On 17 November 1924, USS Langley (CV-1) reported for duty with the United States Navy’s Battle Fleet after two years in experimental status, thus becoming the Navy’s first operational aircraft carrier. Head of the Bureau of Naval Aeronautics was Rear Admiral William Adger Moffett who had pushed for the development of the Navy’s new air [...]
Rear Admiral William Adger Moffett, The Father of Naval Aviation Today is the birthday of the naval officer who was able to foresee a powerful air arm of the United States Navy. William Adger Moffett was born in Charleston, South Carolina, on 31 October 1869. He was the son of Confederate Captain George Hall Moffett, [...]
Navy Lieutenants Thomas G. W. Settle and Wilfred Bushnell took first place in the International Balloon Race on 27 September 1932 when their gas balloon landed on the Polish-Latvian border at Daugieliszki, Poland.
Today is Video Thursday and we’ll take a look at the Navy’s airship history and the aircraft that accompanied them. This first clip shows rare footage of the Vought UO-1 observation airplane hooking onto the USS Los Angeles, ZR-3. You may notice that some of the naval personnel here are actors, not real Navy, and [...]
Beginning on 02 March 1925, the United States Navy made the first tactical use of naval air power with the operations of the USS Langley, CV-1, during Fleet Problem V. Interestingly, Fleet Problem V was a fictional attack upon Hawaii! Aircraft from the Langley were only used for scouting purposes, but her air group’s performance [...]
Yesterday marked the 89th anniversary of the formation of the Bureau of Naval Aeronautics on 10 August 1921. Charlestonian Captain William Adger Moffett was nominated by President Harding to become the first Chief of the Bureau of Naval Aeronautics, a position he would hold until his death in the crash of the airship Akron in [...]
