timeline

Source: 100 Years of Flight, Frank Winter and F. Van Der Linden, AIAA, 2003.

7 Oct 1903 Langley crashes Greta Aerodrome in Potomac.

8 Dec 1903 Langley crashes again.

17 Dec 1903 Wrights launch Flyer four times on the Kill Devil Hills.

20 Sep 1904 Wilbur Wright flies a controlled circle.

18 Mar 1906 Trajan Vuia flies the first tractor monoplane briefly.

12 Mar 1908 Bell's Red Wing flies over frozen Lake Keuka, N.Y.

May 1908 Curtiss begins manufacturing airplanes commercially.

6 May 1908 Wrights use upright seating.

4 Jul 1908 Louis Blériot flies a monoplane for 5 minutes.

4 Jul 1908 Curtiss flies June Bug for 102.5 seconds; awarded a Scientific American trophy for first public U.S. flight.

8 Aug 1908 Wilbur Wright makes the brothers' first public flight, in France, demonstrating aircraft's high maneuverability.

26 Jan 1911 Curtiss launches and lands an airplane on San Diego Bay.

13 Apr 1912 F. Rodman Law parachutes from a Burgess hydro-aeroplane.

13 May 1913 Sikorsky Bolshoi, a multi-engine large plane, flies in Russia.

photos courtesy of Williams Bros. Inc. (except as noted)

28 May 1914 Curtiss flies Langley's Aerodrome after adding floats.

18 Jun 1914 Lawrence Sperry flies Curtiss Flying Boat fitted with gyrostabilizer.

3 Mar 1915 Advisory Committee for Aeronautics forms, later adding National, to become NACA, predecessor to NASA.

28 Jul 1915 First drop of a torpedo by Royal Navy Lt. Arthur Longmore.

1 Apr 1915 French pilot Lt. Roland Garros shoots down German Aviatik with forward-mounted gun developed in 1914 by French engineer Raymond Saulnier.

12 Dec 1915 All-metal, cantilevered wing monoplane Junkers J-1 begins trials in Germany.

1915 Elmer Sperry demonstrates airplane drift indicator.

22 Dec 1916 Lawrence Sperry applies for a patent on his flying torpedo.

26 Dec 1917 NACA tests simulated altitude chamber.

6 Mar 1918 Curtiss-Sperry Flying Bomb hits target at 1,000 yards.

17 Aug 1918 Army Martin MB-1 bomber makes maiden flight.

1 Oct 1918 Bombs released electrically by Allies on German infantry.

2 Oct 1918 Charles Kettering's aerial torpedo tests successfully.

30 Oct 1919 Reversible-pitch propeller demonstrated.

1919 German manufacturer Adolph Rohrbach develops smooth surface wings and box spar internal construction, the beginning of stressed skin aircraft.

1919 Junkers produces J-13, a low-set, cantilevered-wing transport.

Mar 1920 Slotted wings used on British DH 9, but later are credited to Gustav Lachmann of Germany.

27 Mar 1920 Sperry gyrostabilized automatic pilot completes test on F5L aircraft.

21 Jun 1920 Navy approves retractable landing gear for VE-7 Vought.

5 Jun 1921 First flight of a pressurized cabin airplane, the D-9-A.

28 Nov 1921 German Ludwig Prandtl publishes "Applications of Modern Hydrodynamics.

22 Mar 1922 USS Langley, Navy's first aircraft carrier, commissioned.

23 Mar 1922 Edgar Buckingham of the Bureau of Standards publishes "Jet Propulsion for Airplanes."

21 Aug 1922 Lawrence Sperry demonstrates landing skids.

15 Dec 1922 1,000-hp Napier Cub powers an Avro Aldershot bomber.

18 Dec 1922 George de Bothezat make first successful helicopter flight in U.S., flying a twin-rotor machine for 102 seconds several feet above the ground.

9 Jan 1923 Lt. Alejandro Gomez Spencer of Spain flies autogiro.

8 Mar 1923 Lawrence Sperry, piloting a Sperry Messenger, and Lt. Clyde Flinter, flying a de Havilland DH-4B, touch planes to demonstrate the feasibility of mid-air refueling.

