Compilation of Today in Aerospace History: 12 April 2012 - First flight Tecnam 2010 Italian four seat, high wing, single engine metal & carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer light aircraft 12 April 1989 – A British Airways Concorde loses a large piece of its rudder on a flight between Christchurch and Sydney 12 April 1981 - Space shuttle Columbia STS-1 launched. It is the first reusable orbital spacecraft flight and the first flight of Columbia. 12 April 1981 - First flight of the AS80 airship, British hot-air balloon manufactured by Thunder-Colt Balloons. 12 April 1977 - First flight Silvercraft SH-200 (I-SILD), Italian 2-seater T-tail helicopter with low-set boom & large bubble windshield 12 April 1970 - First flight Polyt V single-engined, single-seat glider tug designed & built by graduates & students of Denmarks Tech Uni 12 April 1966 – First flight Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer Swiss low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft Still in service worldwide 12 April 1961 - Soviet Army Major Yuri Gagarin makes the first human spaceflight in Vostok 1, orbiting the Earth once, in 108 minutes. 12 April 1950 - Patrick Lorne Welch completes first glider (sailplane) crossing of the English Channel in a DFS 108 Weihe 12 April 1948 - de Havilland DH 108 Swallow VW120 established new World Air Speed Record of 604.98mph (974.02km/h) on 62mi (100 km) circuit 12 April 1945 - USS Mannert L. Abele is first Allied ship sunk by Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka BAKA (rocket powered human-guided kamikaze plane) 12 April 1945 - Flt Lt Smith, A&AEE P & Mr Douglas, MofA Prod Tech Officer killed in testflight crash de Havilland Mosquito PR Mk 32 NS586 12 April 1941 - First flight Yakovlev Yak-3 Soviet fighter aircraft, one of the smallest and lightest major combat fighters of the time 12 April 1939 - First flight IAR 80 Romanian low-wing, monoplane, all-metal monocoque fighter and ground-attack aircraft 12 April 1938 - First flight Aubert PA-201 Cigale, French 2 seat high-wing cantilever monoplane evolution of the PA-20 12 April 1937 - Sir Frank Whittle ground-tests first jet engine designed to power an aircraft at British Thomson-Houston factory (U-type) 12 April 1935 - First flight Bristol Blenheim British light bomber Over 4,400 were built including long-range and night fighter variants 12 April 1934 - First flight Comper Streak British single-engined, single-seat racing monoplane Only one was produced. 12 April 1934 - First flight Nieuport-Delage NiD-125, French single seat parasol wing fighter prototype, re-engined version of the NID-121. 12 April 1931 - First flight of the Amiot 140M, French high wing twin engine 4 seat bomber prototype 12 April 1928 – (12-13) Major Fitzmaurice, Baron Von Huenefeld & Capt Koehl made first east to west crossing of Atlantic in Junkers Bremen. 12 April 1927 - Clarence Chamberlin and Bert Acosta set non-refuelled endurance record in Wright-Bellanca WB-2, circling NY for 51h & 11mins 12 April 1918 - The Loughead brothers fly their F-1 seaplane from Santa Barbara to San Diego. They would later found Lockheed. 12 April 1911 - Alfred Leblanc sets FAI World Airspeed Record of 69.442mph (111.801km/h) in a Blériot 12 April 1911 - Pierre Prier makes the first non-stop passenger flight, travelling from London to Paris in a Blériot, taking 3hrs 45mins 12 April 1606 - Union Flag introduced combining the red on white English Cross of St George & white on blue Scottish Cross of St Andrew
Posted on: Sat, 12 Apr 2014 05:26:44 +0000
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