Aviator Elizabeth “Bessie” Coleman was born on January 26, 1892, in Atlanta, Texas. The first female African American aviator, she achieved her dream of becoming a pilot during a time when most African Americans would not have even considered learning to fly.
On December 17, 1903, brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first successful heavier-than-air flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
On December 1, 1941, the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), was established in Washington, DC. Unpaid volunteers formed the Civil Air Patrol, using privately owned aircraft and their own funds to support the military.
Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr was born on November 18, 1923, in Derry, New Hampshire. He was the first American (second person after Yuri Gagarin) to travel into space and the fifth person to walk on the Moon.
On July 23, 1973, Eddie Rickenbacker died in Züruch, Switzerland. As a World War I flying ace, he shot down 22 enemy planes and four balloons.
General of the Air Force Henry “Hap” Arnold was born on June 25, 1886, in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania. He was an early supporter of military air power, and later became the Air Force’s first five-star general.
On June 22, 1946, US Airmail was carried by jet for the first time. The flight was part of an event to showcase how GE’s aviation products could positively impact people’s lives and the future.
Jacqueline Cochran was born Bessie Lee Pittman on May 11, 1906, in Pensacola, Florida. The first woman to fly faster than the speed of sound, she held more speed, altitude, and distance records than any other pilot, male or female, in the world.
On May 8, 1911, the US Navy purchased its first airplane. This date is celebrated as the birth of US naval aviation.