Naval aviation

By ajkay

  • Aviation school

    Aviation school
    Pioneering pilot and plane builder Glenn Curtiss opens an aviation school on North Island, creating a training ground for many of the first military pilots, including Theodore G. Ellyson, who became Naval Aviator No. 1. Nov. 14: Under the Navy's guidance, exhibition pilot Eugene B. Ely became the first person to take off from a ship, guiding a Curtiss aircraft from the platform on the cruiser Birmingham.

  • Eugene Ely landing

    Eugene Ely landing
    Eugene Ely makes the first landing on a ship, guiding a Curtiss Pusher aircraft on to the cruiser Pennsylvania in San Francisco Bay. The flight originated on land.

  • Dauntless serves

    Dauntless serves
    View a videoThe Douglas SBD Dauntless -- widely regarded as the most important American diver bomber during the early years of World War II -- goes into service. MilitaryHistory.com says the Dauntless was, "The backbone of the US Navy's dive bomber fleet at the outbreak of World War II, the SBD Dauntless saw immediate action around the Pacific. Flying from American carriers, SBDs aided in sinking the Japanese carrier Shoho at the Battle of the Coral Sea (May 4-8, 1942).

  • Enterprise commissioned

    Enterprise commissioned
    The Navy commissions two steam-powered carriers, the Constellation and the ---. But the Navy makes a major leap that same year, commissioning the Enterprise, the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. The "Big E" dramatic expands the endurance of carriers.