2 Apr 1923 Wright H-3 all-metal pursuit monoplane flies from Curtiss Field.

25 Jun 1923 Lts. Lowell Smith and John Richter remain aloft for four days, and refuel in the air eight times.

19 Jul 1923 Aeronautical engineer W.F. Gerhardt claims first human-powered flight.

18 Sep 1923 Lt. Rex Stoner hooks his Sperry Messenger to the Army airship D-3 for about one minute.

Nov 1923 New York University starts aeronautical engineering course.

27 Dec 1923 Alexander Gustav Eiffel, noted aerodynamicist and builder of the Eiffel Tower, dies.

14 Sep 1924 French engineer Etienne Oemichen, piloting a four-rotor helicopter, lifts a load of 440.92 lbs. 3.28 feet in the air.

2 Dec 1924 NACA approves Standard Atmosphere chart.

14 Dec 1924 A powder catapult launches a Martin MO-1 observation plane from the USS Mississippi.

6 Feb 1925 A single-piece magnesium propeller flies at Curtiss Field on a J1 Standard.

7 Apr 1925 USS Saratoga, designed to carry 72 planes, launches at Camden, N.J.

12 Jun 1925 Daniel Guggenheim announces a $500,000 grant to New York University for creating a school of aeronautics.

22 Jul 1925 Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Co. forms in Hartford, Conn.

1 Aug 1925 NBS-4 Curtiss Condor, a night bomber, makes maiden flight from Garden City, N.Y.

15 Aug 1925 Ford Motor Co. purchases the Stout All-Metal Airplane Co.

7 Sep 1925 Anthony Fokker demonstrates the Fokker trimotor Monoplane F.VII-3m.

19 Oct 1925 Capt. Frank Courtney demonstrates the Cierva autogiro to British Air Ministry.

18 Nov 1925 The Holt Autochute, which uses a small pilot chute to pull the main chute out, debuts publicly.

6 Feb 1926 Pratt & Whitney builds the 9-cylinder, 425-hp, air-cooled radial Wasp engine, whose technical features will set the pattern for aircraft propulsion until the dawning of the jet era.

23 Mar 1926 S.D. Heron, inventor of sodium-filled valves for internal combustion engines, assigns exclusive license for their manufacture to Rich Tool Co.

24 Mar 1926 Cierva Autogiro Co. Ltd. forms in London.

7 Dec 1926 Gyroscope developer Elmer Sperry receives the 1927 John Fritz Medal at the Engineering Societies' Building in New York.

7 Jan 1927 Wright Aeronautical Corp.'s Cyclone Model R-1750 passes its 50-hour test, producing 510 hp at 1,780 rpm for five hours.

2 May 1927 A Stinson monoplane demonstrates air brakes and air starter.

23 May 1927 The Naval Aircraft Factory finds that anodic coatings can inhibit saltwater corrosion of aluminum.

18 Nov 1927 Handley Page automatic wing slots are demonstrated at Cricklewood Aerodrome.

30 Nov 1927 Construction finishes on the propeller research tunnel at Langley Research Center.

3 Feb 1928 The 1903 Wright Flyer leaves for the South Kensington Museum in England.

22 May 1928 A patent on sodium-filled engine valves is issued to engineer Samuel Heron of the material division at Wright Field.

23 Jun 1928 Supercharger test at Wright Field delivers sea-level pressure at 30,000 feet.

19 Sep 1927 A 9-cylinder radial diesel engine propels a Stinson monoplane.

8 Aug 1929 Jet-assisted takeoff lifts a Junkers W33 seaplane from the Elbe River in Germany.

24 Sep 1929 Lt. James Doolittle makes a successful instrument landing.

27 Dec 1929 Norden's gyrostabilized Mark XI bombsight returns 40 percent more hits than earlier sights.

1 Jan 1930 The Curtiss Tanager airplane wins the $100,000 Guggenheim Safe Aircraft award.

22 Jan 1931 Navy purchases the XOP-1 autogiro from Pitcairn Aircraft.

7 Aug 1931 The Sikorski S-40, the largest U.S.-made airplane, makes its maiden flight.

Dec 1931 An autopilot is licensed to fly passengers and airmail.

