1916 in aviation
Encyclopedia
This is a list of aviation
-related events from 1916:
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
-related events from 1916:
Events
- Imperial Japanese NavyImperial Japanese NavyThe Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
aircraft simulate night torpedoTorpedoThe modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
attacks for the first time against Japanese fleet units in Tateyama Bay during annual fleet maneuvers, although no torpedoes are dropped. - The British AdmiraltyAdmiraltyThe Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
invites bids for aircraft catapultAircraft catapultAn aircraft catapult is a device used to launch aircraft from ships—in particular aircraft carriers—as a form of assisted take off. It consists of a track built into the flight deck, below which is a large piston or shuttle that is attached through the track to the nose gear of the aircraft, or in...
s for the first time, asking for electric, hydraulic, and compressed airCompressed airCompressed air is air which is kept under a certain pressure, usually greater than that of the atmosphere. In Europe, 10 percent of all electricity used by industry is used to produce compressed air, amounting to 80 terawatt hours consumption per year....
catapults. It does not pursue electric or hydraulic types, but two compressd-air types are produced. - Officers of the Chilean NavyChilean Navy-Independence Wars of Chile and Peru :The Chilean Navy dates back to 1817. A year before, following the Battle of Chacabuco, General Bernardo O'Higgins prophetically declared "this victory and another hundred shall be of no significance if we do not gain control of the sea".This led to the...
begin flight training in Chile. It is the beginning of a Chilean naval aviation arm - the first Latin AmericaLatin AmericaLatin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n naval air arm - which is subordinated to the Chilean ArmyChilean ArmyThe Chilean Army is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 45,000-person army is organized into seven divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade....
s Military Aviation Service of Chile.
January
- January 12 - GermanGerman EmpireThe German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
aceFlying aceA flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
s Max ImmelmannMax ImmelmannMax Immelmann was the first German World War I flying ace. He was a great pioneer in fighter aviation and is often mistakenly credited with the first aerial victory using a synchronized gun...
and Oswald BoelckeOswald BoelckeOswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to...
, with eight kills, are the first pilots awarded the Pour le MéritePour le MériteThe Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
("Blue Max"). - January 13 - The Curtiss Aeroplane Company, Curtiss Motor Company, Curtiss Engineering Company, and Burgess and Curtis merge to form the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor CompanyCurtiss Aeroplane and Motor CompanyCurtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company was an American aircraft manufacturer that went public in 1916 with Glenn Hammond Curtiss as president. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the company was the largest aircraft manufacturer in the United States...
. - January 29 - The second and last ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
raid on ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
inflicts 54 casualties.
February
- February 6 - Aircraft from the Imperial Russian NavyImperial Russian NavyThe Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...
Black Sea FleetBlack Sea FleetThe Black Sea Fleet is a large operational-strategic sub-unit of the Russian Navy, operating in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea since the late 18th century. It is based in various harbors of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov....
s seaplane carriers Imperator Nikolai I and Imperator Aleksandr I sink the OttomanOttoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
collier Irmingard (4,211 grt). Irmingard is the largest ship sunk by air attack in World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
March
- March 16 - United States ArmyUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
aircraft fly their first mission over foreign soil when Curtiss JN-3Curtiss JN-4The Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" was one of a series of "JN" biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for the U.S...
s of the 1st Aero Squadron carry out reconnaissance over MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. - March 18 - German ace Ernst UdetErnst UdetColonel General Ernst Udet was the second-highest scoring German flying ace of World War I. He was one of the youngest aces and was the highest scoring German ace to survive the war . His 62 victories were second only to Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus...
scores his first kill. - March 21 - Captain-CommandantCommandant of the Coast GuardThe Commandant of the United States Coast Guard is the highest ranking member of the United States Coast Guard. The Commandant is normally the only four-star Admiral in the Coast Guard and is appointed for a four-year term by the President of the United States upon confirmation by the United...
of the United States Coast GuardUnited States Coast GuardThe United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
Ellsworth P. BertholfEllsworth P. BertholfEllsworth Price Bertholf was a Congressional Gold Medal recipient who later served as the fourth Captain-Commandant of the United States Revenue Cutter Service and because of the change in the name of the agency, the fourth Commandant of the United States Coast Guard...
orders Coast Guard experimentation with the use of aircraft and directs Third LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Elmer F. Stone to begin flight training. It is the birth of U.S. Coast Guard aviation.
