Today in 1784, first balloon flight in England; 1912, first recovery from an uncontrolled spin; 1919, inaugural commercial flights between Paris and London; 1932, Amelia Earhart completes first transcontinental flight by a woman.
Space Shuttle Columbia completes two important missions, SAS bans smoking on many flights, X-15 sets a speed record, United Flight 629 is bombed and more.