Aviation Firsts: First Take-Off from a Warship
On 14th November 1910, Eugene Ely became the first pilot to take-off from the deck of a warship. Ely, a civilian demonstration pilot, flew a Curtiss Model D biplane (see image #3) from the bow of a Chester-Class Cruiser USS Birmingham commissioned in 1907. The Birmingham was at anchor at Norfolk Navy Yard in Hampton Roads, Virginia when Ely took off from a temporarily erected runway platform.
The runway platform was 57-feet long and angled down over the Birmingham's forecastle and bow (where her forward 5-inch gun was usually positioned) to gravity assist the launch. At 3:15 on the afternoon of the 14th Ely started his plane's engine and minutes later he rolled down the runway as he left the ship his plane seemed to plummet down towards the sea before it skipped along the water's surface and began to climb later landing on a nearby beach. Ely, a non-swimmer, became the first man to fly a plane off a ship. Two months later he became the first man to land an aircraft on a ship when he landed on a purpose built deck on the USS Pennsylvania in January 1911.
Ely landing on the USS Pennsylvania (source)
Sadly, Ely was killed later the same year at the age of 24 during a flying exhibition. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in 1933 for his contributions to the advancement of naval aviation.
Sources:
Image One - Five Source
Image Three Source
Source
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