April
- The Imperial Japanese NavyImperial Japanese NavyThe Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
establishes its first land-based air group (kōkūtai), the Yokosuka Naval Air Group. - April 1 - US Coast Guard Third Lieutenant Elmer F. Stone begins flight training at Naval Air Station PensacolaNaval Air Station PensacolaNaval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola , "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United States Navy base located next to Warrington, Florida, a community southwest of the Pensacola city limits...
in Pensacola, FloridaPensacola, FloridaPensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
. He is the first US Coast Guard aviator. - April 15 - Royal Flying CorpsRoyal Flying CorpsThe Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
and Royal Naval Air ServiceRoyal Naval Air ServiceThe Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
aircraft deliver 13 tons of stores into Kut el AmaraKutAl-Kūt is a city in eastern Iraq, on the left bank of the Tigris River, about 160 kilometres south east of Baghdad. the estimated population is about 374,000 people...
, MesopotamiaMesopotamiaMesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, while it is besieged by the TurksSiege of KutThe siege of Kut Al Amara , was the besieging of 8,000 strong British-Indian garrison in the town of Kut, 100 miles south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. Its known also as 1st Battle of Kut. In 1915, its population was around 6,500...
. This was the first time aircraft were used for such a purpose. - April 20 - The Escadrille Américanne ("American Squadron"), later to be known as the Lafayette EscadrilleLafayette EscadrilleThe Lafayette Escadrille , was an escadrille of the French Air Service, the Aéronautique militaire, during World War I composed largely of American volunteer pilots flying fighters.-History:Dr. Edmund L...
("Lafayette Squadron"), is established as an American volunteer unit in France, equipped with Nieuport 11Nieuport 11|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Angelucci, Enzio, ed. The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. New York: The Military Press, 1983. ISBN 0-517-41021-4....
s.
May
- May 2 - Eight German ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
s raid the east coast of EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, causing 39 casualties. The Zeppelin LZ 59 (L 20) is wrecked in a storm off StavangerStavangerStavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
, NorwayNorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
on the return journey. - May 17 - Parasite fighter experiments to launch a Bristol ScoutBristol ScoutThe Bristol Scout was a simple, single seat, rotary-engined biplane originally intended as a civilian racing aircraft. Like other similar fast, light aircraft of the period - it was acquired by the RNAS and the RFC as a "scout", or fast reconnaissance type...
from a Porte Baby airship begin in the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. - May 31 - A Short Type 184Short Type 184|-Manufacturers:Source: Barnes and James#Brush Electrical Engineering Co. Ltd. #Frederick Sage & Co. Ltd. #J. Samuel White #Mann, Egerton & Co. Ltd. #Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company #Robey & Co. Ltd. #S E Saunders Limited...
from the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
seaplane carrier EngadineHMS Engadine (1911)HMS Engadine was a seaplane tender which served in the First World War. She was built as a Folkestone-Boulogne ferry by William Denny and Brothers, launched on 23 September 1911 and named after the Engadine valley in Switzerland...
achieves the only British aerial reconnaissance flight of the Battle of JutlandBattle of JutlandThe Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only...
, reporting the sighting of three cruiserCruiserA cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s and ten destroyerDestroyerIn naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s of the German High Seas FleetHigh Seas FleetThe High Seas Fleet was the battle fleet of the German Empire and saw action during World War I. The formation was created in February 1907, when the Home Fleet was renamed as the High Seas Fleet. Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz was the architect of the fleet; he envisioned a force powerful enough to...
before a broken fuel pipe forces it to end the mission.
June
- June 17 - The first French ace, Jean NavarreJean NavarreJean Marie Dominique Navarre was a French aviator during World War I. As one of the pioneer flying aces, he was credited with twelve confirmed aerial victories and fifteen unconfirmed ones.-Early life:...
, is shot down and wounded, ending his combat career with 12 confirmed kills. - June 18 - The first German ace, Max ImmelmannMax ImmelmannMax Immelmann was the first German World War I flying ace. He was a great pioneer in fighter aviation and is often mistakenly credited with the first aerial victory using a synchronized gun...
