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The first catapult launch of a plane from an aircraft carrier took place 100 years ago today
The first catapult launch of a plane from an aircraft carrier took place 100 years ago today
Jeremy BenderNov 6, 2015, 02:57 IST
On November 5, 1915, a plane was launched from a ship by catapult for the first time in history.
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And, despite the prevailing ideas at the time that naval aviation was an outlandish endeavor, the flight was a success.
Curtiss AB-2 (C-2) Aircraft being catapulted from USS North Carolina (ACR-12) on 5 November 1915. TheNaval History & Heritage Command
The pilot for that historic flight was Henry C. Mustin, a naval aviator who helped to found the Naval Aeronautic Station at Pensacola, Florida in 1913. Mustin, using an early catapult system, managed to launch himself successfully from the armored cruiser USS North Carolina at the naval station.
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Lieutenant Commander Henry C. MustinNaval History & Heritage CommandThe first catapult launch of an aircraft from a naval vessel, on November 5, 1915.Public DomainAfter that risky start in 1915 US aircraft carrier abilities quickly advanced. By 1922, the US operated the USS Langley, an aircraft carrier that could carry 30 planes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo_vTqdIZbw
