Introduction to Aviation History – US Perspective

1. It all began in 1903 in USA. The Wright Brother’s first mechanical flight in the aircraft named Kitty Hawk was accepted as the beginning of the modern aviation industry.

2. The first world’s war acted as the first major stimulus to the growth of the industry. The military strategists saw the potential of aircraft to be used as major weapons.

3. 1917 – After the war, with the excess aircrafts, US Post Office wanted to experiment of the airmail services. A grant of $100,000 was made available for this purpose. The Post Office bought nearly 100 ex-military t be used to transport the mail
Note: A biplane refer to the aircraft with 2 layers of wings. The top and bottom, attached by wires and wooden structure.

bi plane

4. 1921 – The post office utilized four aircraft aircrafts to carry mail between Los Angeles and New York. The flight took 33 hours. The navigation was assisted by nearly 300 flashing beacons for a distant of 2600 miles. Emergency landing strips were provided beside the beacons.

5. 1925 Under the new Air Mail Act of 1925 or better known as The ‘Kelly Act’, the airmail services were privatized through 4 year betting system. The private carriers can also expand the business to carry other products including cargo and passengers.

6. As this while, aviation was fully unregulated, anybody can build aircraft and anybody can fly them. You can fly to any place you want.

7. 1926, due to high number of fatal accidents, The Air Commerce Act was passed. This is the first attempt to regulate the flight and the concern was the safety and not the commerce.

8. 1927, Charles Lindbergh in his famous xxx had successfully made the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean. This had created a massive public interest in flying.

9. 1927 – American Airlines was formed as the first major airline.

10. 1931 – United Airlines was formed.

11. World War II – The war had generated intensive research and development of aircraft and the engines. Although the original purpose was for military usage, the benefits were extended commercial aviation after the world. The major in the post post-war, was the development of four-engine aircraft, the Lockheed Constellation. This had substantially cut down the flying time for the cross Atlantic crossings.

12. 1958 – sparked by the air collisions, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was created. The focus was on the safety.

13. 1959 – Jets were introduced.

14. 1978 – Airline Deregulation Act – started in USA. It was intended removed government control from commercial aviation and the passenger airline industry was exposed to market forces.