, is shot down and killed by a FE.2b from the Royal Flying CorpsRoyal Flying CorpsThe Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
s No. 25 Squadron, a symbolic end to the "Fokker ScourgeFokker ScourgeThe Fokker Scourge was a term coined by the British press in the summer of 1915 to describe the then-current ascendancy of the Fokker Eindecker monoplane fighters of the German Fliegertruppen over the poorly-armed Allied reconnaissance types of the period....
". He had scored 15 kills. - June 23 - Victor ChapmanVictor ChapmanVictor S. Chapman was a French-American pilot remembered for his exploits during World War I.-Growing up:...
of the Lafayette EscadrilleLafayette EscadrilleThe Lafayette Escadrille , was an escadrille of the French Air Service, the Aéronautique militaire, during World War I composed largely of American volunteer pilots flying fighters.-History:Dr. Edmund L...
becomes the first U.S. airman to be killed in action, shot down near Verdun-sur-Meuse.
July
- No.3 Wing RNAS becomes Britain's first strategic bombingStrategic bombingStrategic bombing is a military strategy used in a total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability and public will to wage war rather than destroying its land or naval forces...
unit, equipped with Sopwith 1½ StrutterSopwith 1½ StrutterThe Sopwith 1½ Strutter was a British one or two-seat biplane multi-role aircraft of the First World War. It is significant as the first British-designed two seater tractor fighter, and the first British aircraft to enter service with a synchronised machine gun...
s. - July 1 - The Battle of the SommeBattle of the Somme (1916)The Battle of the Somme , also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 14 November 1916 in the Somme department of France, on both banks of the river of the same name...
begins. In the five months of the battle, the British lose 782 aircraft and 576 pilots but maintain air superiority over the battlefield. - July 12 - The United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
armored cruiserArmored cruiserThe armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Like other types of cruiser, the armored cruiser was a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship, and fast enough to outrun any battleships it encountered.The first...
North CarolinaUSS North Carolina (ACR-12)USS North Carolina was a Tennessee-class armored cruiser of the United States Navy and the second Navy ship so named. She was also known as "Armored Cruiser No...
becomes the first ship to launch an aircraft by catapultAircraft catapultAn aircraft catapult is a device used to launch aircraft from ships—in particular aircraft carriers—as a form of assisted take off. It consists of a track built into the flight deck, below which is a large piston or shuttle that is attached through the track to the nose gear of the aircraft, or in...
while underway, launching a CurtissCurtiss Aeroplane and Motor CompanyCurtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company was an American aircraft manufacturer that went public in 1916 with Glenn Hammond Curtiss as president. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the company was the largest aircraft manufacturer in the United States...
flying boatFlying boatA flying boat is a fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a float plane as it uses a purpose-designed fuselage which can float, granting the aircraft buoyancy. Flying boats may be stabilized by under-wing floats or by wing-like projections from the fuselage...
piloted by LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Godfrey ChevalierGodfrey ChevalierLt. Cdr. Godfrey DeCourcelles Chevalier, USN was a pioneering naval aviator of the United States Navy of World War I and the early 1920s....
. - July 15 - William BoeingWilliam BoeingWilliam Edward Boeing was an American aviation pioneer who founded The Boeing Company.-Biography:Boeing was born to a wealthy German mining engineer named Wilhelm Böing who had made a fortune and who had a sideline as a timber merchant...
founds the Pacific Aero Products Company. In 1917 it will be renamed Boeing Airplane Company.
August
- The Imperial Russian NavyImperial Russian NavyThe Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...
s Black Sea FleetBlack Sea FleetThe Black Sea Fleet is a large operational-strategic sub-unit of the Russian Navy, operating in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea since the late 18th century. It is based in various harbors of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov....
raids VarnaVarnaVarna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
, BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, employing a seaplane carrier-battleshipBattleshipA battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
force. - August 2–16 - German ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
s raid southeast EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
William Leefe-Robinson, Royal Flying CorpsRoyal Flying CorpsThe Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
, shoots down Zeppelin SL 11 in a BE.2cRoyal Aircraft Factory BE.2The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine two-seat biplane which was in service with the Royal Flying Corps from 1912 until the end of World War I. The "Bleriot" in its designation refers to the fact that, like the Bleriot types it was of tractor configuration, with the...
