Aviation
Historical Chronology
Aviation
Historical ChronologyTHE NEW NAVY
In spite of truce in Korea, peace in the world remained on unsteady
footing. Within months, the worsening situation in the Far East,
a series of crises in the Middle East, and a general deterioration
in international relations gave new importance to the traditional
practice of deploying naval forces to trouble spots of the world.
As tension grew taut, hostility became open, and as international
maneuverings provided incidents and demands which threatened world
peace, naval forces were called upon to represent the nation in
critical areas. On different occasions these forces evacuated
refugees, patrolled troubled waters, provided support to menaced
nations, and presented a physical symbol of freedom as a bulwark
between the aggressor and the oppressed.
The period was also marked by technological and scientific advances
of such magnitude that the Navy and Naval Aviation passed through
a change greater than any in history. The effective exploitation
of these advances enhanced the speed, firepower, versatility,
and mobility of naval sea and air forces. Guns were being replaced
by guided missiles, capability to deliver nuclear weapons was
increased, aircraft speeds jumped from sub- to super-sonic, the
adaptation of nuclear power to aircraft was under investigation,
and an increased knowledge of space gave evidence of its future
effect on surface operations.
Guided missiles of several types were perfected and placed into
operation. Air-to-air missiles became standard equipment on interceptors;
a ground support type was deployed by fleet squadrons. Air defense
missiles were on board operating ships. Air-to-surface missiles
were assigned to the Naval Air Reserve, and an interceptor missile
was introduced into flight training. The fleet ballistic missile,
Polaris, was deployed on nuclear powered submarines.
A new class of carriers was built and the basic carrier modernization
program was completed. Carrier forces, strengthened by these additions
and improvements, operated a whole new family
of aircraft with high performance capabilities. The successful
application of nuclear power to ships of several types was climaxed
by the construction of a new carrier utilizing the advantages
of this new found source of power.
Accompanying the intensive application of technological advances
were extensive reorganizations within the Department by which
greater emphasis was placed on research, new provisions were made
for utilizing developments in space, and closely related activities
in technical fields were brought together by the merger of two
bureaus. Similar adjustments in the Fleet provided a more uniform
organization for carrier aviation, set up special task groups
for the progressive improvement of antisubmarine tactics, provided
completely equipped mobile amphibious squadrons ready to operate
in the new tactics of vertical assault, and revised the Reserve
program to provide units trained and equipped to perform specific
tasks immediately upon mobilization.
All these advances in technology and all the improvements in weapons
and equipment created a new Navy which paradoxically continued
to play its traditional role in controlling the sea. Defense of
the Nation and of its commerce, deterrence of aggression, and
readiness in time of war to destroy any active enemy power remained
the Navy's basic tasks.
Events of the later years were largely dominated by space. As
a new age loomed upon the horizon, questions were raised and investigations
made regarding the state of the Nation's scientific attainment,
the quality of its educational program, and the relative position
of its progress in missilery. Successful orbits by Explorer I
and Vanguard provided the first of a number of convincing answers.
Within months, the orbit of man-made satellites became almost
commonplace and the fantasy of man in space began to take on realistic
form as tests demonstrated the feasibility of retrieving objects
from orbit and an astronaut training program was launched.
JANUARY
1--The Naval Air Weapons Systems School was established at Jacksonville
to train cadres in maintenance of air-launched guided missiles,
aircraft armament control systems missile external control equipment,
and bomb directors.
APRIL
1--The first transcontinental flights in less than 4 hours were
made by three pilots of VF-21 in F9F Cougars in a 2,438-mile flight
from San Diego to Floyd Bennett Field, N.Y., with aerial refueling
over Hutchinson, Kans. Lieutenant Commander F. X. Brady made the
crossing in 3 hours 45 minutes 30 seconds, Lieutenant (jg) J.
C. Barrow took 1 minute and 19 seconds longer, and Lieutenant
W. Rich made it in 3 hours 48 minutes even. Official timers were
not present.
19--Model designations for airships were modified to conform with
designations for heavier-than-air aircraft. Basically, the envelope
designation letters "K" and "N" were replaced
by manufacturer's letters, standard suffix numbers and letters
were uniformly applied and the patrol class of airships was divided
into patrol and antisubmarine classes. Thus the ZPN became the
ZPG-1 and the ZP2K became the ZSG-2.
MAY
25--A ZPG-2 airship, commanded by Commander M. H. Eppes, landed
at NAS Key West, Fla., after a record breaking flight of 200.1
hours or more than 8 days in the air. The flight, which began
at NAS Lakehurst, N.J., ranged over the Atlantic as far north
as Nova Scotia, out to Bermuda and Nassau and southward over the
Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. For his achievement on this flight,
Commander Eppes was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and
later the 1955 Harmon International Trophy for Aeronauts.
27--The Chief of Naval Operations approved Project 125 of the
carrier improvement program which in general provided for installing
an angled deck, enclosing the bow to improve seaworthiness, and
making other changes to further modernize the carriers that had
completed the earlier Project 27A.
JUNE
1--Commander H. J. Jackson, in an S2F-1, was catapulted from the
Hancock in the initial operational test of the C-11 steam
catapult. As tests continued throughout the month, a total of
254 launchings were made with the S2F, AD-5, F2H-3, F2H-4, FJ-2,
F7U-3 and F3D-2.
15--To coordinate and guide the extensive aeronautical research,
development, and material activities in the Fourth Naval District,
embracing the Philadelphia, Johnsville, Trenton, and Lakehurst
areas, the Naval Air Development and Material Center was established
at Johnsville, Pa., Rear Admiral S. B. Spangler, Commander.
JULY
22--The XZS2G-1 (formerly XZP5K-1) made its first flight at Goodyear
Aircraft Corporation, Akron. This airship, designed as a replacement
for the K Class airship, was fitted with inverted "Y"
control surfaces.
26--Two AD Skyraiders of Air Group 5 from Philippine Sea,
were attacked by two LA-7 type aircraft while searching for survivors
of a Cathay airliner shot down 3 days before off Hainan Island.
The AD pilots returned fire and splashed both attackers.
SEPTEMBER
4--A P2V of Patrol Squadron 19, on routine reconnaissance over
international waters, was attacked by two MiG aircraft and forced
to ditch off the Siberian coast. Nine of the crew escaped and
were later rescued, but one went down with the plane.
OCTOBER
31--ENS Duane L. Varner of VF-34 completed a 1,900-mile nonstop,
non-refueling, transcontinental flight from Los Alamitos, Calif.,
to Cecil Field, Fla., in 3 hours and 58 minutes in an F2H-2 Banshee.
NOVEMBER
2--The XFY-1 delta wing experimental fighter, piloted by J. F.
Coleman, made a successful flight at NAS Moffett Field, consisting
of vertical takeoff, transition to horizontal and return to vertical
position for landing. The first free vertical takeoff had been
made 1 August. For his contribution to the art of flying, in testing
the XFY-1, Coleman was later awarded the Harmon International
Trophy for 1955.
JANUARY
17--Development Squadron VX-6 was established at NAS Patuxent
River for operations with Task Force 43 on Operation Deep Freeze.
This squadron provided services for parties based ashore on Antarctica
and made courier flights between that continent and New Zealand.
21--The Flying Platform, a one-man helicopter of radical design,
made its first flight at the Hiller plant in Palo Alto, Calif.
Although the flight occurred during ground tests and was therefore
accidental, it was successful in all respects.
27--A North American FJ-3 Fury, piloted by Lieutenant Commander
W. J. Manby of VF-33, set a new unofficial climb mark by reaching
10,000 feet from a standing start 73.2 seconds at NAS Oceana.
FEBRUARY
1--Task Force 43, Captain G. J. Dufek commanding, was activated
to plan Antarctic operations scheduled to begin in the fall under
the code name Operation Deep Freeze. The mission of the Force,
on its first expedition was to build facilities and airstrips
and deliver supplies in support of U.S. participation in the International
Geophysical Year 1957-58.
1--Patrol Squadron 23 left Tarragona, Spain, for NAS Port Lyautey,
after 6 days of intensive training at the Spanish Military Air
Base at Reus. This was the first operation of U.S. forces from
bases in Spain.