3 Dec 1932 The Northrop Gamma all-metal, monocoque high-speed transport flies.

30 Mar 1933 Boeing delivers the all-metal, low-wing 247 transport monoplane to United Air Lines.

Sep 1933 Powered by an 800-hp Pratt & Whitney Wasp engine and a Hamilton Standard controllable pitch propeller, a Wedell-Williams monoplane piloted by James Wedell sets a new speed record for land planes of 304.98 mph.

23 Feb 1934 Lockheed Electra, an all-metal, low-wing monoplane featuring stressed skin and flush rivets, makes its maiden flight.

5 Sep 1934 Wiley Post flies into the stratosphere wearing a pressure suit developed with B.F. Goodrich Co.

Jul 1935 Armstrong Siddeley Development Co. and Hawker Aircraft merge to form Hawker-Siddeley Aircraft.

17 Dec 1935 Douglas DST, predecessor to the DC-3, flies.

5 Mar 1936 A Supermarine Spitfire prototype makes its first flight.

12 May 1936 NACA begins operating its 8-foot high-speed tunnel at Langley Aeronautical Laboratory.

6 Jun 1936 Socony-Vacuum Oil Co. begins making 100 octane aviation gas.

1 Mar 1937 Boeing B-17 bomber delivered to the Army Air Corps.

16 Mar 1937 A fire destroys much of the Taylor Aircraft Corp. Later in the year William Piper purchases the firm, renaming it Piper Aircraft Co.

12 Apr 1937 Frank Whittle tests his gas-turbine engine, the U type.

23 Aug 1937 Capt. Carl Crane, inventor of an automatic landing system, demonstrates the system from aboard a Fokker C-14.

Mar 1938 American Airlines approves the feathering Hamilton hydraulic airscrew for scheduled service.

16 Sep 1938 U.S. Army Air Corps wins the Collier Trophy for the design and construction of the Lockheed XC-35, the first successful plane with a pressurized cabin.

1 Apr 1939 Mitsubishi A6M1 monoplane fighter, which will become the Japanese Zero, flies.

Jun 1939 Focke-Wulf Fw 190 V-1 prototype flies at Bremen, Germany.

27 Aug 1939 Erich Warsitz secretly flies the jet-propelled Heinkel He-178, using the HeS38 engine designed by Hans Pabst von Ohain.

14 Sep 1939 Vought-Sikorski VS-300 helicopter flies on a tether. This is the first helicopter to use a single main rotor and single tail rotor.

Dec 1939 Timm Aircraft builds the PT-160-K trainer from Nuyon, a laminated spruce impregnated with phenol formaldehyde and formed under heat and pressure.

13 May 1940 The Vought-Sikorsky VS-300 helicopter makes a free flight.

8 Jul 1940 Boeing 307-B, with a pressurized cabin, enters service with TWA.

Oct 1940 Douglas Aircraft begins delivering the SBD Dauntless dive bomber to the Navy.

26 Oct 1940 North American Aviation's NA-73 fighter, which will become the P51-Mustang, flies. A V-12 liquid-cooled Allison engine powers the plane.

25 Nov 1940 Martin M-26 Marauder medium-range bomber flies.

25 Nov 1940 De Havilland Mosquito DH 98 bomber flies.

18 Dec 1940 Curtiss XSB2C-1 Helldiver scout-bomber flies.

2 Apr 1941 Heinkel He 280 V-1 jet fighter prototype flies.

15 Apr 1941 Vought-Sikorsky VS-300A helicopter flies for over an hour.

15 May 1941 A Gloster E28/39 with a Whittle WIX centrifugal flow turbojet engine flies, marking Great Britain's entrance into the jet age.

30 Jun 1941 Northrop Aircraft wins Army-Navy contract to design gas turbine engine that will become known as the Turbodyne.

