On 16th June 1963, Vostok 6 spacecraft was launched from Baikonur cosmodrome, with just one cosmonaut on board – Valentina Tereshkova, who became the first woman in space. Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova was born in 1937, […]
On 2nd June 1910, Charles Rolls made a non-stop double crossing of the English Channel with a Wright aeroplane. Charles Steward Rolls, the British aviation and motoring pioneer, was born on 27th August 1877 in […]
On 31st March 1990, prototype of R44 helicopter performed its maiden flight. The Robinson R44 was developed in the 1980s by Robinson Helicopter Company. It was based on the manufacturer´s previous successful rotorcraft design, Robinson […]
On 10th March 1925, the British military reconnaissance flying boat Supermarine Southampton performed its first flight. In the mid-1920s, the British authorities were hopelessly looking for new flying boats for military service. At that time, […]
On 3rd March 1912, Avro 500 military utility biplane designed by A.V. Roe, performed its maiden flight. Alliott Verdon Roe, the British aircraft manufacturer and pioneer pilot, started his aviation career in the early 1900s, […]
On 24th February 1935, the first prototype of German heavy bomber Heinkel He 111 performed its maiden flight at Rostock-Marienehe. The Heinkel He 111 bomber and its development can serve as an example of German […]
On 10th February 1967, the prototype of West German vertical take-off and landing (VTOL), jet-powered transport aircraft, performed its first flight. In the 1960s and 1970s, development of vertical or short take-off and landing, jet-powered […]
On 27th January 1939, prototype of twin piston-engine fighter aircraft XP-38 performed its maiden flight, by test pilot Benjamin S. Kelsey. The P-38 fighter was created in response to the United States Army Air Corps […]
On 20th January 1974, during a high-speed taxi test with prototype of YF-16 fighter aircraft, its test pilot Phil Oestricher was forced to take-off to avoid a potential crash. The first, although unofficial, flight of […]
On 7th January 1785, Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries performed the very first successful balloon flight across the English Channel (La Manche), covering the route from Dover Castle to Guînes (Guisines), Pas-de-Calais. (full story here) […]
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