
Pioneers


17 June 1910 – first flight of powered aircraft built by Aurel Vlaicu, Romanian aviation pioneer
On 17th June 1910, Vlaicu I, an aircraft built by Aurel Vlaicu, performed its maiden flight near Cotroceni Hill (Dealul Cotroceni) in Bucharest. It was the very first flight of a powered aeroplane in Romania […]

10 June 1913 – Marcel Brindejonc des Moulinais performed a long-distance flight, awarded with Coupe Pommery
On 10th June 1913, Marcel Brindejonc des Moulinais performed a flight from Paris Villacoublay to Warsaw, in a Morane-Saulnier H monoplane. He covered 1,382 kilometres, winning the Pommery Cup for the longest flight made in […]

20 May 1784 – first women to ascend in a tethered balloon
On 20th May 1784, Marchioness and Countess de Montalembert, Countess de Podenas and Miss Lagarde ascended in a tethered balloon of the Montgolfier system and therefore they became the first women ever to fly. In […]

13 May 1930 – Jean Mermoz completed the first south transatlantic postal flight
On 13th May 1930, Jean Mermoz, French aviation pioneer, opened the south transatlantic postal line, from Saint-Louis in Senegal to Natal, Brazil, flying in Latécoère 28 floatplane. Jean Mermoz was born on 9th December 1901 […]

Mihajlo Petrović – Serbian aviation pioneer
In March of this year, it will be 109 years since the death of Mihajlo Petrović, the first Serbian pilot, one of the first Serbian military aviators, as well as one of the first pilots […]

21 January 1885 – Umberto Nobile is born
On 21st January 1885, Italian aviation pioneer and designer, as well as famous explorer of the Arctic areas, was born in Lauro, Italy. Umberto Nobile became famous thanks to his technical skills and passion for […]

7 January 1785 – first balloon crossing of the English Channel
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. Since the childhood, […]

12 November 1906 – the first officially observed flight in Europe
On 12th November 1906, Alberto Santos-Dumont performed a series of public flights, in one of them covering a distance of 200 metres. That was the very first flight officially observed by the FAI and, in […]

22 October 1909 – Raymonde de Laroche, the first female pilot
On 22nd October 1909, Raymonde de Laroche became the first woman ever to pilot a heavier-than-air, powered aircraft and also the first female pilot that performed a solo flight. Élisa Léontine Deroche, as that was […]