1 Aug 1941 Grumman Aircraft XTBF-1 Avenger torpedo-bomber flies.

13 Aug 1941 Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket plane flies, later achieving Mach 0.85 in trials.

7 Nov 1941 Army Air Force GB-1 pre-guided glide bomb flies.

21 Nov 1941 Navy awards Robert Goddard a contract to develop liquid-propellant jet-assisted takeoff units for seaplanes.

16 Dec 1941 Reaction Motors Inc. forms in Pompton Plains, N.J.

19 Mar 1942 Aerojet Engineering Co. forms.

9 Apr 1942 Navy tests radio-controlled TG-2 drone.

24 Apr 1942 Douglas A-20A bomber completes 44 flights using liquid propellant jet-assisted takeoff.

26 Jun 1942 Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter prototype flies.

21 Sep 1942 Boeing XB-29 Superfortress flies.

22 Oct 1942 Navy authorizes Westinghouse to begin constructing two 19A axial-flow turbojet engines.

23 Nov 1942 Aerojet General Co. wins Navy contract to develop pressure-fed rocket jet assisted takeoff engines.

9 Jan 1943 Lockheed L-049 Constellation flies.

5 Jul 1943 Westinghouse 19A turbojet completes 100-hour endurance test.

19 Jul 1943 Naval Aircraft Factory begins developing Gorgon air-to-air missile.

20 Sep 1943 Turbojet-powered de Havilland Vampire fighter prototype flies.

1 Oct 1943 Turbojet-powered Bell XP-59A Airacomet flies.

3 Oct 1943 German A-4 rocket, later named the V-2, flies.

8 Jan 1944 Lockheed XP-80 flies, powered by a Halford turbojet engine. Lockheed designer Clarence "Kelly" Johnson completed the design in 145 days.

Feb 1944 Boeing builds unpainted Flying Fortress, saving 60 lb. per aircraft.

22 Feb 1944 Airplane dope inventor A.J.A Wallace Barr killed by enemy action.

Apr 1944 Reynolds Metals announces the development of R-301 aircraft aluminum.

courtesy of Replica Engines

5 July 1944 MX-324, the first U.S. rocket-powered experimental military aircraft flies.

15 Nov 1944 General Electric Co. signs a contract with U.S. Army Ordnance Corps to begin rocket research and development.

20 Jan 1944 NACA aerodynamicist Robert Jones develops the swept-back wing concept for overcoming shockwave effects at certain Mach numbers.

Feb 1945 Army Ordnance begins Nike missile project.

25 Feb 1945 Bell XP-83 pressurized turbojet escort fighter flies.

Mar 1945 U.S.'s first liquid-fuel rocket missile, Gorgon II-A, flies.

17 May 1945 Aerojet Engineering awarded contract for Aerobee sounding rocket.

31 Aug 1945 Reaction Motors test fires its 6000 C-4 rocket engine, which will power the Bell X-1 through the sound barrier.

19 Oct 1945 Turbojet inventor Frank Whittle flies his first jet.

Dec 1945 More than 100 German rocket scientists/engineers who were members of the V-2 team headed by Wernher von Braun arrive in the United States.

8 Dec 1945 Bell Model 47 helicopter, with two-bladed main rotor and stabilizing bar, flies.

14 Dec 1945 Bell begins developing the supersonic plane X-2.

28 Feb 1945 Republic's XP-84 Thunderjet flies.

11 Mar 1946 NACA's Lewis Laboratory tests jet afterburner.

16 Apr 1946 First captured German V-2 rocket launched at White Sands Proving Range.

Jul 1946 Beech Aircraft introduces the Model 35 Beechcraft Bonanza.

24 Jul 1946 Automatic manned ejection from a Gloster Meteor using a Martin-Baker-style ejection seat.

Aug 1946 McDonnell Aircraft completes the XHJD-1 twin helicopter.

19 Aug 1946 Sikorsky delivers commercial helicopter to Helicopter Air Transport of Camden, N.J.

8 Jan 1947 A model of a slotted throat wind tunnel is tested at NACA Langley Laboratory.

17 Feb 1947 Flight testing of Bristol Aircraft's Theseus Mk 11, a prop-jet engine, begins.

2 Sep 1947 Hawker Aircraft's N.7/46 carrier-borne jet fighter flies.

1 Oct 1947 North American's XF-86 Sabre jet prototype swept-wing fighter flies.

14 Oct 1947 Charles Yeager flies a Bell XS-1 through the sound barrier.

31 Oct 1947 Navy takes delivery of Piasecki HRP-1 Rescuer tandem rotor helicopter.

2 Nov 1947 Howard Hughes flies the Spruce Goose flying boat.

15 Nov 1947 NACA Langley hypersonic flow wind tunnel reaches Mach 7.

10 Dec 1947 Air Force Lt. Col. John Stapp rides a rocket sled.

26 May 1948 North American Instrumented Test Vehicle launches at Holloman Air Force Base.

Jun 1948 NACA scientist William Phillips publishes theory of the problem of inertial coupling.

