Category: TDiFH

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19551221: CAA and the Air Force announced an agreement under which CAA would for the first time use USAF Air Defense Command radar for civil air traffic control. Under the arrangement, CAA used information from the Air Defense Command radar at the Olathe, Kan., Naval Air Station to maintain approach control at nearby airports. CAA commissioned the facility for this use on January 15, 1957.
19641221: The General Dynamics F-111 fighter, the world’s first variable-wing aircraft, made its first flight.
19681221: The United States launched Apollo 8, the first manned mission to orbit the moon. (See July 20, 1969.)

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19291220: Pan American Airways placed orders for the Sikorsky S-40, a large four-engined flying boat. These were the first airplanes that Pan American christened “Clipper,” the subsequent trade mark name of the airline’s planes.
19331220: The Martin M-130 made its first flight. CAA type-certificated this four-engine, transoceanic flying boat designed for Pan American Airways, on October 9, 1935. The aircraft began service with Pan American on November 22, 1935.
19501220: Executive Order No. 10197, prepared and issued this date at the request of the Department of Defense, directed the Secretary of Commerce to exercise security control over aircraft in flight.

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19281219: Harold F. Pitcairn made the first autogyro flight in the United States at Willow Grove, Pa. Designed by Spain’s Juan de la Cierva, the rotary-wing aircraft obtained its support in flight from a rotor turned by the air forces resulting from its motion. Propulsion came from a conventional engine and airscrew. On February 12, 1931, the Detroit News placed the first order for a commercial autogyro in the United States, the Pitcairn PC A-2. The Aeronautics Branch type-certificated the plane on April 2, 1931, and Pitcairn’s Autogyro Company of America built 51 autogyros in 1931.
19601219: The Martin Company delivered its last airplane, a Marlin Patrol Boat, to the Navy. Since the company’s founding by Glenn L. Martin in 1912, it had produced more than 12,000 aircraft. Since 1948, the company had also been active in the missile-space field, and it would continue in that field.

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19261218: The first issue of Domestic Air News, the Aeronautics Branch official publication, appeared. (See July 1, 1929.)
The regulations required all aircraft engaged in interstate or foreign commerce to be licensed and marked with an assigned identification number. Pilots of licensed aircraft were required to hold private or commercial licenses. Commercial pilots were classed as either transport or industrial. Mechanics repairing aircraft engaged in air commerce were required to secure either engine or airplane mechanic licenses, or both. Owners, pilots, and mechanics affected had until March 1 (later extended to May 1), 1927, to place their applications on file. Pending action on these applications by the Aeronautics Branch, those applying by the specified date could continue operating as previously until July 1, 1927. Failure to apply as required was punishable by a $500 fine. The regulations also prescribed operational and air traffic safety rules. (See March 22, 1927.)

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19351217: The Douglas DC-3 first flew. One of the most successful aircraft in history, the DC-3 was the first plane that allowed airlines to begin basing their profits squarely on passenger service rather than on carrying mail. The Bureau of Air Commerce certificated this aircraft on May 21, 1936, and American Airlines became the first to place it in service (using the berth-equipped DST version) on June 25, 1936. By 1942, the DC-3 represented 80 percent of the U.S. airline fleet. When production of the DC-3 and its modifications ended in 1945, 10,926 aircraft had been built, 803 as commercial airliners, and the rest as military versions (called C-47 in the U.S. Army, R4D in the U.S. Navy, Dakota or Dakota I by the British).
19401217: The first annual observance of Pan American Aviation Day took place in accordance with legislation enacted on October 10 (see December 17, 1963).
19471217: A prototype of the Boeing B-47 Stratojet made its maiden flight.

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19301216: The Aeronautics Branch opened the National Conference on Uniform Aeronautic Regulatory Laws. Representatives from 45 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and the Philippine Islands attended the two-day meeting to discuss uniformity of air regulations. (See August 1, 1928, and March 23, 1933.)
19601216: A United DC-8 and a TWA Super Constellation collided in midair over Brooklyn, N.Y., killing all 128 occupants aboard the planes and eight persons on the ground. CAB determined that the probable cause was that the United flight proceeded beyond its clearance limit and confines of the airspace assigned by Air Traffic Control. The DC-8’s high speed, coupled with a change of clearance which reduced the distance which the aircraft needed to travel by approximately 11 miles, contributed to the crash.

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19511215: The Secretaries of Commerce and Defense signed the Civil Reserve Air Fleet Plan. The plan, developed in consultation with the airlines, stipulated that the airlines would provide ninety-one aircraft to the Military Air Transport Service within forty-eight hours of notification. An additional 271 aircraft were to be provided 30 days later. The plan was the result of an executive order issued by President Truman on March 2, 1951, which, in part, authorized the Secretary of Commerce to transfer or assign civil air carriers to the Department of Defense during mobilization.
19601215: FAA began the assimilation of six Military Flight Service Centers manned by approximately 500 men of the USAF Airways and Air Communications Services. Completed the following spring, the transfer was a part of the overall FAA-DOD plan labeled “Project Friendship” (see October 7, 1959, January 1962, and February 17, 1962).

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19281214: The International Civil Aeronautics Conference held sessions in Washington, D.C. The President had suggested the conference, and Congress had authorized it by a joint resolution. The 441 participants included 77 official and 39 unofficial delegates from foreign countries. The conference provided an opportunity to exchange views on problems pertaining to aircraft in international commerce, and the program included presentations on a variety of aviation topics. Another purpose was to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the first flight of the Wright brothers. Orville Wright was guest of honor, and the membership of the conference attended ceremonies at Kitty Hawk, N.C., on the December 17 anniversary.
19641214: The first FAA-designed and -constructed airport traffic control tower was commissioned at Lake Tahoe (Calif.) Airport.

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19411213: The President directed the Secretary of Commerce “to exercise his control and jurisdiction over civil aviation in accordance with requirements for the successful prosecution of the war, as may be requested by the Secretary of War.” The Executive order also authorized the latter “to take possession and assume control of any civil aviation system, or systems, or any part thereof, to the extent necessary for the successful prosecution of the war.”
19561213: In Allegheny Airlines, Inc., v. Village of Cedarhurst, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld a lower court judgment that permanently voided a Cedarhurst ordinance prohibiting flights over the village at an altitude under 1,000 feet. Cedarhurst, situated near New York International Airport (Idlewild), argued that the flights over the village constituted a “taking,” as set forth by the Supreme Court in the Causby case (see May 27, 1946).

Full FAA Chronology at this link.
19411212: President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8974, transforming the Civilian Pilot Training Program into a wartime program. Henceforth, the CPTP would be “exclusively devoted to the procurement and training of men for ultimate service as military pilots, or for correlated non-military activities.” (See May 16, 1940, and December 7, 1942.)
19781212: The first production model of the Automated Radar Terminal System (ARTS) II began service at Toledo, Ohio (see October 1, 1976). The device was developed for airports whose traffic volume did not warrant the much more costly ARTS III in use at major hubs.