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March 5

In 1912… Bob Fowler flies from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, Florida. The west to east coast-to-coast journey has taken four months to complete.
In 1923… The great aeronautical pioneer Igor Sikorsky sets up the Sikorsky Aero Engineering Corp. in the United States with the financial help of several important leading figures, including Sergey Rachmaninoff. Sikorsky left Russia in 1917 when revolution threatened his work and his life.

1943 – First flight of Gloster Meteor jet aircraft in the United Kingdom. The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies’ first operational jet. Meteors saw action with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in the Korean War and remained in service with numerous air forces until the 1970s.
Two Meteors, WL419 and WA638, remain in service with the Martin-Baker company as ejection seat testbeds. Who would want to try that?

1958 – The Explorer 2 spacecraft launches and fails to reach Earth orbit.

In 1962… A Convair B-58 (serial no. 59-2458) of the Forty-third Bombardment Wing breaks three records during a round trip between New York and Los Angeles in 4 hours 41 minutes 14.98 seconds. The fastest trans-continental crossing between Los Angeles and New York is accomplished in 2 hours 58.71 seconds at an average speed of 1,214.65 mph. The third record notches the fastest time between New York and Los Angeles.

1976 – The last flight of the second Concorde prototype aircraft to the Fleet Air Arm Museum at the Royal Naval Air Station, Yeovilton,England.

And that is what happened TODAY in Aviation History. See you Tomorrow!

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