15 Aug 1948 Frank Rogallo flies a flexible wing kite, or parawing.

23 Aug 1948 McDonnell XF-85 Goblin parasite fighter flies.

31 Oct 1948 U.S. Air Force announces successful flight using two wingtip-mounted Marquardt ramjets.

Apr 1949 Stanley Hiller announces a research program by his company into jet-propelled vertical takeoff and landing aircraft.

21 Apr 1949 Leduc 010-01, powered by a ramjet engine, flies.

27 Jul 1949 De Havilland DH 106 Comet four-engine jetliner flies.

10 Aug 1949 Prototype Avro of Canada XC-102 jetliner flies.

1 Dec 1949 California Institute of Technology dedicates a hypersonic wind tunnel that can generate airflow of 10 times the speed of sound continuously.

1 Mar 1950 Boeing completes its first production B47-A Stratojet bomber.

10 Mar 1950 Department of Defense announces the development of lightweight titanium alloy for turbojets.

23 Sep 1950 Sikorsky HO3S-I helicopter flies with a three-axis autopilot.

Oct 1950 Curtiss-Wright Aeronautical Corp. buys manufacturing rights for the Armstrong-Siddeley Sapphire axial-flow turbojet engine.

6 Dec 1950 NACA Langley Aeronautical Laboratory achieves a continuous transonic airflow in the slotted throat section of the 16-foot high-speed tunnel.

15 Dec 1950 William Lear receives the Collier Trophy for the Lear F-5 automatic pilot and automatic control coupler system.

6 Mar 1951 Naval Ordnance Test Station launches ramjet-powered Talos surface-to-air missile.

18 May 1951 Fokker S.14 Mach-Trainer flies.

5 Sep 1951 Air Force awards Convair a contract to develop a nuclear aircraft.

13 Nov 1951 NACA Lewis Laboratory investigates transonic turbojet compressor.

Dec 1951 NACA's Richard Witcomb verifies the area rule for reducing transonic drag.

10 Dec 1951 Gas turbine-powered Kaman K-225 helicopter flies using a Boeing 502-2 engine.

21 Jan 1952 Saab 210 delta-wing research airplane flies.

25 Feb 1952 Prototype Douglas Nike I surface to air missile test fires at White Sands Proving Ground.

2 Mar 1952 Piper PA-23 Twin-Stinson flies, later becoming the Piper Apache.

15 Apr 1952 Boeing YB-52 Stratofortress flies, powered by 8 Pratt & Whitney YJ-57-P-1 turbojets.

28 Apr 1952 Navy announces it will install steam catapults on its aircraft carriers.

17 Jun 1952 Aviation Medical Acceleration Laboratory opens with a man-rated centrifuge that can produce 40 g.

23 Jul 1952 French Fouga CM-170R Magister jet-propelled basic trainer makes its first flight.

2 Sep 1952 Boeing announces its intention to build a commercial jet airplane.

3 Jan 1953 Cessna 310 general aviation aircraft finishes flight tests.

22 Jan 1953 NACA completes the free flight test of a rocket-propelled model airplane incorporating the Whitcomb area rule.

18 May 1953 Douglas completes the first test flight of the DC-7 transport.

25 May 1953 North American YF-100A supersonic fighter flies.

8 Jun 1953 Air Force awards Fiat a contract to make North American F-86K Sabre all-weather interceptors.

3 Aug 1953 Test firing of the Redstone missile at Cape Canaveral, Fla.

7 Aug 1953 Leduc 021 01 ramjet-powered subsonic research aircraft flies from an air launch.

11 Sep 1953 Sidewinder air-to-air missile intercepts a target test drone.

20 Nov 1953 NACA pilot A. Scott Crossfield flies at Mach 2.005 in a Douglas D-558-2 Skyrocket.

3 Dec 1953 Grumman tests a boundary-layer control system with a modified F9F-4 Panther.

10 Jan 1954 The first of a series of de Havilland Mk I Comet breakups occurs during a BOAC flight from Rome to London. The cause is eventually traced to structural fatigue.

