Like each month, December is full of unique and world-changing events in aviation history. Spend your coffee break with us doing a deep but fast dive into what’s gone throughout the years in December for aviation.
December 1 - 7
On December 1, 1783, J.A.C. Charles achieved the first solo balloon fight. On December 1, 1928, two airlines began new daily mail and passenger services in different parts of the United States. Interstate Air Lines launched a service between Chicago, Illinois, and Atlanta, Georgia, covering a distance of 623 miles. Interstate Air Line also started a daily mail and passenger service between St. Louis, Missouri, and Evansville, Indiana, covering a shorter distance of 145 miles. In the Southeastern United States, Pitcairn Aviation Inc. started a mail service between Atlanta, Georgia, and Miami, Florida, which spanned a distance of 622 miles. On December 1st, 1934, the first airway traffic control center opened in Newark, New Jersey, operated by Eastern Air Lines, United Air Lines, American Airlines, and TWA. 15 years later, on the same day in 1949, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology dedicated a $2.6 million Naval supersonic wind tunnel. Also on that day, the American Rocket Society proposed a transcontinental rocket airship capable of a 3,000-mile flight in less than 60 minutes, and the Douglas Aircraft Company developed an automatic analyzer to reduce the time and cost of interpreting data radioed from research rockets by 80%.
On December 2nd, 1949, various aviation-related events occurred in the USA. The Civil Aeronautics Board approved American Airlines' transcontinental coach service using Douglas DC-6 equipment, while North American Aviation delivered the swept-back jet fighter YF-86D prototype to Muroc Air Force Base. Also, the United States Navy revealed details about the XT-40 turboprop engine from Allison Division that will power the Navy's Convair XP5Y-1 Flying Boat. On the same day in 1976, the Boeing 747 SCA, converted to carry the United States Space Shuttle, completed its first flight. On 2 December 1986 in France, a “Concorde” SST airliner carrying 94 passengers returned to Charles de Gaulle airport after an 18-day round-the-world journey. And, on December 3rd, Pacific Air Transport started daily mail, passenger, and express service between Oakland and San Jose in 1928. Also on December 3rd, 1945, a DeHavilland “Sea Vampire” fighter became the first purely jet-powered airplane to operate from an aircraft carrier, and an aircraft exchange opened in New York in 1958.
On December 4, 1908, J.T.C. Moore-Brabazon, an Englishman, made a flight of 1,350 ft. in a Voisin biplane in France and became a pioneer of early British aviation. On the same day in 1938, a team of four Italians set four world speed records for 2,000 km. December 4, 1991, marks the day Pan Am World Airways went out of business after 64 years of service. On December 5, 1909, George Taylor made the first manned glider flight in Australia and Western Australia Airways opened the first scheduled regular airline service in the country in 1921. Finally, on December 5, 1961, a United States Navy McDonnell F4H “Phantom II” set a new world altitude record of 66,443 feet for sustained horizontal flight.
On December 6th, 1949, the United States Air Force decided to dedicate $50 million from their 1950 fiscal funds to build a radar defense system in Alaska. On the same day in 1957, a Vanguard vehicle failed in an attempt to launch the first satellite by the United States, but a Lockheed "Electra" plane had its first successful test flight. On December 6th, 1975, the Tupolev Tu-144 made the first-ever airmail flight by a supersonic aircraft carrying mail between Moscow and Alma Ata, within the USSR. On December 7th, 1941, Japan surprised the United States with an attack on Pearl Harbor, leading to the United States' entry into World War II. On the same day in 1972, all USAF crew aboard the Apollo 17 made the final moon landing.
December 8 - 14
On December 8th, 1938, Germany launched its first aircraft carrier, Graf Zeppelin, which was the only one launched by the country during World War II. On the same day in 1940, New York City experienced its first blackout and anti-aircraft exercise, while on December 8th, 1964, a United Air Lines "Caravelle" made the first landing in the United States completely controlled by a computer. On December 9th, 1904, the Wright brothers stopped trials with "Flyer II" after completing 105 tests and 80 brief flights since May.
The following year, on December 9th, 1909, American Dr. Henry W. Walden made the first flight with his triplane known as the "Walden III." On December 10th, 1919, Capts. Ross Smith and Keith Smith became the first Australians to fly directly between Great Britain and Australia, while on December 11th, 1917, Katherine Stinson set a new American non-stop distance record by flying 606 miles from San Diego to San Francisco. Finally, on December 11th, 1928, privates Sidney R. Glover and Paul W. Lemons were awarded the Soldiers Medal for rescuing Major Junius W. Jones and Maj. Samuel T. Stewart from drowning after an airplane crash into the Mississippi River near Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
From December 12th through 24th 1928, the International Civil Aeronautics Conference took place in Washington, DC. On December 12th, 1953, Major Charles “Chuck” Yeager achieved Mach 2.5 for the first time in the Bell X—1A, reaching 1,650 mph at 70,000 feet. On the same date in 1957, a McDonnell F—101A “Voodoo,” piloted by Major Adrian Drew, set the world speed record for the United States Air Force by flying 1,207.6 mph. On December 13th, 1918, A.S. MacLaren, Halley, and McEwen flew the first flight from England to India in the Handley Page V—1500 bomber. On December 14th, 1903, Wilbur Wright made the first attempt at powered flight, which ended unsuccessfully. Meanwhile, in 1927, the US aircraft carrier USS Lexington was commissioned, and Major General J. E. Fechet became Chief of the Air Corps. Eugene Cernan became the last person to walk on the Moon on December 14th, 1972 after Apollo 17's surface activity. Finally, on December 14th, 1986, Burt Rutan's Voyager took off for the first unrefueled flight around the world, covering 26,366—miles and taking just over 9 days to complete.
