100 Years of Naval Aviation

CoNA 1A/1B:

November 14, 1910 - In the first take-off from a ship, Eugene Ely, a civilian pilot, took off in a 50-hp Curtiss plane from a wooden platform built on the bow of the USS Birmingham (CL 2), a converted collier.  The ship was at anchor in Hampton Roads, Virginia, and Ely landed safely on Willoughby Spit.

CoNA 2/3:

First Shipboard Aircraft Landing, Jan 18, 1911 - Civilian pilot Eugene Ely becomes the first person to ever land an aircraft on board a ship, flying a Curtiss pusher onto a makeshift wooden platform constructed on the armored cruiser Pennsylvania in San Francisco Bay.

CoNA 4:

The Navy's First Aircraft, Jul 1, 1911 - The Navy's first aircraft, the A-1 Triad, makes its maiden flight from Keuka Lake at Hammondsport, New York.

CoNA 5:

The First Launch, 12 November 1912 - The first launch of a naval aviator and naval aircraft took place from a catapult mounted on a barge at the Washington Navy Yard.  On 12 November 1912, Lieutenant Gordon “Spuds” Ellyson, Naval Aviator #1, made the first successful launch of an airplane by catapult in the Curtiss AH-3.

CoNA 6:

Birthday of Marine Corps Aviation, May 22, 1912 - First Lieutenant Alfred Cunningham, USMC, reports to Greenbury Point, Maryland, for flight training, marking the birth of Marine Corps Aviation.

CoNA 7:

Birthday of Coast Guard Aviation, Mar 30, 1916 - Second Lieutenant Charles Sugden and Third Lieutenant Elmer F Stone become the first two Coast Guard aviators assigned to flight instruction.

CoNA 8:

Naval Aviation’s First Fighter Ace, Sep 24, 1918 - Lieutenant Junior Grade David S. Ingalls shoots down his fifth enemy aircraft over the Western Front, becoming U.S. Naval Aviation's first fighter ace.

CoNA 9:

Consolidated NY seaplane commences a training flight, 1930’s - The Consolidated NY served as the Navy's most widely used primary trainer during the 1920s and early-1930s. The last example did not disappear from the Navy's aircraft inventory until 1939, signifying the aircraft's long service in the Reserves during the late-1930s.

CoNA 10:

Navy’s First Aircraft Carrier, Mar 20, 1922 - The U.S. Navy commissions its first aircraft carrier, USS Langley (CV-1).

CoNA 11:

First Arrested Landing on board a U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier, Oct 26, 1922 - Lieutenant Commander Godfrey de Courcelles Chevalier records the first arrested landing on board a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, USS Langley.

CoNA 12:

Aeromarine 39-B Airplane, 19 October 1922 - Approaching the flight deck of USS Langley (CV-1) during landing practice.

CoNA 13:

Circa 1920, Photograph of unidentified airman wearing a winter flying suit, leather helmet, and goggles.

CoNA 14:

USS Saratoga Flight Deck, circa 1929-30 - Aircraft on the flight deck, preparing for launching. Planes in the foreground are Boeing F3B-1 fighters. In the background are fifteen Martin T4M-1 torpedo planes, of Torpedo Squadron Two (VT-2B).

CoNA 15:

First Marine Air Units Integrate Into Fleet Organization, Nov 2, 1931 - The first Marine air units integrate into a fleet organization when Marine Scouting Squadrons 14-M and 15-M deploy aboard the Saratoga (CV-3) and Lexington (CV-2), respectively.

CoNA 16:

USS Macon, circa Summer 1933 - USS Macon (ZRS-5) flying over New York Harbor. The Navy’s lighter than air ships were typically designated “United States Ship” and piloted by Naval Aviators.  The southern end of Manhattan Island is visible in the lower left center.

CoNA 17:

Curtiss SOC-1, 2 July 1939 - Curtiss SOC-1 scout-observation aircraft in flight.

CoNA 18:

The Battle of the Coral Sea, May 7, 1942 to May 8, 1942 - U.S. Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carriers square off in the Battle of the Coral Sea, the first naval engagement in which ships of the opposing forces are not within sight of one another.

CoNA 19:

F4F-4 Wildcat, 10 April 1942 - Grumman F4F-4 “Wildcat” fighter, of Fighting Squadron Six (VF-6) has its six .50 caliber machine guns tested on the flight deck of USS Enterprise (CV-6).

CoNA 20:

The Battle of Midway, Jun 3, 1942 to Jun 6, 1942 - U.S. Navy carrier aircraft sink four Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carriers and a Japanese heavy cruiser, offensive blows that lead to victory in the decisive Battle of Midway, a turning point in WWII.

CoNA 21:

USS Essex, May 1943 - Photographed from a blimp from squadron ZP-14.  Among the aircraft parked on her flight deck are 24 SBD scout bombers (parked aft), about 11 F6F fighters (parked in after part of the midships area) and about 18 TBF/TBM torpedo planes (parked amidships).

CoNA 22:

Gilberts Operation – Hellcat, 20 November 1943 - A Grumman F6F-3 “Hellcat” fighter makes condensation rings as it awaits the take-off flag aboard USS Yorktown (CV-10). The plane is from Fighting Squadron Five (VF-5).  Yorktown was then hitting targets in the Marshall Islands to cover the landings in the Gilberts.

