1952 IN AVIATION

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1952:

Contents

Events

January

February

May

June

July

August

September

October

December

First flights

January

April

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Entered service

Events

January

★ January 5 - Pan Am commences trans-atlantic freight services.

February

★ February 10 - Maj George A. Davis Jr is awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously, after attacking a group of 12 Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15s that were about to bounce other US aircraft. He shot down two before being shot down himself.

May

★ May 1 - the IATA agrees on new "tourist class" fares, which are adopted by Pan Am on its NewYork-London "Rainbow service"

★ May 2 - BOAC introduces the de Havilland DH.108 Comet on its London-Johannesburg route, the first regular service flown by a jet airliner. ''G-AYLP'' makes the first flight.

★ May 12 - Sqn Ldr P. G. Fisher makes the first non-stop, unrefuelled flight from England to Australia in an English Electric Canberra bomber in a record 23 hours 5 minutes.

★ May 29 - aerial refueling is used on a combat mission for the first time, with twelve F-84 Thunderjets of the 159th Fighter Bomber Squadron being refueled by a KB-29 Superfortress on their way to Sariwon

June

★ June 13-16 - Soviet Air Force MiG-15s shoot down a Swedish Air Force C-47 Dakota on an intelligence gathering mission over the Baltic Sea, and the PBY Catalina that is sent to search for survivors.

★ June 23-24 - in the most intense use of airpower of the Korean War, US Navy and Marine Corps aircraft fly 1,200 sorties against North Korean power generation facilities.

July

★ July 1 - the Portuguese Air Force is formed by the amalgamation of the nation's various previous air arms.

★ July 8 - New York Airways begins inter-airport helicopter services to link Idlewild, La Guardia, and Newark airports.

★ July 15-31 - a pair of USAF Sikorsky H-19s make the first transatlantic crossing by helicopter

★ July 29 - a USAF RB-45 Tornado makes the first non-stop crossing of the Pacific by jet

August

★ August 9 - Lt Peter Carmichael of No. 802 Squadron FAA aboard HMS ''Ocean'' claims the Fleet Air Arm's first MiG-15 kill, from a Hawker Sea Fury.

★ August 28 - a F6F Hellcat is loaded with explosives and flown as a remote-controlled drone against a railway bridge at Hungnam

September

★ September 6 - the de Havilland DH.110 prototype disintegrates at the Farnborough Air Show, killing 28 spectators as well as its pilot

October

★ October 26 - a BOAC Comet is badly damaged in an accident during take-off from Rome

December

★ December 20 - A USAF C-124 Globemaster II crashed on take-off from Larson AFB in Moses Lake, WA, USA, killing 87 servicemen- the highest confirmed death toll of any accident in aviation history at the time.

First flights

January

★ January 3 - Bristol Type 173 ''G-ALBN''

★ January 21 - Saab 210

April

★ April 15 - Boeing YB-52 ''49-231''

★ April 27 - Tupolev "88" prototype of Tupolev Tu-16

June

★ June 19 - Yak-120 prototype of Yakovlev Yak-25

July

★ July 3 - Yak-24 twin engine tandem helicopter

★ July 23 - Fouga Magister

August

★ August 6 - Boulton Paul P.120

★ August 16 - Bristol Britannia ''G-ALBO''

★ August 22 - Saunders-Roe Princess ''G-ALUN''

★ August 30 - Avro Vulcan''VX770''

September

★ September 10 - BOMARC surface-to-air missile

★ September 20 - Douglas X-3 Stiletto

★ September 28 - Dassault Mystère IV

★ September 30 - GAM-63 Rascal surface-to-air missile

October

★ October 16 - Sud Aviation Vautour

★ October 28 - Douglas XA3D-1

November

★ November 3 - Saab Lansen

December

★ December 4 - Grumman XS2F-1 Tracker

★ December 24 - Handley Page Victor ''WB771''

Entered service

'January'

★ January 13 - Lockheed Neptune with Royal Air Force

★ January 22 - de Havilland DH.108 Comet with BOAC
'March'

★ March 13 - Airspeed Ambassador with BEA
'June'

★ June 17 - airship ''ZPN-1'' with the US Navy
'August'

★ de Havilland Venom with the RAF