6--After steaming from the Atlantic to the Pacific around the
Cape of Good Hope, Midway reported to Commander Task Force 77
for operations in the China Seas. This marked the first operation
of ships of her class in the western Pacific.
12--The evacuation of 24,000 military and civilian personnel of
the Republic of China from the Tachen Islands, off the China coast,
was completed without incident under cover of surface ships and
carrier air of the Seventh Fleet.
13--An F3H-1N Demon, piloted by McDonnell Test Pilot C. V. Braun,
set the unofficial record for climb to 10,000 feet at 71 seconds.
16--The Bureau of Aeronautics issued instructions describing new
color schemes that would be used on all new Navy and Marine Corps
aircraft beginning 1 July 1955 and applied on all currently operating
aircraft within the next 2 years. The familiar sea blue was changed
to light gull gray on top and glossy white below for carrier aircraft,
all over seaplane gray for water based aircraft and all over light
gull gray for helicopters. Bare aluminum was retained for utility
types and land plane transports, the latter having in addition
a solar heat reflecting white top. Orange-yellow remained the
color for primary trainers but the advanced trainer scheme was
changed to international orange and insignia white. Other changes
were olive drab above and glossy white below for land observation
types and a combination of orange-yellow, engine gray and insignia
red for target drones and target tow aircraft.
23--An F4D Skyray, piloted by Douglas Test. Pilot R. O. Rahn,
reached 10,000 feet in 56 seconds, the fourth unofficial climb
record set by Navy carrier fighters in less than a month.
24--The Chief of Naval operations directed that the term "angled,"
be used in lieu of "canted," "slanted," and
"flamed" which had been variously used in describing
the deck of aircraft carriers in which the landing runway was
offset from the line of the keel.
24--The first R3Y-1 Tradewind, high-speed seaplane transport equipped
with four Allison turboprop engines, was delivered to NATC Patuxent
River for service suitability evaluation and trials. Intended
for the long-range over-water transportation of military cargo,
this plane was also suitable for use as a personnel or troop transport
and for the air evacuation of wounded.
MARCH
22--A Navy R6D of VR-3, assigned to MATS, crashed and exploded
at 0203 on Pali Kea Peak, 15 miles northwest of Honolulu, killing
all on board. The 57 passengers and nine crew members lost in
this tragedy made it the worst heavier-than-air crash in naval
aviation history.
25--The Chance Vought XF8U-1, a jet carrier fighter, exceeded
the speed of sound on its first flight, made at Edwards AF Base.
APRIL
4--The Jet Transitional Training Unit was established at NAS Olathe
to provide student training for aviators transferring from shore
to sea duty in the rank of commander and below. In addition to
providing refresher training for these "desk pilots,"
the unit was responsible for training pilots making the transition
from prop to jet type aircraft.
30--Admiral John H. Towers, Naval Aviator No. 3, died. His long
and distinguished career as a naval aviator began on 26 June 1911,
when he reported for flight instruction at the Curtiss Flying
School, Hammondsport, N.Y., and extended through many important
aviation and fleet commands including Chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics,
Commander Air Force Pacific, Commander Second Carrier Task Force
and Commander in Chief Pacific Fleet. Upon his retirement from
active duty on 1 December 1947, he was serving as Chairman of
the General Board.
MAY
2--The Navy announced the Aviation Officer Candidate Program,
open to college graduates between the ages of 19 and 26. The new
program paralleled the Aviation Cadet Program insofar as flight
training was concerned but, in recognition of the higher scholastic
attainment of its candidates, offered a commission as Ensign,
USNR, upon completion of the 4-month preflight course.
5--Patrol Squadron 1, with 12 P2V-5 Neptunes, returning from duty
in the Far East by way of Asia, Europe, and North Africa, arrived
at NAS Whidbey Island. Although a tour of duty separated the Pacific
Ocean leg from the rest of the flight, this was the first round-the-world
flight by a Navy squadron.
12--The classification of naval vessels was revised to provide
the designation CVHE for Escort Helicopter Aircraft Carrier and
CVU for Utility Aircraft Carrier. The carriers were redesignated
1 month later.
JUNE
1--Electronic Countermeasures Squadron 1 (VQ-1), first squadron
of its type in the U.S. Navy, was established at NAS Iwakuni,
Japan, with Lieutenant Commander Eugene R. Hall in command. First
aircraft assigned were P4M-1Q Mercators.
22--A P2V-5 Neptune of VP-9, while on patrol in the Aleutian area,
was attacked by two MiG-15s, which set fire to the starboard engine
and forced the Neptune to crash on St. Lawrence Island, near Gambell.
There were no fatalities.
JULY
1--NAAS Mayport was established, completing the program begun
in 1948 of converting the Jacksonville area into a Fleet Aviation
Center. Mayport provided docking facilities for carriers alongside
the airstrip, thus permitting the rapid loading or unloading of
special equipment and personnel, and the easy movement of carrier
air units ashore or afloat.
1--The escort carrier Thetis Bay, in process of conversion
to the new mission, was reclassified as an assault Helicopter
Aircraft Carrier and redesignated CVHA 1.
14--The Martin P6M Seamaster, a swept-wing seaplane powered with
four J-71 jet engines and incorporating a new hull design, made
its first flight. Designed for minelaying and reconnaissance tasks,
and adaptable to other missions, this plane initially demonstrated
great promise for the offensive potential of the operating forces.
AUGUST
22--As VX-3 began operational evaluation of the mirror landing
system installed on Bennington, the Commanding Officer, Commander
R. G. Dose, flying an FJ-3 Fury, made the first landing with the
device. Two days later Lieutenant Commander H. C. MacKnight made
the first night landing in an F9F-8 Cougar. The squadron's favorable
report formed the basis for a decision to procure the mirror landing
system for installation on aircraft carriers and at certain shore
stations.
SEPTEMBER
12--The Navy announced that all fighters in production would be
fitted with gear for inflight refueling, thus establishing the
technique as a standard operational procedure.
16--Guided Missile Group ONE (GMGRU-1) was established at San
Diego to provide trained detachments to operate the Regulus Assault
Missile from aircraft carriers and to support the employment of
the Regulus on cruisers and submarines of the Pacific Fleet. Ten
days later, GMGRU-2 was established at Chincoteague to provide
the same services in the Atlantic Fleet.
27--Navy responsibilities in connection with plans to launch an
earth satellite during the International Geophysical Year, which
included technical management of the Department of Defense portion
of the program, were assigned to the Chief of Naval Research.
OCTOBER
1--Forrestal first of four ships of her class, was placed
in commission at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Va.,
Captain R. L. Johnson in command.
10--The carrier Saipan with Helicopter Training Unit HTU-1
aboard, left Tampico, Mexico, after a week of disaster relief
operations for the inhabitants of the area. During these operations,
the helicopters rescued 5,439 persons marooned on rooftops, trees
and other retreats, and delivered 183,017 pounds of food and medical
supplies, thus earning the commendation of the Task Group Commander
and the best wishes of a thankful people.
11--The Navy announced achievement of the initial step towards
an eventual goal of monitoring surface weather in uninhabited
portions of the world and thereby providing improved weather forecasting
for use in both flight and surface operations. Automatic meteorological
stations, developed by the Office of Naval Research and the Bureau
of Aeronautics, were set adrift in the hurricane lanes north of
Puerto Rico and provided continuous weather data on tropical storm
Janet. Subsequent progress included a moored automatic weather
station, one of which in September 1960 provided the first alert
on tropical storm Ethel; unit stations on Antarctica, initially
in 1956 but more successfully in 1960; and nuclear energy power
as a source for data collection and transmission beginning in
1964.
15--Lieutenant Gordon Gray, piloting a Douglas A4D-1 Skyhawk,
broke the Class C world speed record for 500 kilometers with a
mark of 695.163 m.p.h., at Muroc, Calif.
NOVEMBER
1--Boston (CAG 1), Terrier missile ship and the world's
first guided-missiles cruiser, was placed in commission at the
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Captain C. B. Martell commanding.
8--The Secretary of Defense established a National Ballistic Missile
Program, involving joint Army-Navy development of an intermediate
range ballistic missile, for both shipboard and land-based operations.
