Planes over water — AIR FORCE PHOTOS

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Eddie Rickenbacker

EARLY YEARS -- Edward Vernon Rickenbacker was the American "Ace of Aces" in World War I. Born in Columbus, Ohio, 1890, he gained fame as a race car driver before joining the service. He started in the U. S. Army as a chauffeur to Army Gen. John J. Pershing. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Lt. Benjamin D. Foulois

EARLY YEARS -- Lt. Benjamin D. Foulois about to fly with Orville Wright, 1909 He was also one of the first three officers in the Army to operate the first military airplane purchased by the Government from the Wright Brothers in 1909. He accompanied Orville Wright on the final trial flight from Fort Myer to Alexandria, Va., breaking three world's records - speed, altitude and duration cross-country. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Benjamin Delahauf Foulois

EARLY YEARS -- Maj. Gen. Benjamin Delahauf Foulois. Transferring to Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas, in January 1910, General Foulois was in charge of the first airplane owned and used in the service of the U.S. Army. He was the only pilot, navigator, instructor, observer and commander in the heavier-than-air division of the U.S. Army from November 1909 to April 1911, and made many mechanical improvements, later incorporated in subsequent models of airplanes. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Orville Wright

EARLY YEARS -- Orville Wright (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Eberhart SE-5E

EARLY YEARS -- The SE-5E is an American-built version of the WW I S.E.5a designed by the Royal Aircraft Factory in Britain. The prototype S.E.5 first flew in December 1916 and deliveries of production S.E.5s began in March 1917. Fifty-six more were completed from components shipped from Britain. In the 1922-1923 period. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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The Flying Fish

EARLY YEARS -- Captain Harry Gwynne and his decorated Nieuport Plane, "The Flying Fish," France. In 1912, this plane was the first aircraft fitted with a permanently installed machine gun. Nieuport 11s and 17s were used in World War I by the French and the American Expeditionary Forces as well as by the Air Forces of Russia, Belgium, Italy, and Great Britain. The Nieuport 11, commonly called “Bébé” because of its small size, was instrumental in defeating the “Fokker Scourge” of 1915. The Nieuport 17 was a larger and sturdier aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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L.W.F. Giant Flying Plane

EARLY YEARS -- L.W.F. Giant Flying Plane.The L-W-F Company was founded in December 1915. The company was named after its founders, Edward Lowe, Jr., Charles Willard, and Robert Fowler, and some think also for the laminated wood fuselage it developed. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Handley-Page two-engined bomber

EARLY YEARS -- Handley-Page two-engined bomber in flight over oil tanks. The outbreak of World War I led to this design of the first two-engined bomber. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Martin GMB Bomber

EARLY YEARS -- Glenn Martin GMB Bomber, 1936. The first US-designed bomber procured by the US Army in quantity in the World War I era. The US Army had previously purchased the English Handley-Page O/400 and Italian Caproni designs for construction by US builders with Liberty 12-A engines in place of the original engines. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Caproni Ca.36 bomber

EARLY YEARS -- Caproni Ca.36 -designed bombers were produced during the 1917-1918 period, including a massive triplane, and a 600 HP enlargement of the Ca 33, but none of these realy exceeded the combination of load, range, and reliability that were characteristic of the earlier aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Fokker CO-4

EARLY YEARS -- Fokker CO-4 (Atlantic/Fokker Holland) - Army observation. Dutch construction, essentially an evolution of the German wartime D.7 fighter via AO-1 . One of the first United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) planes to feature a metal propeller. 1925 (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Robert H.Goddard, American Rocket Pioneer

EARLY YEARS -- Robert H. Goddard besides 1926 liquid- fueled rocket. The rocket is on top, receiving its fuel by two lines from the tank at the bottom. Goddard's rockets made little impression upon government officials at the time. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Corporal Vernon L. Burge in Army Wright

EARLY YEARS -- Corporal Vernon L. Burge becomes the first enlisted pilot. Seated in an Army Wright "B" airplane. Like many enlisted pilots who followed, he was an aircraft mechanic prior to earning wings. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Colonel H.M. Hickam in front of S.E. 5

EARLY YEARS -- Colonel H.M. Hickam in front of S.E. 5, Bolling Field Air Tournament, May 14-16, 1920. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Ruth Bancroft Law (Oliver) (1887-1970)

EARLY YEARS -- Ruth Law becomes the first enlisted Army aviatrix June 30, 1917. Ruth Law enjoyed one of the longest and most colorful careers of early female aviators. (Photo by Lt. H.M. Benner, Hammondsport, N.Y.)

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Wilbur Wright

EARLY YEARS -- Wilbur Wright (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Billy Mitchell and Vought VE-7 Bluebird

Brig. Gen. William "Billy" Mitchell standing by a V.E. 7 at Bolling Field, D.C. Air Tournament, May 14 -16, 1920. The Vought VE-7 Bluebird was an advanced military trainer, observer and fighter of World War I. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Question Mark crew

EARLY YEARS -- Flight of the "Question Mark" Crew - Major Howard C. Davidson, Commanding Officer, Bolling Field receiving Capt. Ross G. Hoyt, pilot of refueling plane number 1; Lt. Elwood R. Quesada and Master Sgt. Roy W. Hooe, members of the crew. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Refueling the Question Mark

EARLY YEARS -- Refueling the "?" over Burbank, Capt. Ross G. Hoyt, pilot of refueling plane number 1. January 4, 1929 (U.S. Air Force photo)

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Bombing of the Ostfriesland

Used as a target ship for bombing attacks near Cape Henry, Va., the Ostfriesland was sunk by bombs July 21, 1921. Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell, an outspoken supporter of air power, waged a war throughout his career against his superiors who believed that the airplane was better suited for observation. As head of aviation in the Army Signal Corps during World War I, Mitchell felt otherwise--he knew the power of aviation for the military. Finally, in 1921, he persuaded the Army and the Navy to allow him to demonstrate the capabilities of the airplane by attempting to sink captured German warships. (U.S. Air Force photo)

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