Aviation History Stories

Humans have a long fascination with figuring out ways to fly. It started with Greek mythology and the stories of Icarus flying too close to the sun or a young man named Bellerophon who wanted to ride Pegasus, the flying horse, in the sky. Other cultures around the world have historical and mythical tales of flying, associating it with the feeling of freedom. 

But it has taken hundreds of years to figure out ways for humans to fly. Early aviation pioneers devised wild contraptions that usually failed on the first try. Their persistence paid off as the evolution of flying machines eventually became a reality. From there, it was a matter of time before the first stunt pilot performed aerial acrobatic feats fueled by a wild sense of adventure.

Stunt pilots who started out as barnstormers

In the 1920s, a new aspect of aviation history was created with the advent of pilots known as “barnstormers.” These daredevil pilots, both men and women, performed a variety of stunts in the sky to impress the public with this new form of flying. Shows were staged in fields and farms using local barns for parking their planes hence the name “barnstormer.”  A few of the early barnstorming stunt pilots were:

• Charles Lindbergh
• The Wright Brothers
• Katherine Stinson
• Bessie Coleman

Famous aviators in history 

If not for the English aeronautical engineer George Cayley, who drew up the earliest plans to create a glider in 1804, we might not have the Wright Brothers. They incorporated ideas from Cayley aircraft prototypes into their flying contraptions. In fact, Cayley was dubbed the “Father of Aviation” due to his lifelong scientific research and successful aircraft designs in 1853.

Eight years before famed aviator Charles Lindbergh flew solo across the Atlantic Ocean, there were two relatively unknown English pioneers of aviation history. In 1919, John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown, former WWI military pilots, were the winners in a competition funded by a British newspaper tycoon who wanted to push the limits of the burgeoning aviation technology. The duo of Alcock and Brown became the first transatlantic aviators to do so in 16 harrowing hours, with poor visibility and only a sextant to navigate their route through fog with coffee and whiskey and sandwiches to keep awake.

“We looped the loop,” Alcock recalled. “We did some very comic stunts, for I had no sense of the horizon.”

While their adventure was not to become stunt pilots, it did propel the aviation industry forward as their accomplishment showed the world it was possible to fly across the ocean.

Black aviators throughout history

The first African-American military pilot to fly in combat was Eugene Jacques Bullard. While he was born in America, he never flew for the United States Air Force. Instead, Bullard found a new life overseas in France and joined the Aéronautique Militaire in 1916. The French showered Bullard with many military honors post-WWI and WWII. He died an accomplished airman in 1961.

The first African-American military aviators to fly in the United States Armed Forces were the Tuskegee Airmen during the years of 1940 to 1946. There were 992 black pilots trained at the Tuskegee, Alabama Air Base. Around 445 were sent overseas during WWII, and 150 lost their lives. Today they are honored for their bravery, and their squadron units have received three distinguished awards for their esteemed contributions to WWII.

Bessie Coleman became the first black woman to earn a pilot’s license in 1921. However, that was at a time when U.S. flight schools wouldn’t accept a black woman so she learned French and applied to the Caudron Brothers’ School of Aviation in Le Crotoy, France. She was renowned for her daredevil acrobatic air shows doing figure eights and loop-the-loop spins in the air. “Queen Bess” was ahead of her time, even before famed female aviator Amelia Earhart.

The American Fighter Ace

The American Fighter Aces Association (AFAA) was founded in 1960 to preserve and promote combat pilots who killed the enemy in wartime. There are three categories for membership:

1. Ace: The highest category is given to military fighter pilots who shot down five or more enemy planes in the air
2. Associate: Fighter pilots who shot down one to four enemy planes during wartime
3. Friend: An associate member supporting the AFAA joining as a “Friend of the Aces” 

In 2020, the AFAA amended the Ace and Associate categories to include Back Seaters or those pilots who managed the same feat of shooting down enemy planes while seated behind the pilot. There are 1,447 pilots who have gained the distinction of Fighter Ace. The beloved comic strip character Snoopy was often depicted as a heroic “Flying Ace” on his doghouse. American Air Force squadrons adopted the funny Snoopy as their favorite mascot.

Experience the thrill of being a fighter pilot for a day