1961 in aviation: Wikis

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Categories: 1961 in aviation

Encyclopedia

Updated live from Wikipedia, last check: May 29, 2012 03:30 UTC (51 seconds ago)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Years in aviation:	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964
Centuries:	19th Century · 20th century · 21st century
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
Years:	1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1961:

1 Events
2 First flights
3 Entered service

Events

February

February 1 - Trans-Canada Air Lines becomes the first sustained operators of the Vickers Vanguard.
February 3 - Operation Looking Glass commences, meaning that the US Air Force Strategic Air Command would have a permanent, airborne command post.
February 15 - Sabena Flight 548, a Boeing 707, crashes at Brussels, Belgium. All 72 aboard (including the entire United States Figure Skating team), as well as one person on the ground, are killed.

March

March 28 - Air Afrique is formed

April

April 1 - VIASA - the flag carrier of Venezuela - commences operations
April 12 - Yuri Gagarin makes the first human spaceflight in Vostok 1, orbiting the Earth once, in108 minutes.

June

June 1 - United Air Lines absorbs Capital Airlines to become the largest airline in the West, with a fleet of 267 aircraft.
June 21-22 - a Royal Air Force Avro Vulcan makes the first non-stop flight from England to Australia

July

July 1 - the RAF deploys Hawker Hunter combat aircraft to reinforce Kuwait, which is under threat from Iraq. Simultaneously it deploys Canberras and Valiant aircraft to Malta.
July 24 - the first deliveries of the McDonnell D-101B to the Canadian Air Force commence.

September

September 12 - the Hawker P.1127 makes its first transitions from vertical to horizontal flight and back

November

November 25 - the US Navy's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise is commissioned.

First flights

February

Cessna 336 Skymaster

March

Armstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy
March 18 - Tupolev Tu-28

April

April 5 - Dassault Mirage IIIE
April 16 - Beagle Airedale G-ARKE
April 21 - North American X-15

May

Boeing C-135 Stratolifter

June

June 17 - HAL Marut
June 21 - Aviation Traders Carvair G-ANYB

August

August 17 - Handley Page HP-115

October

October 12 - Dassault Mirage IV
October 21 - Breguet Atlantic

November

November 11 - Lockheed F-104G Super Starfighter

Entered service