CoNA 23:

Bogue Class Carrier, 1943 - Starboard three quarters view of an unidentified Bogue-class escort carrier with SBD Dauntless dive-bombers and F4F Wildcat fighters on the flight deck.

CoNA 24:

First Carrier-Based Marine Air Support of a Combat Amphibious Assault, Feb 19, 1945 - The first carrier-based Marine air support of a combat amphibious assault, D-Day Iwo Jima.

CoNA 25:

Martin Mauler AM-1Q, 25 Apr to 29 Apr 1949 - AM1Q from Composite Squadron Four (VC-4) on the flight deck of USS Kearsarge (CV-33), with vapor rings from the propeller, during the qualification cruise near Atlantic City.

CoNA 26:

Landing Signal Officer (LSO), circa 1945 - A Landing Signal Officer (LSO) on board an escort carrier waves a TBM Avenger aboard.

CoNA 27:

First Combat Vertical Assault, Sep 21, 1951 - The first combat vertical assault as HMR-161, flying HRS-1 helicopters fly Marines into combat positions in support of fighting near the ‘Punchbowl,’ during the Korean War.

CoNA 28:

AD-4 Skyraider, circa 1958 -  AD-4 of Attack Squadron Seven Hundred Twenty-Eight (VA-728), also later known as VA-155, on the deck of CV-36 (USS Antietam) in Korean waters.

CoNA 29:

F9F-8 Cougar, 26 November 1956 - Sidewinder missiles pictured on the wing of an F9F-8 Cougar during a test flight at Naval Ordnance Test Station (NOTS) China Lake, California.

CoNA 30:

First American to Orbit the Earth, Feb 20, 1962 - LTCOL John H. Glenn, Jr., USMC, becomes the first American to orbit the earth.

CoNA 31:

USS Coral Sea (CVA-43) steams past USS Ranger (CVA-61) in the South China Sea, 24 March 1965 -

Two carriers operate together during the early days of the air campaign against North Vietnam.  Aircraft in the foreground is a North American RA-5C "Vigilante" reconnaissance plane (Bureau # 149313). Planes parked beyond it include McDonnell F-4B "Phantom II" fighters and Douglas A-1 "Skyraider" attack aircraft.

CoNA 32:

Moon Landing, Jul 20, 1969 - Astronaut Neil Armstrong, a Naval Aviator, becomes the first human to set foot on the surface of the moon.

CoNA 33:

USS Midway CVA-41, 5 August 1970 - A Flight Deck Director signals an F-4 “Phantom II” fighter into position on the starboard catapult, in preparation for launching.

CoNA 34:

VSTOL TacAir is Introduced Into Marine Corps, Jan 27, 1971 - Vertical/Short Takeoff & Landing (VSTOL) tactical aircraft are introduced into Marine Corps when VMA-513 receives the first Marine Corps AV-8A ‘Harrier’.

CoNA 35:

First Woman Naval Aviator, Feb 22, 1974 - LTJG Barbara Ann Allen becomes the first woman to be designated a naval aviator.

CoNA 36:

USS Nimitz Commissioned, May 3, 1975 - USS Nimitz (CVN-68) commissioned, becoming the first in its class of modern aircraft carriers. The 10 Nimitz class aircraft carriers are the largest warships in the world, each designed for an approximately 50 year service life with one mid-life refueling.  Ships in this class are USS Nimitz (CVN 68), USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), USS George Washington (CVN 73), USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) and

USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77).

CoNA 37:

F-14As Shoot Down Sukhoi Su-22 Fighters, Aug 19, 1981 - Two F-14As from VF-41 aboard USS Nimitz shot down two Libyan Sukhoi Su-22 fighters over international waters in the Gulf of Sidra.

CoNA 38:

Airborne Refueling, 20 February 1991 - While en route from the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) to targets in Iraq and Kuwait during "Operation Desert Storm", five LTV A-7E Corsair aircraft from attack squadron VA-72 Blue Hawks and a Grumman A-6E Intruder aircraft from attack squadron VA-75 Sunday Punchers rendezvous with a U.S. Air National Guard Boeing KC-135E Stratotanker for in-flight refueling on.

CoNA 39:

Aboard USS Abraham Lincoln, Jan. 26, 2001 - An F-14D "Tomcat" from the "Tomcatters" of Fighter Squadron Three One (VF-31) flies over the Landing Signal Officer (LSO) platform aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) after returning from a successful proficiency flight.

CoNA 40:

Humanitarian Aid and Relief to Indonesia, Dec 26, 2004 - When an underwater earthquake triggered a tsunami in Southeast Asia, twenty-four Navy ships responded with humanitarian aid and relief to Indonesia. Helicopter elements aboard several ships were critical to providing at assistance, notably USS Abraham Lincoln’s HSL-47 and HS-2.

CoNA 41:

The First Tilt-Rotor Combat Mission, Oct 13, 2007 - The first tilt-rotor combat mission is conducted when VMM-263 flies the MV-22 ‘Osprey’ in Operation Iraqi Freedom mission in Iraq.

CoNA 42:

The F-35 Lightning II, 2010 - The F-35 represents the future of Naval Aviation as the next-generation Strike Fighter.  Variants for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Air Force are currently under development.