7 Feb 1954 Lockheed XF-104 Starfighter flies, predecessor to the F-104, which will become NATO's standard strike fighter.

15 Apr 1954 Boeing develops a thrust reverser that operates at 45 percent reversal.

1 Jun 1954 The C-11 steam catapult launches a Grumman Tracker from the USS Hancock.

2 Jun 1954 Convair XFY-1 Experimental VTOL fighter makes tethered flight.

22 Jun 1954 Douglas XA4D-1 Skyhawk light attack bomber flies. The craft will stay in production until 1979.

15 Jul 1954 Boeing 707 begins flight tests.

3 Aug 1954 Rolls-Royce flies its VTOL testbed.

23 Aug 1954 Lockheed YC-130 Hercules turboprop assault transport makes its maiden flight.

29 Sep 1954 McDonnell F-101A Voodoo long-range escort and tactical fighter flies.

6 Oct 1954 Fairey Delta FD.2 supersonic delta-wing research airplane flies and will later support development of the Concorde.

2 Nov 1954 Convair XFY-1 takes off vertically, moves into horizontal flight, and lands vertically.

10 Dec 1954 Lt. Col. John Stapp rides the rocket sled at Holloman AFB to 632 mph, then stops abruptly, subjecting him to 40 g.

23 Dec 1954 The Air Force, Navy, and NACA begin development of a hypersonic research plane to become the X-15.

21 Jan 1955 Hiller Helicopter Inc.'s solo helicopter, the Flying Platform, flies.

10 May 1955 GE's XJ79 turbojet engine is tested on a North American B-45 testbed.

27 May 1955 French Sud Aviation SE-210 Caravelle medium-range transport flies.

7 Jun 1955 Douglas Aircraft announces its intention to build the jet-propelled DC-8.

9 Jun 1955 Lockheed announces plans to build the four-engine turboprop Electra.

11 Nov 1955 Bell X-2 supersonic research plane flies, powered by a Curtiss-Wright XLR25-CW-1 throttlable rocket engine.

5 Mar 1956 NACA engineers A.J. Eggers And C.A. Syvertson present the concept of compression lift for supersonic aircraft.

27 May 1956 The Soviet Tupolev Tu-104 twin jet airliner debuts at the Zurich air show.

28 Jun 1956 Roll-Royce Tyne turboprop engine completes first in-flight tests.

7 Sep 1956 North American Aviation Inc. awards Reaction Motors Inc. a contract to develop the XLR-99 Pioneer rocket engine for the X-15 rocket research airplane.

2 Nov 1956 Navy awards Western Electric a contract to develop a nuclear carrier, which will become the USS Enterprise.

19 Feb 1957 Bell X-14 VTOL jet makes a hovering flight.

27 Oct 1957 The first Boeing 707-120 comes off the assembly line.

21 Dec 1957 Boeing 707 flies.

18 Feb 1958 Arnold Engineering Development Center produces a 32,400-mph airflow through its wind tunnel.

30 May 1958 Douglas Aircraft DC-8 flies.

19 Feb 1959 Rocket Sled at Holloman AFB reaches Mach 4.1.

10 Apr 1959 Northrop T-38 supersonic trainer flies.

22 May 1959 Boeing 707-420, equipped with Rolls-Royce turbofans in place of Pratt & Whitney JT3 engines, flies.

4 Jun 1959 Republic F-105D Thunderchief Mach-2 fighter-bomber flies.

17 Sep 1959 North American X-15 flies.

27 Nov 1959 Hiller X-18 tilt-wing experimental aircraft flies.

Replica Engines

2 Dec 1959 French Dassault IV supersonic jet bomber flies.

27 Apr 1959 Bell HU-1B utility helicopter flies.

21 Oct 1960 Hawker Siddeley P.1127 Kestrel VTOL flies on a tether.

25 Oct 1960 Boeing Vertol 107 Model 2 twin-turbine tandem-rotor helicopter flies.

15 Nov 1960 X-15 rocket research aircraft flies with Reaction Motors' XLR-99 engine.

25 Jan 1961 Kaman H-43 flies using fiberglass rotors.

13 Mar 1961 Hawker Siddeley P.1127 Kestrel VTOL flies.

20 Apr 1961 Bell Rocket Belt makes its first flight.

1 Jun 1961 Breguet 941 STOL flies.

9 Jul 1961 Soviet Union flies the MiG-21, the MiG-23, Tupolev Tu-28, Yakovlev Yak-25, and Myasishchev M-52 delta wing bomber at the Tushino airshow, surprising westerners with its capabilities.