December 15 -21
On December 15th, 1928, the Illinois Central Railroad issued round-trip air-rail tickets for passengers to fly one way between St. Louis, Missouri and Chicago, Illinois. On the same day, Missouri's State Supreme Court declared the bond issues for Kansas City and St. Louis municipal airports valid. Northwest Airways also began daily mail, passenger, and express services between Milwaukee and Green Bay, Wisconsin, which is 120 miles away. In Vietnam, on December 15th, 1964, the first USAF gunship, the AC-47, entered combat. KLM Flight 867, a Boeing 747-400, registered PH-BFC, flew through a cloud of volcanic ash from Mount Redoubt while descending to Anchorage, Alaska on December 15th, 1989, but landed safely after the engines restarted.
On December 16th, 1941, the Japanese invaded British Borneo, while in the USA the first helicopter powered by a gas-turbine engine, the Kaman K-225, flew successfully. Senator Stuart Symington was named the 1957 winner of the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy on December 16th, 1957. Unfortunately, United Airlines Flight 826 (Douglas DC-8, N8031U) and Trans World Airlines Flight 266 (Lockheed Super Constellation, N6907C) collided midair over Staten Island in New York City, on December 16, 1960, killing all 128 on both planes and six on the ground. On the same day, a British Airways “Concorde” landed in London after flying from New York in 2 hours 58 minutes, at an average speed of 1,172 mph. Air Canada Flight 646, a CRJ-200, registered C-FSKI, crashed in a failed go-around in Fredericton, New Brunswick on December 16th, 1997, but miraculously, all on board survived.
On December 17th, 1903, the Wright brothers made the first sustained controlled flight in a powered aircraft in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. International delegates attended ceremonies at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on December 17th, 1928, commemorating the first airplane flight ever made on December 17th, 1903. On December 18, 1912, French aviator Rolland Garros became the first pilot to fly over two countries in a single flight. The Japanese invaded Hong Kong on December 18th, 1941, and Lt. “Buzz” Wagner became the first American “Ace” of World War II in the Philippines. On December 19th, 1908, the world's first aerodrome, Port-Aviation, was opened 12 miles outside Paris.
The 11-day “Linebacker II” offensive of the Vietnam War began on December 19th, 1972, concluding in the Paris peace negotiations. On December 20th, 1916, the United States Army Balloon School was established in Fort Omaha, Nebraska. Australian George Wilkins and Lieutenant Carl Eielson used a Lockheed “Vega” for the first 10-hour flight over Antarctica on December 20th, 1928. The AVG, better known as the “Flying Tigers” in Kunming, China, shot down three Kawasaki Ki-48 “Lily” light bombers in its first engagement on December 20, 1941. Lastly, on December 21st, 1968, Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the moon, was launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
December 22 - 31
On December 22nd, 1964, the Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" had its first flight in the United States, which was one of the fastest aircraft ever built. On December 23rd, 1910, Lt. Theodore Ellyson was assigned to flight training with the Curtiss company, becoming the first naval aviator. On the same day in 1940, United Air Lines launched the first United States all-cargo air service, flying from New York to Chicago.
On December 24th, 1908, the world's first aeronautical exhibition opened in Paris and on the same day in 1924, the Travel Air Manufacturing Company was formed by Walter Beech, Clyde Cessna, and Lloyd Stearman. On December 24th, 1944, airplanes of the 43rd Bombing Group dropped a million Christmas cards over the Philippines, each containing the words: "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 1944 - General Douglas MacArthur." NORAD Tracks Santa for the first time on December 24th, 1955, in what will become an annual Christmas Eve tradition.
On December 25th, 1946, three airliners crashed while trying to land in bad weather in China, killing 72 people.
December 26th, 1922, marked the commissioning of the Hosho, Japan's first aircraft carrier, while on December 26, 1968, Apollo 8 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first manned mission to the Moon. On December 27th, 1773, George Cayley was born in Scarborough, Yorkshire, England, regarded by many as the father of flight. US Army planes diverted lava flow in Hawaii by aerial bombardment on December 27, 1935.
On December 28th, 1961, American Airlines became the first airline to carry 100,000,000 passengers, holding ceremonies with Lt. General James H. Doolittle serving as the national symbol of the event. On December 29th, 1927, Georg Wulf, co-founder of Focke-Wulf, was killed in the crash of the Focke-Wulf Fw.19. The Luftwaffe made a devastating attack on London on December 29-30, 1940, making extensive use of incendiary weapons. On December 30th, 1905, the Wright brothers signed a contract for one million francs with Frenchman Arnold Fordyce for the sale of a powered flying machine capable of flying a nonstop distance of 31 miles.
On December 30th, 1972, President Richard Nixon halted the aerial bombing of North Vietnam and announced peace talks. Wilbur Wright at Auvours, France, made the first flight over 2 hours on December 31st, 1908. On December 31, 1958, for the first time, more passengers crossed the North Atlantic that year by air than by sea, and on December 31st, 1970, Jeanne Holm became the USAF's first female General.
That’s a wrap on this month’s “On This Day in Aviation History,” be sure to check out our special edition of “On This Day…” where we feature the first-ever Flying Santa!
