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This is a list of aviation-related events from 1951:
[edit] Events
[edit] January
[edit] February
- February 21 - an English Electric Canberra becomes the first jet to make an unrefuelled crossing of the Atlantic, taking 4 hours 37 minutes
- The United States Navy tank landing ship USS LST-799, fitted with a miniature flight deck, begins operations off Wonsan, Korea, with a detachment of two HO3S helicopters from Utility Helicopter Squadron 1 (UH-1). She becomes the first U.S. Navy ship to operate in the role of a helicopter carrier.[7]
- March 2 – U.S. Navy AD Skyraiders of Attack Squadron 195 (VA-195) from the aircraft carrier USS Princeton (CV-37) begin a lengthy series of raids against a railroad bridge across a deep ravine south of Kilchu, Korea. By the time the raids end in early April, the bridge will have been destroyed and enemy attempts to repair it will have been defeated.[8]
- March 6 – The Martin aircraft company gains production rights to the English Electric Canberra as the B-57
- March 15 – A Qantas flying boat makes a survey flight from Sydney (Australia) to Valparaíso (Chile) via Easter Island (Eastern Pacific region), a first flight of this type across the South Pacific.
- March 21 – Flying a U.S. Navy F9F Panther of Fighter Squadron 191 (VF-191) from the aircraft carrier USS Princeton (CV-37), Ensign Floryan "Frank" Sobieski is blinded by enemy ground fire over Korea. Guided and encouraged by his wingman, Lieutenant junior grade Pat Murphy, and assisted by Princeton's landing signal officer, Sobieski lands safely aboard Princeton without being able to see. He later recovers full vision.[9]
- March 27 – An Air Transport Charter Douglas Dakota 3 crashes shortly after takeoff from Ringway Airport in Manchester, England, during a snowstorm, killing four of the six people on board.
- April 1 – U.S. Navy carrier-based jets are used as fighter-bombers for the first time as F9F Panthers of Fighter Squadron 191 (VF-191) aboard USS Princeton (CV-37) attack a railroad bridge near Songjin, Korea, with 100- and 250-pound (45- and 113-kg) bombs.[9]
- April 12 – 48 U.S. Air Force B-29 Superfortress bombers attack the Sinuiju Railway Bridge on the Yalu River.
- April 21 – Four Yak-9 fighters attack two U.S. Marine Corps F4U Corsairs of Marine Fighter Squadron 312 (VMF-312) near Chinnampo, Korea. Marine Captain Philip C. DeLong shoots down two of them, while his wingman, Lieutenant H. Deigh, destroys one and damages the fourth.[10]
- April 25 – Cubana de Aviación Flight 493, a Douglas DC-4, collides in mid-air with a U.S. Navy SNB-1 Kansan on an instrument training flight near Naval Air Station Key West in Key West, Florida. Both planes crash, killing all 39 people on board the DC-4 and the entire four-man crew of the SNB-1.
- The United States Air Force takes delivery of its first F-84G Thunderjet,[13] the first fighter with a built-in aerial refueling probe, the first single-seat aircraft capable of carrying a nuclear bomb, and the last straight-wing aircraft to enter U.S. Air Force service.[13]
- June 1 – British European Airways commences helicopter services between London and Birmingham
- June 5 – The U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps begin Operation Strangle, a day-and-night air interdiction campaign against enemy roads, bridges, and tunnels across the width of the Korean Peninsula between 38 degrees 15 minutes North and 39 degrees 15 minutes North. It will continue until February 1952, but without the success hoped for it.[14]
- June 20 – The first aircraft completely designed and built in Canada, the first example of the Avro Canada CF-100 Mk 2 Canuck, flies for the first time.[15]
- June 22 – The Pan American World Airways Lockheed L-049 Constellation Clipper Great Republic, operating as Flight 151, crashes into a hill near Sanoyie, Liberia, killing all 40 people on board.
- June 30 – The Douglas DC-6 Mainliner Overland Trail, operating as United Airlines Flight 610, crashes into Crystal Mountain, 50 miles (80 km) north-northwest of Denver, Colorado, killing all 50 people on board.
