1933 in aviation - Definition and Overview

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1933:

Events

January

• January 16 - Jean Mermoz and crew make a non-stop flight from Senegal to Brazil in 17 hours 27 minutes.

February

• February 6-8 - Gayford and Nicholetts make the first non-stop flight from England to South Africa in a Fairey Long-Range Monoplane. The 5,309 mile (8,544 km) flight is a new distance record. They take 57 hours 25 minutes.
• February 6-9 - Jim Mollison flies a de Havilland Puss Moth from the United Kingdom to Brazil, via Senegal. He becomes the first person to fly solo across the North and South Atlantics.
• February 25 - USS Ranger, the US Navy's first ship designed from the outset as an aircraft carrier, is launched.

April

• April 1 - the Indian Air Force is formed
• April 3 - two British aircraft, the Westland PV-3 and Westland PV-6 make the first flight over Mount Everest
• April 4 - US Navy airship USS Akron crashes during a storm, killing 76 of its 79 crew.
• April 29 - the Reichsluftfahrtministerium ("Reich Aviation Ministry") is formed by the Nazi government.

May

• May 7-8 - Stanislaw Skarzynski flew the South Atlantic in a small single-seater tourist airplane, a RWD-5bis, in 20 hours 30 minutes, over a distance 3,582 km (2,238 miles). The RWD-5bis was the smallest plane to have ever flown the Atlantic (apart from a high-tech Rutan Voyager of 1986) - empty weight below 450 kg (990 lb).

July

• July 14-22, Wiley Post, flying a Lockheed Vega, makes the first around the world solo flight. His flight begins and ends at Floyd Bennett Field in New York, with stops at Berlin, Moscow, Irkutsk and Alaska - a total distance of 25,099 km (15,596 miles).

August

• August 5-7 - Maurice Rossi and Paul Codes fly a Blériot 110 from New York to Rayal, Syria, establishing a new distance record of 9,104 km (5,657 miles).

September

• September 7-8 - six US Navy Consolidated P2Y flying boats make a non-stop formation flight from Norfolk, Virginia to the Panama Canal, covering 2,059 miles (3,314 km) in 25 hours 20 minutes.
• September 28 - Lemoine sets a new altitude record of 13,661 m (44,820 ft) in a Potez 50

October

• October 4-11 - Sir Charles Kingsford Smith sets a new solo flight record between England and Australia of 7 days 4 hours. He flies a Percival Gull.
• October 15 - the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine is started for the first time.
• October 31 - Air France is founded.

December

• December 1 - Indian National Airways commences the first daily service in India, between Calcutta and Dacca.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1933:

Events

January

• January 16 - Jean Mermoz and crew make a non-stop flight from Senegal to Brazil in 17 hours 27 minutes.

February

• February 6-8 - Gayford and Nicholetts make the first non-stop flight from England to South Africa in a Fairey Long-Range Monoplane. The 5,309 mile (8,544 km) flight is a new distance record. They take 57 hours 25 minutes.
• February 6-9 - Jim Mollison flies a de Havilland Puss Moth from the United Kingdom to Brazil, via Senegal. He becomes the first person to fly solo across the North and South Atlantics.
• February 25 - USS Ranger, the US Navy's first ship designed from the outset as an aircraft carrier, is launched.

April

• April 1 - the Indian Air Force is formed
• April 3 - two British aircraft, the Westland PV-3 and Westland PV-6 make the first flight over Mount Everest
• April 4 - US Navy airship USS Akron crashes during a storm, killing 76 of its 79 crew.
• April 29 - the Reichsluftfahrtministerium ("Reich Aviation Ministry") is formed by the Nazi government.

May

• May 7-8 - Stanislaw Skarzynski flew the South Atlantic in a small single-seater tourist airplane, a RWD-5bis, in 20 hours 30 minutes, over a distance 3,582 km (2,238 miles). The RWD-5bis was the smallest plane to have ever flown the Atlantic (apart from a high-tech Rutan Voyager of 1986) - empty weight below 450 kg (990 lb).

July

• July 14-22, Wiley Post, flying a Lockheed Vega, makes the first around the world solo flight. His flight begins and ends at Floyd Bennett Field in New York, with stops at Berlin, Moscow, Irkutsk and Alaska - a total distance of 25,099 km (15,596 miles).

August

• August 5-7 - Maurice Rossi and Paul Codes fly a Blériot 110 from New York to Rayal, Syria, establishing a new distance record of 9,104 km (5,657 miles).

September

• September 7-8 - six US Navy Consolidated P2Y flying boats make a non-stop formation flight from Norfolk, Virginia to the Panama Canal, covering 2,059 miles (3,314 km) in 25 hours 20 minutes.
• September 28 - Lemoine sets a new altitude record of 13,661 m (44,820 ft) in a Potez 50

October

• October 4-11 - Sir Charles Kingsford Smith sets a new solo flight record between England and Australia of 7 days 4 hours. He flies a Percival Gull.
• October 15 - the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine is started for the first time.
• October 31 - Air France is founded.

December

• December 1 - Indian National Airways commences the first daily service in India, between Calcutta and Dacca.

First flights

February

• February 8 - Boeing 247
• February 10 - Hawker Demon
• February 19 - Vultee V-1

April

• April 21 - USS Macon

May

• May 27 - De Havilland Leopard Moth

June

• June 21 - Supermarine Walrus

July

• Bloch MB.200
• Curtiss XF12C
• July 1 - Douglas DC-1

August

• August 14 - Tupolev ANT-14
• August 24 - Blackburn Shark

October

• October 11 - Blackburn Perth

December

• December 31 - Polikarpov I-16

Entered service

• PZL P.7a - Polish Air Force