aviation history Archives - Page 3 of 6

Last Mercury Flight

1963 NASA astronaut Gordon Cooper launched into space on the Faith 7 mission in his Mercury space capsule. Mercury-Atlas 9 was the final manned space mission of the U.S. Mercury program, launched from Launch Complex 14 at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The spacecraft, named Faith 7, completed 22 Earth orbits before splashing down in the Pacific […]

The Right Stuff — On this Day in 1959 — The World Meets the Project Mercury Astronauts

Today in 1959: NASA introduced the Project Mercury astronauts to the world. Known as the Mercury Seven or the Original Seven, they are (front row, left to right) Walter M. “Wally” Schirra Jr., Donald K. “Deke” Slayton, John H. Glenn Jr., M. Scott Carpenter, (back row) Alan B. Shepard Jr., Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom and […]

U.S. Navy Jet Fighter Lands on Aircraft Carrier using ATARI! What?!

By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Josue L. Escobosa USS Abraham Lincoln Public Affairs ATLANTIC OCEAN (NNS) — USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) was the first kid on the block to get a new ATARI. No, not the iconic gaming system from the 80s, but a system designed to remotely land aircraft on a carrier. […]

SATURN V, APOLLO 6 (AS-502) LAUNCH FROM CAPE. PAD 39A. REF: 116-KSC-68PC-59

50 Years Ago Today — Apollo 6, second unmanned test flight of Saturn V

Saturn V flies into the skies during the launch of Apollo 6, the second unmanned test flight of the Saturn V rocket, 50 years ago today. NASA caption: “The five F-1 engines of the huge Apollo/Saturn V space vehicle’s first (S-IC) stage leave a gigantic trail of flame in the sky above the Kennedy Space […]

April 2. On this Day in Aviation History

1987 – A Royal Air Force Vickers VC-10 lands in Perth 16 hours and 1 minute after leaving England, setting a new UK-Australia speed record. 1986 – A bomb explodes onboard TWA Flight 840, a Boeing 727-200 (N54340) flying from Rome to Athens. Four people are ejected from the plane and killed, and nine […]

April 2, 1942 — The Response begins — USS Hornet Leaves Port on this Day

Apr 02, 1942 — The aircraft carrier, the USS Hornet quietly departs San Francisco with Lt. Col. James Doolittle and his 16 US Army B-25 Mitchell bombers on board. This bombing mission was in response to the Japanese sneak attach on Peril Harbor on December 7, 1941. The now famous Tokyo Raid took place on […]

On this Day in Aviation History — Actor Jimmy Stewart Inducted — March 22, 1941

On March 22nd 1941, one of Hollywood’s most popular actors took on a challenging new role. James Maitland “Jimmy” Stewart was inducted into the US Army at the age of 32. As a licensed private pilot in his own right, Stewart was assigned to the Army Air Corps after basic training. On March 22nd 1944, […]

Happy Birthday Strategic Air Command! March 21, 1946

The Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a major command in the United States Air Force and a “specified command” in the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America’s land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) strategic nuclear arsenal from 1946 to 1992. SAC also […]

Magnificent Pain: The Art of the Sukhoi 31

The world of serious, unlimited aerobatics, as seen from the inside is primarily one of grunts and groans and the never ending search for better and better machines capable of illiciting said grunts and groans. Standing at the head of the search for aerobatic excellence is the Sukhoi design bureau in Moscow. For nearly thirty […]

March 9 On this Day in Aviation History — Space Shuttle Discovery makes its Last Flight

Today in 2011: Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-133) landed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center completing its 39th and final flight. The longest-serving orbiter, Discovery flew more missions than any of its sister ships, spending altogether 365 days in space. Blasting off on its 133rd mission in NASA’s Space Shuttle program; during the mission, Space Shuttle Discovery […]