Ely flies his Curtiss pusher airplane from USS Birmingham in Hampton Roads, VA, 11/14/1910. USS Roe (Destroyer # 24), serving as plane guard, is visible in the background. From Eugene Ely’s scrapbooks, US Naval Historical Center.
Artwork: "Eugene Ely Taking Off from the USS PENNSYLVANIA” - by John McCoy, 7/18/1911. US Air Force Art Collection
Eugene B. Ely in a Curtiss pusher biplane, with his wife Mabel. Birmingham, AL, Nov. 1910. From Eugene Ely’s scrapbooks, US Naval Historical Center.
E. B. Ely and the Flying Machine, 1/18/1911. National Archives ID 158884444.
Ely at the Instant of His Landing on the Deck of the Pennsylvania, 1/18/1911. National Archives ID 158884438.
Backstory: Naval Aviation’s First Shipboard Launch, Part II
ICYMI - Part I: Backstory: Naval Aviation’s First Shipboard Launch!
In Part I of his Text Message blog: The First Aeroplane Take Off from a Ship, senior archivist Bradsher shared how a few visionaries’ radical innovations transformed Naval air power. In Part II, he meets us on deck and takes off with more of this exciting story!
Read Part II of Greg Bradsher’s great blog post and learn:
How did Ely use flying to finance the purchase of a diamond engagement ring?
Which self-help writer and publisher rented his new 1910 Wright Brothers Type B airplane to the War Department for $1 a month?
Which earlier aviator’s wife wasn’t concerned about safety because: “I have personally seen to it that he will be properly equipped with life buoys, and he will wear them!”
In what year did Congress first appropriate money for the purchase, maintenance, operation, and repair of planes?
What early test flight was aborted when an oil can carelessly left resting on a plane was knocked off, fell into and broke the whirling propeller?
What early aviator, when asked “Are you not afraid of getting a dunking? I suppose you can float?” “Responded: “Yes, and so does my machine.”
More aviation-related records from the National Archives:
Records of the Federal Aviation Administration [FAA]
Records of the Bureau of Aeronautics
Airline Traffic and Capacity Data
Records of the Army Air Forces [AAF]
US Navy Ships - Aircraft Carriers