. - August 2 - A Bristol Scout C from the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
seaplane carrier VindexHMS Vindex (1915)HMS Vindex was a Royal Navy seaplane carrier of the First World War. She had been built in 1905 by Armstrong Whitworth as the Viking, a fast passenger ferry for the Isle of Man Steam Packet. Viking was requisitioned by the Royal Navy on 15 March 1915 for conversion to a seaplane carrier, and was...
unsuccessfully attacks the German ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
L 17. It is the first interception of an airshipAirshipAn airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
by a carrier-based aircraft. - August 6 - French aceFlying aceA flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
CapitaineCapitaineCapitaine, derived from the French for Captain, may also refer to:-Fish:* Hogfish , an edible marine fish in the Labridae family, found in the western Atlantic...
René FonckRené FonckRené Paul Fonck was a French aviator who ended the First World War as the top Allied fighter ace, and when all succeeding aerial conflicts of the 20th and 21st centuries are also considered, Fonck still holds the title of "all-time Allied Ace of Aces". He received confirmation for 75 victories ...
gains his first confirmed victory. He will become the highest-scoring AlliedAllies of World War IThe Entente Powers were the countries at war with the Central Powers during World War I. The members of the Triple Entente were the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Empire; Italy entered the war on their side in 1915...
and second-highest-scoring ace overall of World War I. - August 23 - The Brazilian NavyBrazilian NavyThe Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
establishes a naval aviation arm with the creation of a naval aviation school. - August 27 - Oswald BoelckeOswald BoelckeOswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to...
creates the first German special fighter squadron Jagdstaffel 2 (or Jasta 2).
September
- The Wright CompanyWright CompanyThe Wright Company was the commercial aviation business venture of the Wright Brothers, established by them in 1909 in conjunction with several prominent industrialists from New York and Detroit with the intention of capitalizing on their invention of the practical airplane. It maintained a...
and the Glenn L. Martin CompanyGlenn L. Martin CompanyThe Glenn L. Martin Company was an American aircraft and aerospace manufacturing company that was founded by the aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin. The Martin Company produced many important aircraft for the defense of the United States and its allies, especially during World War II and the Cold War...
merge to form the Wright-Martin Corporation. - September 15 - Two Austro-HungarianAustria-HungaryAustria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
LohnerJacob Lohner Werke und SohnThe Lohner-Werke or simply Lohner, was a Viennese luxury coachbuilding firm founded in the 19th Century by Jacob Lohner's father, Heinrich. From 1897 onwards, the firm also produced automobiles, being the first in Austria to do so...
flying boatFlying boatA flying boat is a fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a float plane as it uses a purpose-designed fuselage which can float, granting the aircraft buoyancy. Flying boats may be stabilized by under-wing floats or by wing-like projections from the fuselage...
s, led by Fregatten-Leutnant Zelezny, sink the British submarineSubmarineA submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
B-10 and the French submarine Foucault. B-10 is the first submarine sunk by aircraft, and Foucault is the first submarine sunk at sea by aircraft. - September 17 - Rittmeister Manfred von RichthofenManfred von RichthofenManfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen , also widely known as the Red Baron, was a German fighter pilot with the Imperial German Army Air Service during World War I...
scores his first kill, flying an Albatros D.IIAlbatros D.II|-See also:...
. - September 23-24 - Eleven ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
s attack EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Two are shot down, LZ 76 by ground fire and LZ 74 by LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Frederick SowreyFrederick SowreyMajor Frederick Sowrey began his career as a World War I flying ace credited with thirteen aerial victories. He was most noted for his first victory, when he shot down Zeppelin L32 during its bombing raid on England...
.
October
- October 12 – CanadianCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Royal Naval Air ServiceRoyal Naval Air ServiceThe Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
aceFlying aceA flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
Raymond CollishawRaymond CollishawAir Vice Marshal Raymond Collishaw CB, DSO & Bar, OBE, DSC, DFC, RAF was a distinguished Canadian fighter pilot, squadron leader, and commanding officer who served in the Royal Naval Air Service and later the Royal Air Force. He was the highest scoring RNAS flying ace and the second highest...
claims his first victory. - October 28 – German ace Oswald BoelckeOswald BoelckeOswald Boelcke was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. Boelcke is considered the father of the German fighter air force, as well as the "Father of Air Fighting Tactics"; he was the first to...
is killed in a mid-air collision between his Albatros D.IIAlbatros D.II|-See also:...
and the fighter of the German ace Erwin BöhmeErwin BöhmeErwin Böhme , Pour le Mérite, was a German pilot during World War I. He was born in Holzminden, grew into an athletic sportsman, and became a flying ace during the war credited with 24 victories. He was a both a close friend and a military subordinate of Oswald Boelcke and was inadvertently...