This resulted in Navy support for the Army's liquid-propellant
missile Jupiter being developed at the Redstone Arsenal in order
to adapt it to a Fleet Ballistic Missile.
9--The Chief of Naval Operations informed the Chief of the Bureau
of Ships of his intention to equip each angled-deck carrier with
mirror landing systems and requested that equipment for 12 installations
be procured during the fiscal years 1956 and 1957.
14--The flagship of Rear Admiral George Dufek, Commander Task
Force 43, sailed from Norfolk for New Zealand, to rendezvous with
the ships of the force for the southward voyage to Antarctica.
Operating under the code name Operation Deep Freeze the mission
of this force was to establish bases on Antarctica for geophysical
studies during the coming year.
DECEMBER
1--An element of Fleet All Weather Training Unit, Pacific (FAWTUPAC),
was assigned to the Continental Air Defense Command to operate
as a fighter-interceptor group under U.S. Air Force control. When
FAWTUPAC was disestablished on 2 May 1958, this element was given
squadron status and designated VF(AW)-3.
4--On one flight of a project set up to evaluate the all-weather
capabilities of airships, Lieutenant Commander Charles A. Mills
operated a ZPG airship in the vicinity of South Weymouth, Mass.,
in an ice-accreting experiment unparalleled in lighter-than-air
history. In spite of heavy airship icing, propeller icing, severe
vibration and flying ice particles, Mills piloted his airship,
directed the collection of data, returned to the field under instrument
conditions, and made a ground-controlled approach landing in a
manner that retained a maximum amount of ice on the ship for analysis
on the ground. For his achievement on this and other flights during
the evaluation, Lieutenant Commander Mills was awarded the 1956
Harmon International Trophy for Aeronauts.
20--Two P2V Neptunes and two R5D Skymasters of VX-6 forged the
first air link with the continent of Antarctica with a flight
from Christchurch, New Zealand, to McMurdo Sound.
JANUARY
3--Airship AEW Squadron 1 (ZW-1), Commander L. J. Mack commanding,
was established at NAS, Lakehurst--the first lighter-than-air
unit of its type.
10--Airborne Early Warning Wing, Pacific Captain E. C. Renfro
commanding, was established at NAS, Barbers Point, to supervise
and direct units flying defensive patrols protecting the continental
United States and Hawaii against surprise attack.
MARCH
7--Fleet assignment of the F3H-2N Demon, all-weather fighter,
began with the delivery of six F3H-2N's to VF-14 at NAS Cecil
Field.
12--Attack Squadron 83, equipped with F7U-3M Cutlass aircraft
and Sparrow I missiles, departed Norfolk aboard Intrepid
for duty in the Mediterranean in the first overseas deployment
of a naval missile squadron.
12--The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Development
established a titanium alloy sheet rolling program and designated
the Bureau of Aeronautics as coordinator. Thereby an organized
effort of the armed services and the titanium industry was established
to improve titanium alloys with particular emphasis upon strength,
uniformity and fabricating characteristics for use in aircraft
and missiles.
20--The Ballistic Missile Committee, Office of the Secretary of
Defense, approved a Navy program for development of solid-propellant
motors for use in ship-based ballistic missiles.
31--Five A3D-1 aircraft were ferried from NAS Patuxent to Heavy
Attack Squadron 1 at NAS Jacksonville, completing the first delivery
of Skywarriors to a fleet unit.
APRIL
3--The Navy announced that the Petrel, an air-to-surface guided
missile designed for use by patrol aircraft against shipping,
was in operational use from the P2V-6M's of VP-24.
23--Cognizance of Project Vanguard within OPNAV was assigned to
the Guided Missiles Division of DCNO (Air) which was made responsible
for advising the Chief of Naval Operations on general aspects
of the program and with supporting and assisting the Office of
Naval Research in the resolution of problems, other than fiscal,
arising within the Navy Department and at missile test activities
of other services.
25--The Chief of Naval Operations announced that mirror landing
systems would be installed in the near future at all principal
Naval Air Stations for improvement of air traffic control and
reduction of landing accidents.
26--The Naval Aircraft Factory at Philadelphia was renamed the
Naval Air Engineering Facility (Ships Installations) and its mission
revised to include research, engineering, design, development,
and limited manufacturing of devices and equipment for launching
and recovering aircraft and guided missiles. Redesignation ceremonies
on 1 June marked the passing of a name prominent in naval aviation
since World War I.
MAY
29--The ship designation system was modified to provide for use
of the suffix "(N)" to identify vessels propelled by
nuclear energy.
JUNE
25--U.S. Naval Ordnance Plant, Indianapolis, a facility devoted
to research, development, production, and repair of aviation fire
control equipment was redesignated U.S. Naval Avionics Facility.
This facility had been established early in World War II for development
and production of aviation ordnance including the Norden bombsight.
Its redesignation completed an internal Navy realignment whereby
the Bureau of Ordnance had received complete responsibility for
solid propellant rocket motors and the Bureau of Aeronautics had
received complete responsibility for aviation fire control equipment.
27-28--The first annual Fleet Air Gunnery Meet was held at NAAS
El Centro, Calif. Six teams, selected from Navy and Marine Corps
shore-based fighter units and composed of the squadron commander
and three pilots, competed with two firings each at 15,000 and
25,000 feet. Top team honors and the Earle Trophy went to VF-112
of AirPac, and individual honors to Lieutenant (jg) H. N. Wellman
of VF-43 and AirLant.
JULY
7--Airborne Early Warning Squadron 12 and Maintenance Squadron
2 were established at NAS Barbers Point, for patrol duty along
the Pacific Distant Early Warning Line of the Continental Air
Defense System.
12--The Chief, Bureau of Aeronautics, approved a reorganization
of the Office of Assistant Chief for Research and Development,
whereby various technical divisions with closely related functions
were regrouped under appropriately titled officers. Thereby a
reorganization of the entire bureau was completed which had been
initiated a year earlier and which had included the establishment
of an Assistant Chief for Plans and Programs with a concomitant
strengthening of planning functions and a division of the Material
and Services group into two groups titled "Procurement"
and "Maintenance and Support," each under an Assistant
Chief.
14--In the initial overseas deployment of a Sidewinder missile
unit, VA-46, equipped with F9F-8's, departed from Norfolk on the
Randolph for operations with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean.
Deployment of the Sidewinder was extended to the Western Pacific
the following month as VF-211, equipped with FJ-3's, departed
the west coast on Bon Homme Richard for operations with
the Seventh Fleet.
20--Thetis Bay (CVHA 1), first helicopter assault carrier,
was commissioned at San Francisco, Captain T. W. South III, commanding.
Formerly CVE 90, Thetis Bay was converted to operate helicopters
and to accommodate 1,000 Marine combat troops to be flown ashore
in the vertical development tactics of amphibious assault.
31--An A3D Skywarrior, manned by Lieutenant Commanders P. Harwood
and A. Henson, and Lieutenant R. Miears, demonstrated the performance
capabilities of new carrier jet attack aircraft with 3,200-mile
nonstop, non-refueling flight from Honolulu to Albuquerque, N.
Mex., in 5 hours and 40 minutes, for an average speed of 570 m.p.h.
AUGUST
15--The Avionics Division was established in the Research and
Development Group of the Bureau of Aeronautics with Captain W.
E. Sweeney as Director. Formed by a merger of the Electronics
and Armament Divisions and the Navigation Branch of the Airborne
Equipment Division, its establishment was both the direct result
of a rapid expansion of electronics techniques in aviation armament
and air navigation, and a recognition of the need for closely
coordinated effort for their most effective application.
21--An F8U-1 Crusader, piloted by Commander R. W. Windsor, captured
the Thompson Trophy with a new national speed record of 1015.428
m.p.h. over the 15-kilometer course at Naval Ordnance Test Station,
China Lake, Calif. This production model carrier fighter, equipped
during its record performance with full armament of 20 mm cannon
and dummy ammunition, was the first operationally equipped jet
plane in history to fly faster than 1,000 m.p.h.
22--Lieutenant Commander Virgil Solomon set down the Marianas
Mars on waters off NAS Alameda after a flight from Honolulu and
completed the last scheduled passenger run for Mars aircraft.