- The world's first trials of a steam catapult take place aboard the British aircraft carrier HMS Perseus.[16]
- No. 25 Squadron Royal Air Force becomes the world's first jet night-fighter squadron when it takes delivery of the de Havilland Vampire NF10 night fighter.
- Covered by the British light cruiser Kenya and frigate HMS Cardigan Bay (K630), a U.S. Navy landing craft equipped with a special crane recovers the pieces of a MiG-15 that had crashed near Cho-do in northwestern Korea.[17]
- July 3 – United States Navy Lieutenant junior grade John K. Koelsch and his crewman, Aviation Mate Third Class George M. Neal, are shot down in an HO3S helicopter by enemy ground fire while trying to rescue United States Marine Corps Captain James V. Wilkins, who had been shot down behind enemy lines and was badly burned. Koelsch and Neal rig a litter to carry Wilkins out of the area, but eventually are captured on July 12, and Koelsch dies on October 16, 1951, while in captivity. For his actions, Koelsch posthumously becomes the first helicopter pilot to receive the Medal of Honor.[18]
- July 6 – Aerial refueling is used under combat conditions for the first time, with a KB-29 Superfortress tanker refueling four RF-80 Shooting Star reconnaissance aircraft over North Korea
- July 21 – Flying in heavy rain, icing conditions, and limited visibility, the Canadian Pacific Air Lines Douglas DC-4 CF-CPC disappears during a United Nations flight from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, to Anchorage, Territory of Alaska, in the United States with 37 people on board. No wreckage or bodies are ever found.
[edit] August
- The Royal Navy's first operational jet aircraft squadron, No. 800 Squadron, takes delivery of its first jets, Supermarine Attackers.[19]
- The Canadian Blue Devils aerobatic team is disbanded.
- August 1 - Japan Air Lines is formed.
- August 7 - Bill Bridgeman sets a new airspeed record in the Douglas Skyrocket of Mach 1.88 (1,245 mph, 1,992 km/h).
- August 15 - Bill Bridgeman sets a new altitude record in the Douglas Skyrocket of 74,494 ft (22,706 m).
- August 15 - British European Airways commences the world's first turboprop freight services using a modified Douglas DC-3 fitted with two Rolls-Royce Dart engines.
- August 22 - The aircraft carrier USS Essex (CV-9) joins Task Force 77 off the northeast coast of Korea. Embarked aboard Essex is Fighter Squadron 172 (VF-172), equipped with F2H-2 Banshee fighters. It is the first deployment of the Banshee to a war zone.[20]
- August 24 – United Airlines Flight 615, a Douglas DC-6B, crashes into Tolman Peak near Decoto, California, killing all 50 people on board.
- August 25 - For the first time in the Korean War, U.S. Navy fighters escort U.S. Air Force B-29 Superfortress bombers as F9F Panthers of Fighter Squadron 51 (VF-51) and F2H-2 Banshees of Fighter Squadron 172 (VF-172) from the aircraft carrier USS Essex (CV-9) cover B-29s on a raid on Rashin, Korea. They encounter no enemy aircraft.[21]
[edit] September
[edit] October
- Based on information supplied by Korean guerrillas, eight AD Skyraiders from U.S. Navy Fighter Squadron 54 (VF-54) attack a meeting place of Communist leaders in Korea with 1,000-pound (454-kg) bombs and napalm. Intelligence evaluation indicates that hundreds of Communists are killed.[23]
- A U.S. Navy helicopter from the battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) flies 10 miles (16 km) inland to rescue a downed pilot from the aircraft carrier USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31), a very lengthy rescue mission for the time.[24]
- Communist aircraft inflict significant damage on the Royal Navy frigate HMS Black Swan while she is operating in the Han River in Korea.[25]
- October 3 - Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron 1 (HS-1), the U.S. Navy's first anti-submarine warfare helicopter squadron, is commissioned.
- October 23 - Ten U.S. Air Force Boeing B-29 Superfortresses attack an airfield in North Korea; three are shot down, four make emergency landings in South Korea, and three badly damaged aircraft return to Okinawa. It is the last daylight combat mission flown by the B-29.
