1914 – Death of Gustav Hamel, pioneer British aviator, over the English Channel while returning from Paris in a new 80-hp Morane-Saulnier monoplane. 1916 – Birth of Tiberiu Vinca, Romanian World War II flying ace. 1938 – First flight of the Fiat CR.42 (shown), Italian single-seat sesquiplane fighter. 1958 – Flying a Douglas F4D-1 Skyray, U.S. Marine Corps Major Edward N. LeFaivre breaks five world climb-to-height records, […]

1905 – Birth of Ruth Blaney Alexander, U.S. female pioneer aviator. 1951 – First flight of the Vickers-Armstrongs Valiant (shown), British four-engined jet bomber, once part of the RAF’s V bomber nuclear force; it is originally developed for high-level strategic missions. 1967 – A prototype Dassault Mirage F1, French air-superiority fighter and attack aircraft, crashes due to […]

1883 – Birth of Antoine Laplasse, French pioneer aviator and World War I flying ace. 1930 – First flight of the Blériot Bl-110 nicknamed “Joseph Le Brix,” a French high-wing single-engine monoplane designed for endurance records. 1959 – The newly-formed Royal Canadian Air Force aerobatic team, the Golden Hawks, flying gold-finished North American Sabres, performs its first demonstration at […]