22--A P4M Mercator, while on night patrol out of Iwakuni, Japan,
reported that it was under attack by aircraft over international
waters, 32 miles off the China coast, and was not heard from again.
Carrier and land-based air and surface ships, searching for the
plane, found wreckage, empty life rafts, and the bodies of two
crew members.
30--The Air Coordinating Committee approved a common military-civil
short range air navigation system called VORTAC. This system consisted
of a combination of the Navy developed TACAN (Tactical Air Navigation
System) with the Civil Aeronautic Authority's VOR (Very High Frequency
Omnirange direction finder). The Air Coordinating Committee action
resulted in the installation of ground beacons on the civil airways
that served both civil and military aircraft, each using their
own specialized equipment.
SEPTEMBER
1--In the race for the North American Trophy, an event of the
National Air Show, four FJ-3 Furies of VF-24 took off from Shangri-la
at sea off the Pacific coast of Mexico and flew nonstop, 1,198
miles to Oklahoma City without refueling. The winner was Lieutenant
(jg) D. K. Grosshuesch, with a time of 2 hours 13 minutes 38.6
seconds for an average speed of 537.848 m.p.h.
2--On the second-day of the National Air Show, Lieutenant (jg)
R. Carson. flying an F3H-2N Demon of VF-124 captured the McDonnell
Trophy with a nonstop, non-refueling flight from Shangri-la off
San Francisco to Oklahoma City, covering the 1,436 miles in 2
hours 32 minutes 13.45 seconds for an average speed of 566.007
m.p.h.
3--Two A3D Skywarriors, piloted by Captain J. T. Blackburn, commanding
Heavy Attack Wing 1, and Commander C. T. Frohne, were launched
from Shangri-la off the Oregon coast, flew across a finish line
at the National Air Show, Oklahoma City, and continued on to Jacksonville
without refueling. In completing the 1,543.3-mile leg from the
Shangri-la to Oklahoma City in 2 hours 32 minutes 39.7 seconds
for an average speed of 606.557m.p.h., Captain Blackburn was awarded
the Douglas Trophy. With this flight a 3-day demonstration of
carrier mobility was completed, in which the Shangri-la had launched
aircraft to the same destination from widely separated points
while moving from Mexico to Oregon.
21--An F11F-1 Tiger, piloted by Grumman test pilot Tom Attridge,
shot itself down while conducting test firings off eastern Long
Island by running into 20 mm projectiles it had fired only seconds
before.
OCTOBER
2--The carrier Enterprise was ordered stricken from the
Navy list and put up for sale as scrap. Launched just 20 years
before and commissioned 12 May 1938, she was in more action during
World War II than any other carrier, was a pioneer in night combat
operations, and was recipient of both the Presidential Unit Citation
and the Navy Unit Commendation. Decommissioned in the demobilization
period following the war, she was laid up with the Reserve Fleet
at Bayonne, N.J., and never returned to active service.
5--Three Cougar jets, piloted by Commanders G. A. Robinson and
D. Mitchie, and ENS R. K. Hess of VF-144, made a round trip transcontinental
flight from Miramar, Calif., to Long Island, N.Y., with fueling
stops each way to Olathe, Kans., in an elapsed time of 10 hours
49 minutes 11 seconds. Although better than the existing record
of 11 hours 18 minutes 27 seconds, the flight was not officially
observed and therefore not officially recognized.
11--An R6D-1 of Air Transport Squadron 6 on a scheduled MATS flight
from Lakenheath, England, to Lajes in the Azores, disappeared
over the Atlantic with 50 passengers and a crew of nine on board.
Extensive search by ships and aircraft for the next 14 days found
debris from the plane but no survivors.
16--Five students received Naval Observer Wings; the first graduates
of the Navigator-Bombardier School at NAS Corpus Christi, which
began 26 May.
29--The Suez crisis erupted into open warfare and all major fleet
units were sent to sea under conditions of maximum readiness.
The Sixth Fleet, in the Mediterranean, was ordered to evacuate
U.S. Nationals from the area. Aircraft provided cover and heavy
combatant ships stood by while ships and destroyers of the Amphibious
Group and units of Air Force transport squadrons went into Alexandria,
Haifa, Tel Aviv, Amman, and Damascus and evacuated some 2,200
persons by 3 November. Operations by Sixth Fleet, in the area
for several weeks, included the logistic support of the first
UN International Forces which arrived in the area in November.
31--Seven Navy men landed in an R4D Skytrain on the ice at the
South Pole--the first to stand at the spot since Capt. Robert
F. Scott of the Royal Navy reached it in January 1912. The seven
men were: Rear Admiral G. J. Dufek, CTF 43 and ComNavSupFor, Antarctica,
Captain D. L. Cordiner, C.O., Air Development Squadron 6, Captain
Wm. M. Hawkes, co-pilot, Lieutenant Commander C. S. Shinn, pilot,
Lieutenant John Swadener, navigator, J. P. Strider, AD2, crew
chief, and William Cumbie, AT2, radioman. The party remained at
the pole for 49 minutes setting up navigational aids to assist
the future delivery of materials and equipment for constructing
a scientific observation station at the spot.
NOVEMBER
2--The Navy announced award of a contract with Westinghouse Electric
to design and furnish reactor components for a nuclear-powered
aircraft carrier.
8--A Navy Stratolab balloon, manned by Lieutenant Commanders M.
D. Ross and M. L. Lewis, bettered the existing world altitude
record by soaring to 76,000 feet over the Black Hills of South
Dakota on a flight designed to gather meteorological, cosmic ray,
and other scientific data necessary to improved safety at high
altitudes. For this record ascent the men were awarded the 1957
Harmon International Trophy for Aeronauts.
9--A Sikorsky HR2S helicopter, piloted by Major R. L. Anderson,
USMC, at Windsor Locks, Conn., began a 3-day assault on world
records, setting three new marks as follows: 9 November, carried
a payload of 11,050 pounds to an altitude over 12,000 feet; 10
November, carried 13,250 pounds to over 7,000 feet; and 11 November,
set a speed record of 162.7 m.p.h. over a three-kilometer course.
29--The ZSG-4, first airship fitted with a dacron envelope, made
its first flight at NAS Lakehurst.
DECEMBER
3--Compass Island (EAG 153), first ship converted to support
the Fleet Ballistic Missile Program, was commissioned at the New
York Naval Shipyard. On the same day the first Terrier missile
destroyer, Gyatt (DD-712) was commissioned at Boston.
7--The Secretary of Defense directed that air transport operations
be placed under a Single Manager Service and designated the Military
Air Transport Service of the U.S. Air Force as its operating agency.
This directive, which was implemented on 1 July 1957, required
that the Navy transfer to the agency all of the transport aircraft
it was operating under MATS and all four-engine land transports
of the Fleet Logistic Air Wings except for 30 which could be retained
for Fleet service and administrative airlift.
8--The Secretary of Defense authorized the Navy to proceed with
the development of the solid-propellant Polaris Fleet Ballistic
Missile as a submarine launched weapon system and to terminate
its participation in the liquid propellant Jupiter program.
8--A Martin Viking rocket was successfully fired at Cape Canaveral,
Fla., in a test of launching equipment, tracking, and telemetry
instruments intended for the Vanguard earth satellite.
17--The WF-2 Tracer, a carrier early warning plane adapted from
the TF-1 design, made its first flight at the Grumman plant, Peconic
River, Long Island.
JANUARY
1--The Naval Air Experimental Station, Philadelphia, one of the
four subcommands grouped together to form the Naval Air Material
Center in 1943, was disestablished and consolidated with the NAMC.
3--The last operational Catalina, a PBY-6A of NARTU Atlanta, was
ordered retired from service.
10--The Naval Air Mine Defense Development Unit, established under
an officer in charge on 31 August 1956, was established as a full
command at Panama City, Fla., to develop and evaluate aviation
systems, materials, and techniques for mine countermeasures.
14-24--In an evaluation of their all-weather capability, ZPG airships
of ZW-1, operating in relays from South Weymouth, maintained continuous
radar patrol over the North Atlantic 200 miles off the New England
coast through some of the worst storms experienced in the area
in years.