- October 25 - Japan Airlines launches commercial operations within Japan, using three Northwest Airlines Martin 2-0-2 aircraft flown by Northwest crews. [26]
[edit] November
[edit] December
[edit] First flights
[edit] January
[edit] February
[edit] August
[edit] September
[edit] October
[edit] November
[edit] December
[edit] Entered service
[edit] February
[36]
[edit] August
[edit] October
[edit] December
[edit] References
- ^ Crosby, Francis, The Complete Guide to Fighters & Bombers of the World: An Illustrated History of the World's Greatest Military Aircraft, From the Pioneering Days of Air Fighting in World War I Through the Jet Fighters and Stealth Bombers of the Present Day, London: Anness Publishing Ltd., 2006, ISBN 978-1-84476-917-9, p. 47.
- ^ A History of Coast Guard Aviation: The Growth Years (1939-1956)
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 108.
- ^ Sturtivant, Ray, British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917-1990, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, ISBN 0-87021-026-2, p. 182.
- ^ Mauer, Maurer, Air Force Combat Units of World War II: The Concise official Military Record, Edison, New Jersey: Chartwell Books, 1961, ISBN 978-0-7858-0194-8, p. 12.
- ^ Crosby, Francis, The Complete Guide to Fighters & Bombers of the World: An Illustrated History of the World's Greatest Military Aircraft, From the Pioneering Days of Air Fighting in World War I Through the Jet Fighters and Stealth Bombers of the Present Day, London: Anness Publishing Ltd., 2006, ISBN 978-1-84476-917-9, p. 37.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 47-48.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 42-43.
- ^ a b Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 40.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 40-41.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 43.
- ^ Polmar, Norman, "The Versatile, Durable Skyraider", Naval History, October 2011, p. 16.
- ^ a b Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, ISBN 978-0-517-56588-9, p. 399.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 40, 44.
- ^ a b Donald, David, ed., The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft, New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, ISBN 978-0-7607-0592-6, p. 88.
- ^ Sturtivant, Ray, British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917-1990, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, ISBN 0-87021-026-2, p. 216.
- ^ Muir, Malcolm, Jr., Sea Power on Call: Fleet Operations June 1951-July 1953, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2005, ISBN 978-0-945274-53-7, p. 10.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 48.
- ^ Thetford, Owen, British Naval Aircraft Since 1912, Sixth Edition, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1991, ISBN 1-55750-076-2, p. 25.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 49-50.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, pp. 50.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 63.
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 52.
- ^ Muir, Malcolm, Jr., Sea Power on Call: Fleet Operations June 1951-July 1953, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2005, ISBN 978-0-945274-53-7, p. 35.
- ^ Muir, Malcolm, Jr., Sea Power on Call: Fleet Operations June 1951-July 1953, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2005, ISBN 978-0-945274-53-7, p. 24.
- ^ http://www.japanair.com/e/aboutjal/history.php (Archived January 4, 2007 at the Wayback Machine)
- ^ Thetford, Owen, British Naval Aircraft Since 1912, Sixth Edition, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1991, ISBN 1-55750-076-2, p. 105.
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, ISBN 978-0-517-56588-9, p. 406.
- ^ UN Air-to-Air Victories during the Korean War, 1950-1953
- ^ Knott, Robert C., Attack From the Sky: Naval Air Operations in the Korean War, Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2004, ISBN 0-945274-53-1, p. 189.
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, ISBN 978-0-517-56588-9, p. 401.
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 304.
- ^ Swanborough, Gordon, and Peter M. Bowers, United States Navy Aircraft Since 1911, London: Putnam, 1976, ISBN 978-0-370-10054-8, p. 233.
- ^ Donald, David, ed., The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft, New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, ISBN 978-0-7607-0592-6, p. 273.
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, ISBN 978-0-517-56588-9, p. 348.
- ^ a b Donald, David, ed., The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft, New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, ISBN 978-0-7607-0592-6, p. 85.
- ^ Angelucci, Enzo, The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present, New York: Orion Books, 1987, ISBN 978-0-517-56588-9, p. 246.
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