1895 – Birth of Paul Frank Baer, American World War I flying ace who scored the first aerial victory ever for U.S. military aviation.
1918 – First unqualified air combat victory at night against another aeroplane takes place, when two Sopwith Camels of the Royal Air Force No. 44 Squadron (formed the previous year) shoot down a German Gotha bomber during a raid on London.
1932 – Imperial Japanese Navy seaplanes from the seaplane carrier Notoro attack Nationalist Chinese military positions in Shanghai, China, beginning Japanese air operations in the Shanghai Incident. The operations, which will continue into February, are the first significant military air operations to take place in East Asia.
1959 – The first jet passenger service across the U.S. is begun by American Airlines using Boeing 707s.
1988 –A Boeing 747SP owned by United Airlines starts an around-the-world air speed record from Seattle, Wash. The Friendship Foundation was established and all money went to children’s charities. A ticket on the flight cost $5,000 and in total, the flight raised more than $500,000.
2005 – Nonstop flights between mainland China and Taiwan take off for the first time since 1949.