18--TF-1Qs, first naval aircraft equipped for electronics jamming,
were first received by All-Weather Attack Squadron 35 at San Diego.
FEBRUARY
1--Lieutenant Commander Frank H. Austin, Jr., MC, completed the
Test Pilot Training Program at NATC Patuxent River, and became
the first Navy Flight Surgeon to qualify as a test pilot.
4--The Chief of Naval Operations set forth a new policy for billet
assignment which provided that aviators and nonaviators would
be assigned alternately as either the senior or next senior officer
of each important policy generating and administrative billet
and that assignment to all billets of commander level and above
would be filled by aviators and nonaviators in the ratio of their
respective numbers on board.
9--The Robertson Committee, chaired by the Deputy Secretary of
Defense, Reuben B. Robertson, Jr., and formed to study means of
shortening the time required to develop aircraft, issued its final
report. The committee concluded that through streamlining management
and administrative processes and thereby eliminating waste motion,
the development of weapon systems could be accomplished in significantly
less calendar time than had been required since World War II.
To this end, the services were taking specific action to correct
a number of problems. Among the steps taken by the Navy were establishing
program managers for each weapon program within the Bureau of
Aeronautics and a Long Range Objectives Group in the Office of
the Chief of Naval Operations.
21--In recognition of the increasing importance of weather information
to naval operations, the Naval Aerology Branch, Op-533, was given
status as the Naval Weather Service Division, Op-58.
MARCH
7--A turbo-catapult, powered by the exhaust of six jet engines
and designed primarily for use by Marine Corps expeditionary forces,
launched its first aircraft at Georgetown, Del. The airplane,
an AD-4NA, weighing 16,400 pounds and piloted by Joseph Barkley,
All-American Engineering test pilot, was launched at a speed of
90 knots in a run of 210 feet.
15--A ZPG-2 airship, commanded by Commander J. R. Hunt, landed
at NAS Key West, Fla., after a flight that began 4 March at South
Weymouth, Mass., and circled over the Atlantic Ocean toward Portugal,
the African coast and back for a new world record in distance
and endurance, covering 9,448 statute miles and remaining airborne
264 hours 12 minutes, without refueling. For his accomplishment
in commanding the airship on this flight, Commander Hunt was awarded
the 1958 Harmon International Trophy for Aeronauts.
21--An A3D-1 Skywarrior, piloted by Commander Dale W. Cox, Jr.,
broke two transcontinental speed records; one for the round trip
Los Angeles to New York and return, in 9 hours 31 minutes 35.4
seconds; and the other for the east to west flight in 5 hours
12 minutes 39.24 seconds.
25--The first F8U-1 Crusader was delivered to a fleet unit, VF-32,
in the record time of 2 years after the first flight of the experimental
model.
APRIL
5--In the Second Annual Naval Air Weapons Meet, VMF-314 won the
Earle Trophy for first place in air gunnery, and VA-26 took the
Kane Trophy for best in the air-to-ground competition. Best individual
score of the meet was made by Commander A. Vraciu, Commanding
Officer of VF-51 and Navy Ace in World War II.
12--Scheduled production of the Sparrow I air-to-air missile was
completed by the Sperry Farragut Company, Bristol, Tenn., with
delivery of the last missile on order.
13--Aviation officer distribution functions, performed by the
Office of Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (Air) since its formation
in 1943, and by the Bureau of Aeronautics prior to that time,
were transferred to the Bureau of Naval Personnel.
21--Antietam reported for duty to the Chief of Naval Air
Training at Pensacola, providing that command with its first angled
deck carrier for use in flight training.
25--The Sixth Fleet sailed to the eastern Mediterranean, remaining
for a week in a show of strength supporting the President's warning
against the Communist threat to the independence of Jordan.
30--The Naval Aviation Medical Center at Pensacola was established,
combining under a single command the clinical, training, and research
functions of the Naval School of Aviation Medicine and the Pensacola
Naval Hospital.
MAY
1--A two-part rocket, made up of the first-stage Viking and a
prototype third stage, was launched from Cape Canaveral in the
second successful test of the Vanguard earth satellite launching
vehicle.
6--The ZPG-2W, an early-warning airship with a large radar antenna
mounted within the envelope, made its first flight at Akron, Ohio.
17--Badoeng Strait, last escort carrier in service with
the Fleet, was decommissioned at Bremerton.
23--A drone HTK-1 helicopter, carrying a safety pilot, operated
from the fantail of Mitscher (DL 2) in the vicinity of Narragansett
Bay. These tests and others, conducted in February off Key West,
in which a piloted HUL-1 carried Mk 43 torpedoes in flights to
and from the Mitscher, demonstrated the feasibility of assigning
torpedo carrying drone helicopters to destroyers and led to the
development of the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH) which
was later embodied in the QH-50C.
27--The first T2V-1 Sea Star jet trainer was delivered to the
Naval Air Advanced Training Command at Corpus Christi.
28--In a reorganization of the Naval Air Reserve program, the
Chief of Naval Operations directed that the 73 Auxiliary Air Units
located throughout the country be disestablished during the next
6 months.
JUNE
6--Two F8U Crusaders and two A3D Skywarriors flew nonstop from
the carrier Bon Homme Richard off the California coast
to the Saratoga off the east coast of Florida. This, the
first carrier-to-carrier transcontinental flight, was completed
by the F8Us in 3 hours 28 minutes and by the A3Ds in 4 hours 1
minute.
27--Lieutenant Commander Malcolm D. Ross and Charles B. Moore
of the Arthur D. Little Co., successfully completed a Stratolab
balloon flight to investigate the interior of a thunderstorm,
ascending from the top of Mount Withington near Socorro, N. Mex.,
into the towering cumulus cloud above the mountain. The flight
was the first of a series conducted during the summer under the
sponsorship of the Office of Naval Research and the Bureau of
Aeronautics .
30--A program to gather daily weather data over the Pacific, North
America, and the Atlantic by the use of transosonde balloons was
inaugurated with the release of the first balloon from NAS Iwakuni,
Japan. Set to float at 30,000 feet, the balloons carried instruments
which reported pressure and temperature every two hours. The duration
of each flight was planned for from 5 to 8 days with the termination
point somewhere in the Atlantic, short of the European coast.
JULY
15--After the establishment of the Single Manager for Airlift
Service, the Fleet Logistic Air Wings were abolished and transport
squadrons not assigned to the Single Manager Service were redesignated
Fleet Tactical Support Squadrons (VR) and reassigned to operate
directly under the control of Fleet commanders.
16--An F8U-1P Crusader (bureau number 144608), piloted by Major
J. H. Glenn, Jr., USMC, broke the transcontinental speed record
with a crossing from Los Alamitos, Calif., to Floyd Bennett Field,
N.Y. in 3 hours 22 minutes 50.05 seconds for an average speed
of 723.517 m.p.h. This was the first upper atmosphere supersonic
flight from the west coast to the east coast.
16--Two A3D Skywarriors, on a routine flight to join VAH-2 at
Barbers Point, made the Pacific flight from Moffett Field to Honolulu
in the record time of 4 hours 45 minutes.
30--The first pilotless helicopter flight was made at Bloomfield,
Conn. Built by Kaman Aircraft, under joint Army-Navy contract,
the new helicopter was designed on the basis of principles developed
experimentally under Navy contract using a modified HTK.
30--Air Force, Pacific Fleet, and Air Force, Atlantic Fleet, were
retitled to become Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet, and Naval Air
Force, Atlantic Fleet.
AUGUST
12--An F3D Skynight, with Lieutenant Commander Don Walker aboard,
was landed on Antietam, at sea off Pensacola, by the Automatic
Carrier Landing System. This landing began the first shipboard
test of the system designed to bring planes aboard in all weather
conditions without help from the pilot. In the period 12-20 August
more than 50 fully automatic landings were completed.
27--The Navy announced that all Naval Aviator candidates, except
Aviation Cadets, entering flight training after 1 January 1958,
would be obligated to serve 3 1/2 years on active duty after completing
the course instead of the 2 years previously required.
28--The ground level ejection seat, designed and developed by
the Martin-Baker Aircraft Co. Ltd., of England, and under evaluation
by Grumman Aircraft for the Navy, was demonstrated at NAS Patuxent
River. A successful ejection was made by Lieutenant Sydney Hughes,
RAF, from an F9F-8T flying just above the ground at 120 m.p.h.
