On This Day in Aviation History

On This Day in Aviation History

1879 – On a trip in high winds from East St. Louis, Ill., over Lake Michigan, American balloonist John Wise disappears with his balloon “Pathfinder.” Both remain missing.

1894 – Birth of Antonio Amantea, Italian World War I flying ace.

1927 – The first solo flight from England to South Africa is completed when Lt. Dick Bently of the South African Air Force arrives in the Dark Continent in a de Havilland DH.60X Moth.

1955 – Death of Lionel Wilmot Brabazon Rees, Welsh World War I flying ace.

1955 – First flight of the CASA C-207 Azor, a Spanish twin-engine transport, a scaled-up version of the CASA C-202 Halcón.

2000 – A U.S. Navy Beechcraft T-34C Turbo-Mentor (similar shown) crashes in a hayfield in Baldwin County near Silverhill, Ala., killing both crew, flight instructor Lt. James S. McComber and student pilot U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Alex Velkov, a USAF navigator.

Updated: May 1, 2018 — 2:14 PM
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