killing 40 of the 41 service personnel on board and making it Australia's worst aviation disaster?
... that the first exhibition at the Boeing Galleries was a series of photographs taken from helicopters and hot air balloons?
... that Soviet test pilot Vladimir Kokkinaki set twenty aviation world records?
... that Arthur Hartley developed the Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation which is credited with safely landing 2,500 aircraft during World War Two?
... that Jimmy Doolittle commanded a 22 plane demonstration celebrating the opening of Henderson, Kentucky's Audubon Memorial Bridge in 1932?
...that the asymmetrical monoplane BV 141 is one of many military aircraft designed by Richard Vogt?
...that Royal Brunei Catering, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Brunei Airlines, was named as Best Regional Caterer 1995/1996 by Singapore Airlines?
... that 820 Naval Air Squadron was involved in attacks on the German battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz during the Second World War?
... that the airline Vildanden started its first route with wet leased aircraft from Coast Air?
... that the Tony Jannus Award for distinguished achievement in commercial aviation is named for the pilot of the first scheduled commercial airline flight?
... that Coast Aero Center and Norving were the first airlines with scheduled services at Geilo Airport, Dagali located in Hol, Norway?
... that on 28 May 1931, a Bellanca CH-300 fitted with a Packard DR-980 diesel engine set a 55-year record for staying aloft for 84 hours and 32 minutes without being refueled?
... that in the middle of building Fagernes Airport, Leirin, the authorities changed their minds and gave the airport more than twice the runway length?
... that Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the captain of US Airways Flight 1549, also runs an aviation safety consultant company and has worked as an accident investigator for the USAF, NTSB, and FAA?
... that before he flew the Spirit of St. Louis on his historic transatlantic flight, Charles Lindbergh's first choice of aircraft was the Ryan M-2?
... that the price war started by Color Air in 1998 led to its bankruptcy after 14 months?
... that teenage aviatrix Elinor Smith, the "Flying Flapper of Freeport", had her pilot's license suspended for 15 days for flying under New York City's four East River bridges in 1928?
... that Teddy Air was the first airline to win a public service obligation in Norway?
... that to open the swing door on the General Aircraft Hamilcar glider and allow vehicles to emerge, pilots had to climb out of the glider's cockpit and slide down 15 feet of fuselage?
... that Samuel Frederick Henry Thompson, a British flying ace of World War I, scored 30 kills in five months of service and won both the DFC and MC?
... that the collection of the Prague Aviation Museum, Kbely includes 275 aircraft, of which approximately 110 are on public display?
... that Flying Officer (later Air Commodore) Frank Lukis was one of the original twenty-one officers in the RAAF when it was formed in 1921?
.. that five UH-1 Iroquois helicopters of the Experimental Military Unit were shot down by a single Viet Cong soldier armed with an AK-47 rifle?
... that the loss of nine military crew members and passengers when Buffalo 461 was shot down over Syria in 1974, remains the largest single-incident loss of life in Canadian peacekeeping history?
... that Wing Commander John Lerew, ordered to defend Rabaul against Japanese invasion in 1942, signaled headquarters the legendary gladiatorial phrase "We who are about to die salute you"?
- ... that the crash of an Australian National Airways Stinson in 1945 was believed by investigators to be the first in-flight structural failure attributable to metal fatigue?
... that former USAF officer David P. Cooley who was the chief test pilot for the F-117 Nighthawk died in March 2009 while testing the F-22 Raptor?
... that the PZL SM-4 Łątka never flew, because its engine was not approved for use in flight?
... that Walter Borchers was one of three brothers, all three received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II?
... that when Lilian Bland built an aircraft in 1910, she used her aunt's ear-trumpet and a whisky bottle to feed petrol to the engine?
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... that Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weissenfeld was an Austrian aristocratic night fighter flying ace that fought for the German Luftwaffe in World War II?
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