SEPTEMBER
3--The XKDT-1, a solid-propellant rocket-powered target drone,
made its first flight in a launch from an F3H Demon over NAMTC
Point Mugu, Calif.
28--Alameda County, converted from LST 32, was redesignated
an Advance Aviation Base ship, AVB 1. First of her class, the
new ship was designed to provide fuel, spare parts, technicians
and facilities necessary to establish and operate an airstrip
for patrol and carrier aircraft in locations where there were
no base facilities.
30--Saipan, last of the light carriers, was decommissioned.
OCTOBER
1--The Naval Air Test Facility (Ship Installations) was established
at NAS Lakehurst, with Commander R. M. Tunnell as Commanding Officer,
to evaluate aircraft launching and recovery systems and to support
their development.
11--An A3D Skywarrior of VAH-4 bettered the mainland to Hawaii
time with a control-tower to control-tower flight from San Francisco
to Honolulu in 4 hours 29 minutes 55 seconds.
15--The Talos Defense Unit, a land-based version of the Talos
shipboard missile system and designed to launch Talos missiles
automatically, was accepted from the Radio Corporation of America
by Rear Admiral F. S. Withington, Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance.
It was turned over to Lieutenant General E. L. Cummings, Chief
of Army Ordnance, for evaluation at the White Sands Proving Ground
and possible use at Army antiaircraft installations.
16--Lake Champlain, with HMR-262 embarked, arrived at Valencia,
Spain, to give aid to thousands made homeless by a flood.
NOVEMBER
13--The l,000-mile Regulus II bombardment missile was fired at
Edwards Air Force Base in its first launch with rocket boosters.
After a 48 minute flight, the 11-ton missile was returned to the
field by control aircraft.
21--Project Arowa was terminated and its personnel and records
were transferred to the Navy Weather Research Facility, Norfolk,
which had been established the preceeding month.
22--The first Reserve Squadron to fire guided missiles as a part
of its regular training, VP-834 from NAS Floyd Bennett Field,
completed 2 weeks training at NAS Chincoteague, in which it fired
Petrel air-to-surface missiles under the supervision of Guided
Missile Unit 11.
DECEMBER
9--Cognizance of research and development programs for space vehicles
was transferred from DCNO (Air) to ACNO (Research and Development)
and responsibilities for what was formerly Project Vanguard were
broadened to include all space vehicle programs prosecuted by
the Office of Naval Research in the extension of, or following,
Vanguard.
JANUARY
9--Pacific Fleet air units began delivery of emergency supplies
to inhabitants of several islands in the Marshalls, severely damaged
by typhoon Ophelia.
9--The Princeton, with Navy and Marine aircraft embarked, and
two destroyers from the Seventh Fleet and the tender Duxbury Bay
from the Middle East Force, ended 7 days of relief operations
for flood victims in Ceylon.
FEBRUARY
3--The Chief, Bureau of Aeronautics appointed a Weapons System
Team to accelerate development and fleet introduction of the A2F
(A-6) aircraft. This team was under the chairmanship of the program
manager and staffed with representatives from Production, Maintenance
and Contracts Divisions and the Research and Development Group.
The latter representative, the R&D Project Officer (or class
desk officer), was also chairman of an R&D Project Team which
included representatives of Avionics, Airborne Equipment and Power
Plant Divisions. This action and the assignment of systems management
responsibilities to the airframe contractor marked important steps
in the implementation of the management concepts recommended by
the Robertson Committee.
4--The keel of the world's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier,
Enterprise, was laid at Newport News.
13--A selected Reserve was set up within the overall Reserve Organization
to provide fully trained and equipped forces and units for direct
and immediate deployment to specific active duty assignment upon
the commencement of hostilities. The entire Naval Air Reserve
was incorporated into the new organization.
14--Operational evaluation of the air-to-air Sparrow III began
as VX-4 fired the first missile.
MARCH
1--An early warning WV-2E prototype, with a rotodome radar antenna
mounted on the fuselage, was accepted from Lockheed and assigned
to the Naval Air Development Unit at NAS South Weymouth for preliminary
evaluation.
7--Grayback (SSG 574) first submarine built from keel up with
guided-missile capability, was commissioned at Mare Island.
10--The Chief of Naval Operations approved a reorganization of
carrier aviation that would create uniform air groups, provide
a more permanent group assignment to ships, and permit a reduction
of assigned units and aircraft without also reducing combat readiness.
The new organization also provided for a permanent replacement
Air Group to be established on each coast and made responsible
for the indoctrination of key maintenance personnel, the tactical
training of aviators, and for conducting special programs required
for the introduction of new models of combat aircraft.
17--A 3 1/4 pound earth satellite was placed in orbit by a Vanguard
rocket fired from Cape Canaveral in a test of the system designed
for launching earth satellites for the International Geophysical
Year. The highly successful scientific satellite, designed and
developed under supervision of the Office of Naval Research, proved
that the earth is slightly pear-shaped. Its solar-powered batteries
continued to transmit for over 6 years and at last reports the
satellite was expected to remain in orbit for as long as 2,000
years.
19--Development Squadron 4 (VX-4) launched the first missile in
the operational evaluation of Bullpup.
23--In the first practical test of the Fleet Ballistic Missile
underwater launching apparatus, a dummy Polaris missile was sent
into the air off San Clemente Island.
APRIL
2--An important step in the development of the Drone Anti-Submarine
Helicopter for operation from destroyers was taken as an existing
Bureau of Aeronautics contract with Gyrodyne for the RON-1 rotocycle
(one man helicopter) was amended to provide for the development,
installation and flight test of remote control equipment.
8--Airborne firing tests of HIPEG (High Performance External Gun),
in F3H-2N aircraft, commenced at Naval Aviation Ordnance Test
Station, Chincoteague, Va. This twin-barreled, high-speed 20 mm
aircraft machine gun was developed for a pod installation on aircraft,
thereby making it interchangeable with other aviation ordnance.
11--Rear Admiral John S. Thach issued the first Operation Order
to Task Group Alfa, formed in the Atlantic Fleet to accelerate
the development of antisubmarine tactics and to improve fleet
readiness in antisubmarine warfare. Admiral Thach is also remembered
for the "Thach Weave," a type of aircraft tactic with
which his name is associated.
18--In the Third Annual Naval Air Weapons Meet at El Centro, in
which 15 specially selected squadrons participated, top honors
in their class went to: VF-111 in Air-to-Air (Day), VF-213 in
Air-to-Air (All-Weather), VA-126 in Air-to-Ground, and VAH-5 in
Heavy Attack.
18--Lieutenant Commander G. C. Watkins, piloting an F11F-1F Tiger
at Edwards AFB, broke the world altitude record for the second
time in 3 days, this time setting the mark at 76,939 feet.
21--To clarify command relationships and to permit the closer
integration of Navy units into the Single Manager Airlift Service,
the Chief of Naval Operations directed that Navy squadrons assigned
be organized in Naval Air Transport Wings, one for the Pacific
and another for the Atlantic.
MAY
4--Practical test of an all-jet program in basic training began
as 14 students reported to ATU-206 at Forrest Sherman Field, Pensacola,
for instruction in the T2V Sea Star.
10--Naval Missile Facility Point Arguello, Calif., was established
as an activity of the National Pacific Missile Range.
11--Lieutenant Commander Jack Neiman completed a 44-hour simulated
high altitude flight in the pressure chamber at NAS Norfolk under
conditions existing between 80,000 and 100,000 feet.
17--Four F3H Demons and four F8U Crusaders completed nonstop transAtlantic
crossings in Operation Pipeline, a practical test of the speed
with which carrier aircraft could be delivered from the east coast
to the Sixth Fleet, in the Mediterranean.
22-23--Major E. N. LeFaivre, USMC, piloted an F4D-1 at NAMTC Point
Mugu, to five world records in speed of climb to 3,000, 6,000,
9,000, 12,000, and 15,000 meters with marks of 44.392, 66.095,
90.025, 111.224, and 156.233 seconds.
