A Century of Naval Aviation

Exactly 100 years ago today, Eugene Ely made history.  By flying a Curtiss bi-plane off the deck of the cruiser USS BIRMINGHAM, off Old Point Comfort near today's N.A.S. Norfolk in southeast Virginia, he demonstrated that planes could indeed be flown from ships.

The five-degree inclination of the wooden ramp, and the forty-foot drop to the water, allowed Ely to get enough airspeed to remain aloft for 2-1/2 minutes before landing at nearby Willoughby Spit.  Within months, Naval Aviation was founded -- and less than ten years later, USS LANGLEY (the world's first aircraft carrier, built on the hull of USS JUNO) was built.

GO NAVY!