14 Apr 1962 Stainless steel Bristol Type 188 supersonic aircraft flies.

2 May 1962 J.C. Wimpenny, a de Havilland aerodynamicist, pedals an aircraft through the air for more than a mile.

29 Jun 1962 Vickers VC-10 jet transport flies, with "T" tail and engines mounted to the fuselage.

24 Nov 1962 General Dynamics and Grumman are named prime contractors for the F-111 tactical fighter.

14 Dec 1962 North American X-15 exceeds Mach 5 on its 75th flight.

18 Apr 1963 Northrop tests laminar flow control system.

20 Aug 1963 British BAC-1-11 short-to-medium range jetliner flies.

17 Dec 1963 Lockheed C-141A Starlifter military transport flies.

1 May 1964 BAC 221 research aircraft flies. It will serve as a test bed for Concorde SST development.

16 Jul 1964 Boeing announces its intention to build the 737 short-haul jetliner.

16 Jul 1964 Ryan XV-5A fan-in-wing VTOL flies.

29 Sep 1964 XC-142 tiltrotor makes first conventional takeoff.

20 Nov 1964 Heinkel and VFW agree to merge in West Germany.

21 Dec 1964 General Dynamics completes flight test of the F-111A fighter-bomber.

29 Dec 1964 XC-142 tiltrotor makes first hover.

6 Jan 1965 F-111A changes its swing wings while airborne.

11 Jan 1965 XC-142 transitions from vertical to horizontal flight and back.

6 Apr 1965 The British government stops development of the TSR.2 strike aircraft.

15 Apr 1965 French Sud Aviation SA.330 helicopter flies.

7 Sep 1965 Bell 209 Huey Cobra attack helicopter flies.

30 Sep 1965 Lockheed wins contract to build the C-5A military transport.

17 Mar 1966 Bell X-22A V/STOL flies.

12 Jun 1966 Dassault Mirage IIIF2 tactical combat jet aircraft flies.

2 Jan 1967 Boeing wins contract for the U.S.'s first supersonic transport, with GE supplying the engines.

8 Feb 1967 Saab 37 Viggen fighter flies.

9 Apr 1967 Boeing 737 flies.

19 Apr 1967 Shareholders approve the merger of McDonnell and Douglas.

30 Jun 1967 BAC 111 Series 500 passenger jet flies.

27 Jul 1967 Boeing 727-200 trijet flies.

3 Oct 1967 North American X-15A-12 reaches Mach 6.72.

28 Dec 1967 Hawker Siddeley Harrier V/STOL production version flies.

30 Jun 1968 Lockheed C-5A Galaxy military jet transport flies.

23 Jan 1969 Northrop contracts to build 201 fuselage assemblies for the Boeing 747.

9 Feb 1969 Boeing 747 flies.

2 Mar 1969 Sud Aviation and British Aircraft Concorde SST flies.

29 Aug 1970 McDonnell Douglass DC-10 wide-body jetliner flies.

19 Oct 1970 First Indian-built MiG-21 delivered to the Indian Air Force.

20 Oct 1970 NASA tests its hypersonic engine to Mach 7.4.

24 Nov 1970 North American Rockwell T-2C advanced trainer flies with a supercritical wing.

18 Dec 1970 Aerospatiale, Deutsche-Airbus, and Fokker-VFW form Airbus Industrie to produce the A300B jetliner.

21 Dec 1970 Grumman F-14A Tomcat long-range interceptor flies.

8 May 1971 Dassault Mirage G8 fighter flies.

14 Jul 1970 VFW-Fokker VFW 614 short-range airliner flies.

28 Feb 1972 McDonnell Douglas DC-10 Series 20 jetliner flies.

22 Mar 1972 FAA certifies the Rolls-Royce RB.21122C, readying it for the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar.