26--The HSS-1N helicopter, capable of day and night antisubmarine
warfare under instrument flight conditions, was publicly flown
at NAS Corpus Christi by Sikorsky test pilot Jack Stultz.
27--The twin jet F4H all-weather interceptor made its first flight
at St. Louis with R. C. Little, Chief Test Pilot for McDonnell
Aircraft at the controls.
28--Galveston (CLG 3), first Talos missile cruiser, was
placed in commission.
JUNE
16--The Pacific Missile Range, Point Mugu, Calif., was established
under Navy management to provide range support to the Department
of Defense and other Government agencies in guided missiles, satellite
and space vehicle research, development, evaluation, and training.
This was the third National Missile Range to be established and
the first from which a satellite could be safely fired into polar
orbit.
20--The Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) requested the
Naval Research Laboratory to modify its "Minitrack"
system, which had been developed under Project Vanguard to produce
a capability for detecting, identifying and predicting the orbits
of nonradiating objects in space. Out of this request a Navy Space
Surveillance System (SPASUR) was developed which began producing
useful data in June 1959 and on 2 February 1960 established the
existence of an unknown object in orbit and later identified it
as the re-entry vehicle of Discoverer V which had been assumed
lost.
26--A TF-1, of VR-21 at San Diego, delivered a J-34 engine to
Yorktown 300 miles at sea, in the first delivery of an
aircraft engine by carrier-on-board delivery (COD).
JULY
1--The Pacific extension of the Continental Air Defense Dewline
went into full operation.
1--Submarine Squadron 14, the first Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine
Squadron, was established under the Atlantic Fleet Submarine Force
with Captain N. G. Ward commanding.
1--The first joint CAA-Navy Radar Air Traffic Control Center (RATCC)
went into operation at NAS Miramar, Calif.
15--While aircraft from Essex and Saratoga flew
cover from long range, and ships of the Sixth Fleet stood by,
amphibious units landed 1,800 Marines on the beach near Beirut
to support the Lebanese government and to protect American lives.
In the days following, land, sea, and air reinforcements were
sent to the area and order was maintained without untoward incident.
23-31--The feasibility of creating or destroying cloud formations
by release of carbon black into the atmosphere was established
in tests conducted off the Florida coast by VW-4, commanded by
Commander Nicholas Brango, under the overall direction of Dr.
Florence W. van Straten of the Naval Weather Service Division,
Op-58.
29--Commander M. D. Ross and Lieutenant Commander M. L. Lewis
made a balloon ascension to 82,000 feet, carrying a record load
of 5,500 pounds and remaining in the air 34 1/2 hours. The primary
purpose of the flight was to test and evaluate the sealed cabin
system designed to carry an externally mounted telescope for the
observation of the atmosphere of Mars and was thus an operational
and logistic rehearsal for coming events.
AUGUST
6--The Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1958 was approved.
Effective 6 months from date, the new law provided a more direct
civilian control over military operations through the offices
of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the
respective service secretaries; provided for the establishment
of unified or specified, combatant commands, to direct the operations
of units assigned from the respective services, responsible for
the accomplishment of their military mission directly to the President
and the Secretary of Defense; and revised the secretarial structure
of the Department by reducing the number of Assistant Secretaries
of Defense from nine to seven, limiting the number within each
service department to three, specifying that one of them be an
Assistant Secretary for Financial Management, and revoked the
statutory provision for an Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Air. The law also maintained the separate organization of each
service under its own Secretary and defined the Navy Department
as including Naval Aviation and the U.S. Marine Corps.
19--In its first successful flight a Tartar surface-to-air missile,
fired at the Naval Ordnance Test Station, China Lake, intercepted
an F6F drone.
23--An Act of Congress created the Federal Aviation Agency and
assigned it broad responsibilities involving operation of airways;
the regulation of air traffic including military; and the establishment
of airports and missile and rocket sites. The Act also provided
for military participation in performance of the Agency's functions,
for military deviations from air traffic regulations in an emergency,
and for appeal to the President of disagreements concerning the
location of military airports.
24--After Chinese Communists began heavy shelling of the Kinmen
Islands and there were renewed indications of naval activity in
Taiwan Straits, units of the Seventh Fleet moved to the Taiwan
area to support the Republic of China in a firm stand against
aggression. As tension remained high and warlike action continued,
ship reinforcements, including aircraft carriers, were sent to
the area. By October the tension lessened and the situation became
somewhat stabilized.
25--Commander Forrest S. Petersen made his first flight in the
X-15. Peterson was the Navy's research pilot in the NASA X-15
program.
JANUARY
21--Tests at Indianhead, Md. of a new type movable nozzle for
the Polaris, demonstrated a successful major advance in the directional
control of ballistic missiles.
24--Major J. P. Flynn and Captain C. D. Warfield, of the 2nd Marine
Aircraft Wing, made a nonstop, nonrefueling flight in A4D Skyhawks
from El Toro, Calif., to Cherry Point, N.C., covering 2,082 miles
in 4 hours 25 minutes.
27--The Naval Air Development and Material Command, Johnsville,
was redesignated Naval Air Research and Development Activities
Command, and its scope was expanded to include aeronautical research
and development activities in the Third Naval District.
FEBRUARY
5--In accordance with the provisions of the Defense Reorganization
Act of 1958, the Office of Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Air was abolished. Functions of the Office were assumed by the
Secretary pending an appointment to fill the newly created Office
of Assistant Secretary for Research and Development.
16-19--Units of the Naval Air Reserve participated for the first
time in a full-scale fleet exercise. Fifty-five crews from selected
Naval Air Reserve units and 36 P2V and S2F aircraft took part
in an antisubmarine defense exercise on the west coast with elements
of the Pacific Fleet and the Canadian Navy.
24--The operational deployment of the Talos missile was marked
by its first firing at sea by Galveston (CL 93) in the
vicinity of Roosevelt Roads, P.R.
MARCH
10--The Chief of Naval Operations approved transfer of LTA training
from the Naval Air Training Command to Commander Naval Air Force,
Atlantic and the cessation of the requirement that all LTA students
also have HTA training.
11--The HSS-2 amphibian all-weather anti submarine warfare helicopter
made its first flight piloted by Sikorsky test pilot R. S. Decker.
13--Aviation Cadet E. R. Clark soloed in a TT-1 Pinto, the first
student in naval aviation history to solo a jet without previous
experience in propeller aircraft.
APRIL
9--Four Naval Aviators, Lieutenant Colonel J. H. Glenn, USMC,
Lieutenant Commander W. M. Schirra, Lieutenant Commander A. B.
Shepard and Lieutenant M. S. Carpenter, were among the seven men
selected as prospective astronauts under Project Mercury--a basic
program in the development of space exploration and manned orbital
flight.
15-22--Elements of the Naval Air Reserve took part in Exercise
Slamex, conducted by Commander, Antisubmarine Defense Force, Atlantic--their
second participation in a fullscale fleet exercise since the organization
of the Selected Reserve. Operating from Naval Air Stations at
Brunswick, Quonset Point, and Lakehurst with P2V and S2F aircraft,
78 crews from 12 Reserve stations conducted round-the-clock flight
operations for 7 days, logged 2,800 accident-free flight hours,
maintained an aircraft availability of better than 85 percent
and reported 75 submarine contacts.
25--Bullpup was first deployed overseas when VA-212, equipped
with FJ-4B Furies, sailed from Alameda on board Lexington to join
the Seventh Fleet in the western Pacific. The following August,
VA-34, equipped with A4Ds sailed from the east coast abroad the
Saratoga to join the Sixth Fleet, thus extending Bullpup deployment
to the Mediterranean.
26--HU-2 pilots of the ice breaker Edisto (AG 89) homeward
bound from the Antarctic, completed 10 days of rescue operations
in the Montevideo area of Uruguay in which they carried 277 flood
victims to safety.
28--The office of Assistant Chief of Naval Operations (Research
and Development) was disestablished and replaced by a new Deputy
Chief of Naval Operations (Development), with authority and responsibility
to execute the research, development, test, and evaluation responsibilities
of the Chief of Naval Operations. Vice Admiral J. T. Hayward,
who was head of the disestablished office, became the new Deputy
for Development.