. A highly influential pilot considered by the some the "father" of the German fighter force, and the author of the Dicta BoelckeDicta BoelckeThe Dicta Boelcke is a list of fundamental aerial maneuvers of aerial combat formulated by the first great German flying ace of the First World War, Oswald Boelcke.-1. Try to secure the upper hand before attacking...
, the first formal codification of the rules of aerial warfare, he is Germanys leading ace with 40 victories at the time of his death.
November
- November 19 – Ruth LawRuth LawRuth Bancroft Law was a pioneer American aviatrix during the 1910s.Law received her pilot's license in November 1912. In 1915 she gave a demonstration of aerobatics at Daytona Beach, Florida, before a large crowd...
sets a new distance record for cross-country flight by flying 590 miles (950 km) non-stop from Chicago to New York State. She flies on to New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
the next day. - November 23 – British ace Lanoe HawkerLanoe HawkerLanoe George Hawker VC, DSO was a British flying ace, with seven credited victories, during the First World War. He was the first British flying ace, and the third pilot to receive the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded...
VCVCVC may refer to:* Vehicle code, a motor vehicle traffic legal system* Vanadium carbide, an inorganic compound* Vancouver Canucks, a NHL hockey team* Vanier College* Vassar College...
is shot down and killed by Manfred von RichthofenManfred von RichthofenManfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen , also widely known as the Red Baron, was a German fighter pilot with the Imperial German Army Air Service during World War I...
. It is von Richthofens 11th victory. - November 28 – Three Royal Naval Air Service BE.2csRoyal Aircraft Factory BE.2The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine two-seat biplane which was in service with the Royal Flying Corps from 1912 until the end of World War I. The "Bleriot" in its designation refers to the fact that, like the Bleriot types it was of tractor configuration, with the...
, one of them flown by Flight LieutenantFlight LieutenantFlight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
Egbert CadburyEgbert CadburyAir Commodore Sir Egbert Cadbury DSC, DFC was a First World War pilot who shot down two Zeppelins over the North Sea: L21 on 28 November 1916, and L70 on 6 August 1918: the latter while flying a De Havilland DH.4 with Robert Leckie as Observer/Gunner.The son of George Cadbury and Dame Elizabeth...
, shoot down the German ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
L 21 off LowestoftLowestoftLowestoft is a town in the English county of Suffolk. The town is on the North Sea coast and is the most easterly point of the United Kingdom. It is north-east of London, north-east of Ipswich and south-east of Norwich...
, England. - November 28 – Central LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
is bombed by an GermanGerman EmpireThe German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
LVG C.IILVG C.II|-See also:-References:*Donald, David, The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft . . Prospero Books. ISBN 1-85605-375-X*van Wyngarden, G . Early German Aces of World War I, Osprey Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-841-76997-5...
flown by R. Brandt.
June
- June 16 - Port Victoria P.V.2Port Victoria P.V.2|-See also:-References:*Bruce, J.M. "". Flight, 29 November 1957. pp. 845–848.*Collyer, David. "Babies Kittens and Griffons". Air Enthusiast, Number 43, 1991. Stamford, UK:Key Publishing. ISSN 0143 5450. pp. 50–55....
- June 17 - Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8The Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8 was a British two-seat biplane reconnaissance and bomber aircraft of the First World War designed by John Kenworthy. Intended as a replacement for the vulnerable B.E.2, the R.E.8 was more difficult to fly, and was regarded with great suspicion at first in the Royal...
- June 29 - the B & W Seaplane, William BoeingWilliam BoeingWilliam Edward Boeing was an American aviation pioneer who founded The Boeing Company.-Biography:Boeing was born to a wealthy German mining engineer named Wilhelm Böing who had made a fortune and who had a sideline as a timber merchant...
's first aircraft.
September
- September 9 - Bristol F.2A
- September 12 - the Hewitt-Sperry Automatic AirplaneHewitt-Sperry Automatic AirplaneThe Hewitt-Sperry Automatic Airplane was a project undertaken during World War I to develop an aerial torpedo, also called a flying bomb or pilotless aircraft, capable of carrying explosives to its target...