1893 – Birth of Karl Paul Schlegel, German World War I fighter ace and balloon-buster.
1912 – A Wright biplane, flown by U.S. Army Lt. Thomas De Witt Milling at College Park in Maryland, becomes the first airplane to be armed with a machine gun.
1917 – Royal Air Force ace Maj. Edward “Mick” Mannock claims his first (of 61) victories.
1942 – A 93-plane strike from U.S. aircraft carriers Lexington and Yorktown sinks Shōhō – the first Japanese carrier ever sunk – prompting an American dive bomber pilot to send one of World War II’s most famous radio messages, “SCRATCH ONE FLATTOP,” during the Battle of the Coral Sea.
1984 – First flight of the first Pilatus PC-9 (M model shown).
2011 – Yves “Jetman” Rossy completes an eight-minute flight along the Grand Canyon in Arizona flying his jet-propelled wing attached to his back, steering only by moving his body.