23 Mar 1972 FAA certifies the GE CF6-50A high bypass turbofan

27 Oct 1972 Beechcraft Model 200 Super King Air flies.

30 Oct 1972 Airbus A300B1 flies.

10 Nov 1972 North American Rockwell becomes Rockwell International.

27 Mar 1973 NASA Langley purchases the Boeing 737-100 for flight systems research.

28 Jun 1973 Driver Richard Petty tests water-cooled helmet for NASA Ames.

30 Jul 1973 McDonnell Douglas directors opt out of the DC-10 twin project, leaving the short- to medium-range twin-engine widebody market open to the Airbus consortium.

1 Nov 1973 NASA flies a General Dynamics F-111 equipped with a supercritical wing.

2 Feb 1974 General Dynamics YF-16 jet fighter flies.

9 Jun 1974 Northrop YF-17 prototype fighter flies.

2 Oct 1974 GE engineer Roy Anderson demonstrates precursor to the global positioning system.

11 Oct 1974 NASA Langley flies a Piper Seneca with supercritical wing.

23 Oct 1974 Lockheed delivers C-130 transporter with boron-epoxy composite wing to Air Force.

23 Dec 1974 Rockwell International B-1 bomber flies.

26 Dec 1974 Long-range Airbus A300B4 flies.

4 Jul 1975 Boeing 747SP flies.

21 Oct 1975 Fairchild Republic A-10A anti-tank aircraft flies.

20 Jan 1976 Modified Vought A-7D Corsair II attack bomber, with graphite, boron, and epoxy composite wing, flies.

24 Mar 1976 General Dynamics CCV-F16 fly-by-wire research aircraft flies.

13 Apr 1977 Aerospatiale/Lockheed T-33 supercritical wing test bed flies.

3 May 1977 Bell XV-15 tilt rotor flies.

7 Jul 1977 NASA awards Boeing test program for composite elevators.

28 Aug 1977 Human-powered Gossamer Condor flies a figure eight and wins its first Kremer prize.

12 Aug 1977 Free flight test of the Space Shuttle Enterprise.

10 Apr 1978 Sikorsky S-27 rotor systems research aircraft flies.

17 Aug 1978 Double Eagle II balloon crosses the Atlantic Ocean.

18 Nov 1978 McDonnell Douglas-Northrop F/A-18 jet fighter flies.

12 Jun 1978 Human-powered Gossamer Albatross crosses English Channel and wins a second Kremer Prize.

27 Jul 1979 Remote controlled High Maneuverability Aircraft Technology vehicle flies.

7 Aug 1980 Solar-powered Gossamer Penguin flies.

18 Jun 1981 Lockheed F-117A stealth fighter flies.

19 Feb 1982 Boeing 757 flies.

3 Apr 1982 Airbus A310 flies.

23 Dec 1986 Voyager flies around the world without refueling.

22 Feb 1987 Airbus A320, with fly-by-wire controls, flies.

17 Jul 1989 B-2 stealth bomber flies.

21 Dec 1989 1.3 million-lb. Antonov An-225 Mriya flies.

30 Sep 1990 YF-22 advanced tactical fighter flies.

2 Nov 1992 Computer-aided designed Airbus A330 flies.

12 Jun 1994 Computer-aided designed Boeing 777 flies.

29 Mar 1996 Lockheed Martin Darkstar reconnaissance drone flies.

Mar 1997 Remote controlled, electrically powered helicopter, Solid State Rotor System, flies.

7 Sep 1997 Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor fighter flies.

4 Feb 1998 Boeing 777-300 flies.

31 Jan 1998 De Havilland Bombardier Dash 8-400 flies.

28 Feb 1998 Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical reconnaissance drone flies.

Dec 1998 Solar-powered Centurion flies.

29 Mar 1999 Breitling Orbiter 3 balloon flies nonstop around the world.

5 Apr 2000 All-composite Adarn Aircraft Industries M-309 introduced.

24 Oct 2000 Lockheed Martin X-35A Joint Strike Fighter flies.

23 Apr 2001 Airbus A340-600 flies.

Jun 2001 Scaled Composites Proteus flies.

24 Oct 2001 Lockheed Martin wins Joint Strike Fighter contract.

30 Jul 2002 University of Queensland Centre for Hypersonics achieves supersonic combustion in a scramjet while in atmospheric flight.

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