On This Day in Aviation History

2011-12-13

On This Day in Aviation History: December 13th

More articles by »
Written by: Phil Derner Jr.
Tags: , , , , , , , ,

1995 – Banat Air Flight 166, an Antonov An-24 registered YR-AMR, crashes on takeoff from Verona, Italy, killing all 49 people on board. The crash would be attributed to the aircraft being as much as three tons overweight.

1994 – American Eagle Flight 3379, a British Aerospace Jetstream 31, crashes five miles short of the runway in Raleigh-Durham, killing 15 of the 20 on-board. The nighttime crash would be blamed on an engine failure and poor response by the crew.

Maj. George Davis

Maj. George Davis

1977 – A National Jet DC-3 aircraft that chartered for the University of Evansville basketball team crashes near Evansville, killing 29.

1972 – Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt perform the final extravehicular activity of the Apollo program, on Apollo 17. No one from Earth has set foot on the Moon since, as of December 2011.

1962 – Relay 1, the first active repeater communications satellite, is launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station atop a Delta B rocket. Less than a year later, it would broadcast the first transpacific television broadcast from the U.S. to Japan.

1951 – Major George Davis of the 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, flying an F-86 Sabre, shoots down four MiG-15s over North Korea in a single day.

1918 – Aboard a Handley Page V-1500 four-engined bomber, Maj. A.S.C. MacLaren and Capt. Robert Halley set off for the first ever flight from England to India.

1913 – German balloonist Hugo Kaulen remains afloat for 87 hours, a record that would hold until 1935.

1872 – Paul Haenlein tests the first gas engine-propelled airship in Brünn, Germany, reaching a speed of just under 12 mph (19 km/h)



About the Author

Phil Derner Jr.
Phil Derner founded NYCAviation in 2003. A lifetime aviation enthusiast that grew up across the water from La Guardia Airport, Phil has aviation experience as a Loadmaster, Operations Controller and Flight Dispatcher. He owns and operates NYCAviation and performs duties as an aviation expert through writing, consulting, public speaking and media appearances. You can reach him by email or follow him on Twitter.




 
 

 

Elon Musk Announces Plans for Long- and Short-Haul Spaceflight

In light of his recently announced plans for the future of space flight, could Elon Musk's plans for a BFR be a BFD?
by Stephanie Gehman
0

 
 

PHOTOS: The Three Remaining WB-57Fs Take Flight Over Houston

Residents of Houston Texas were given a rare treat last Thursday: A formation flight by the only three remaining airworthy B-57s, NASA's WB-57Fs.
by Nathan Moeller
2

 

 

Space Travel’s Biggest Benefit – World Peace? Why We Must Venture Further

Why do we travel to space? What if there was a reason greater than technological advancements and finding a home on other planets? Dare we say...
by Phil Derner Jr.
1

 
 
The Apollo 17 spacecraft, containing astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, Ronald E. Evans, and Harrison H. Schmitt, glided to a safe splashdown at 2:25 p.m. EST on Dec. 19, 1972, 648 kilometers (350 nautical miles) southeast of American Samoa. The astronauts were flown by recovery helicopter to the U.S.S. Ticonderoga slightly less than an hour after the completion of NASA's sixth and last manned lunar landing in the Apollo program. (Photo by NASA)

Today in Aviation History: December 19th

The world's first airport opens near Paris, the last moon mission returns to earth, a Chalk's Ocean Airways crash is captured on video, and more...
by NYCAviation Staff

 
 

WATCH LIVE: Orion EFT-1 Launch Will Test Human Flight Into Deep Space

Orion, NASA’s newest spacecraft, is set to launch atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 7:05 a.m. Watch it live!
by Sarina Houston
1