MAY
5--The Guided Missiles Division was transferred in its entirety
from DCNO (Air) to the newly established office of DCNO (Development),
and its Director was designated Assistant Chief of Naval Operations
(Development).
7--The classification of 36 escort carriers, designated CVE, CVU,
and CVHE, was changed to AKV, Cargo Ship and Aircraft Ferry. The
change was accompanied by a change of hull numbers and marked
the end of the escort carrier as a combatant ship of the U.S.
Navy.
15--The classification of four support carriers, CVS, and seven
light carriers, CVL, was changed to Auxiliary Aircraft Transport,
AVT. This change removed the CVL designation from the Navy Vessels
Register.
15--To centralize and strengthen the research and development
program, more direct channels for technical control and program
guidance over Operational Development Force were established in
the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. The mission of the
force was revised and broadened to include test and evaluation
and, as reflection of the changes, its title was changed to "Operational
Test and Evaluation Force."
26--A concept of aircraft maintenance, which provided for the
assignment of responsibility directly to the unit having custody
of the aircraft and for a gradual elimination of FASRONS, was
approved for implementation.
27--As a reflection of the ever broadening scope of a unit which
owed its beginning to the needs of naval aviation, the Naval Weather
Service Division, with its functions and personnel, was transferred
from DCNO (Air) to DCNO (Fleet Operations and Readiness.)
JUNE
8--The bombardment missile Regulus I, fired by the submarine Barbero
(SS 317) 100 miles off the Florida coast, delivered a package
of Post Office mail ashore at Mayport after a 22-minute flight.
16--A P4M Mercator, on routine flight over international waters
off Korea, was fired upon by two MiGs. The attack wounded one
crewman and so damaged the plane that it made an emergency landing
at Miho, Japan, with both starboard engines and some of the flight
controls inoperative.
19--A ZPG-3W, first of four airships designed for use in air warning
patrol and largest non-rigid ever built, was delivered to NAS
Lakehurst.
JULY
11--The Marine Aviation Cadet program was reinstituted after a
lapse of 18 years as a class of 12 MarCads began their preflight
training course at NAS Pensacola.
13--The Chief of Naval Operations, in promulgating the report
of the Ad Hoc Committee on Astronautics (Connolly Board), approved
its policy recommendations and enunciated organizational responsibilities
in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. Essentials of
the policy were that the Navy would use space to accomplish naval
objectives, that it would participate fully in space technology
and that astronautics would have high priority in overall research
and development.
14--A two-stage Nike-Asp solid-propellant rocket fired from Naval
Missile Facility, Point Arguello, was the first of 12 designed
to record radiation 150 miles up and also the first ballistic
missile fired from the new facility.
15--The Aviation Safety Division of DCNO (Air) was changed to
a staff office, headed by a Coordinator, to act as principal advisor
to DCNO (Air) in all matters of air safety and to coordinate the
planning and implementation of aviation safety programs throughout
the Navy.
22--Within DCNO (Air) the Office of the Coordinator, Missile Ranges,
was disestablished and its functions assigned to a simultaneously
established Astronautics Division, charged with assisting DCNO
(Air) in performing his overall responsibility for directing the
Navy astronautic program, including the formulation of plans,
policies, and the determination of requirements.
28--The Naval Research Laboratory issued its initial report indicating
the feasibility of adapting Omega navigation to aircraft use.
This report, prepared by A. F. Thornhill of the Radio Division,
was a theoretical analysis of the problems involved in designing
an airborne receiver. It also described Omega navigation as a
phase comparison radio navigation technique utilizing very low
frequency radio waves of such range that six appropriately located
shore based transmitters would provide world wide coverage.
30--The Navy announced that Advanced Training Command units and
Reserve squadrons would receive Sidewinder air-to-air missiles.
The following week the program was implemented when the Advanced
Training Unit 203, at NAAS Kingsville, began training operations
carrying Sidewinders on their F11F jets.
AUGUST
3--The first flight test of the antisubmarine missile Subroc was
successfully completed by a launch from a shore installation at
NOTS China Lake.
18--An Act of Congress established the Bureau of Naval Weapons
and provided that the Bureaus of Aeronautics and Ordnance would
be abolished upon transfer of all their functions.
20--Marine Helicopter Squadron 261, operating from the amphibious
assault ship Thetis Bay, completed a week of relief operations
in flood-stricken Taiwan in which it airlifted 1,600,540 pounds
of cargo and 833 passengers on 898 missions.
25--During suitability trials on board Independence an
A3D piloted by Lieutenant Commander Ed Decker took off at a gross
weight of 84,000 pounds--the heaviest aircraft ever to take off
from a carrier.
27--The ballistic missile Polaris was fired for the first time
from a ship at sea by Observation Island, off Cape Canaveral.
SEPTEMBER
1--The Bureau of Naval Weapons was formed. The first Chief of
the new bureau, Rear Admiral Paul D. Stroop, took the oath of
office on 10 September.
9--Navy air and surface units located and recovered an Atlas boosted
Mercury Capsule in an area 700 miles short of the predicted point
of impact in the Atlantic Ocean.
18--The Air Warfare Division of DCNO (Air) was disestablished
and its functions pertaining to aviation combat readiness were
transferred to DCNO (Fleet Operations and Readiness). A new branch
was established in the Aviation Plans Division to perform planning
requirements functions previously assigned to the disestablished
division.
25--The last class of LTA students also qualified in HTA, completed
training at NAS Glynco, Ga. The last man to receive the dual designation
was ENS John B. Hall.
30--Airship flights by the Reserves of Naval Air Reserve Training
Unit, Lakehurst, marked the end of the airship training program
conducted for 12 years under the Chief of Naval Air Reserve Training.
OCTOBER
1--An R5D Skymaster, piloted by Lieutenant Commander J. A. Henning
of VX-6 arrived at NAF McMurdo Sound after a flight from Christchurch,
New Zealand. The arrival of Rear Admiral D. M. Tyree, Commander
Naval Support Force Antarctica on this first flight of the season
marked the operational implementation of Operation Deep Freeze
60.
1--Fleet Air San Diego was established with Rear Admiral Dale
Harris in command.
6--Kearsarge left Nagoya Japan after relief operations
in the wake of a typhoon. Some 6,000 persons were evacuated 200,000
pounds of supplies and medicines were delivered and over 17,000
typhoid and antibiotic shots were administered to prevent spread
of disease.
NOVEMBER
2--A student training flight at NAS Pensacola by 2nd Lieutenant
David K. Mosher USMC and his instructor Lieutenant Commander R.
A. MacDonell inaugurated use of the T2J Buckeye in Basic Training.
30--The Airship Training Group at NAS Glynco was disestablished
ending lighter-than-air training in the U.S. Navy.
DECEMBER
1--The Bureaus of Aeronautics and Ordnance were abolished as the
Chief of the Bureau of Naval Weapons Rear Admiral P. D. Stroop
relieved their Chiefs Rear Admirals R. E. Dixon and M. S. Hubbard
and the Bureau of Naval Weapons absorbed their functions.
4--Crack teams from selected Fleet squadrons completed 4 days
of competitive gunnery, bombing, and missile firing at MCAAS Yuma
in the championship round of the annual weapons meet. VF-(AW)-3
took the All Weather Fighter title in the F4D Class and VF-41
won it in F3H Class. VMF-232 won the Day Fighter competition;
VA-56 the Jet Light Attack; VA-85 the Prop Light Attack; and VAH-4
the Heavy Attack. Top individual scorer was 1st Lieutenant G.
A. Davis USMC of VMF-232 competing in the Day Fighter shoot.
6--Commander L.E. Flint piloting a McDonnell F4H-1 Phantom II
powered by two GE J-79 engines bettered the existing world altitude
record by reaching 98,560 feet over Edwards Air Force Base.
7--Dewey (DLG 14) first of a new class of guided missile
destroyer leaders designed to employ the air defense missile Terrier
III, was commissioned at the Boston Naval Shipyard.
30--The first Fleet Ballistic Missile submarine George Washington
(SSBN 598) was placed in commission at Groton, Conn. Commander
George B. Osborn commanding. The first of nine nuclear powered
ballistic missile submarines authorized by Congress, she was launched
on 9 June 1959.
Return to Naval
Historical Center home page30 June 1997