July is an Eventful Aviation History Month!

July, indeed, is an eventful month in aviation history.

According to Wikipedia, “Two days ago in 1969, the Apollo 11 mission successfully landed astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon on July 20, 1969. As Commander, Armstrong became the first human to walk on the lunar surface, declaring, ‘That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind,’ while pilot Michael Collins orbited above [the Lunar surface].”

Courtesy NASA

And then two days later and thirty-six years earlier on July 22, 1933 and according to the History.com editors, Wiley Post was the first man to fly solo around the world.

“American aviator Wiley Post returned to Floyd Bennett Field in New York, having flown solo around the world in 7 days, 18 hours, and 49 minutes. He was the first aviator to accomplish the feat.

“Post, instantly recognizable by the patch he wore over one eye, began the journey on July 15, flying nonstop to Berlin. After a brief rest, he flew on to the Soviet Union, where he made several stops before returning to North America, with stops in Alaska, Canada, and finally a triumphant landing at his starting point in New York.

Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

“Two years earlier, Post had won fame when he successfully flew around the northern part of the earth with aviator Harold Gatty. For his solo around-the-world flight in 1933, he flew a slightly greater distance–15,596 miles–in less time. For both flights, he used the Winnie Mae, a Lockheed Vega monoplane that was equipped with a Sperry automatic pilot and a direction radio for Post’s solo journey. In August 1935, he was attempting to fly across the North Pole to the USSR with American humorist Will Rogers when both men were killed in a crash near Point Barrow, Alaska.”

Onward and upward!

Sources:  Wikipedia, History.com, Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images