1911 Chicago International Aviation Meet

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Postcard from the event 1911 International Aviation Meet Postcard (Front).png
Postcard from the event

The 1911 Chicago International Aviation Meet (August 12 to August 20, 1911) was major aviation show held at Grant Park in Chicago, Illinois, United States in August 1911. [1] [2]

Lincoln Beachey set a world altitude record of 11,642 feet at the meet. [3]

William R. Badger and St. Croix Johnstone [4] both died in aviation accidents at the meet. [5] The wings on Badger's biplane collapsed when he tried to pull out of dive too late, and Johnstone crashed into Lake Michigan after his engine failed. [1]

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This is a list of aviation-related events from 1911:

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Calbraith Perry Rodgers American aviator

Calbraith Perry Rodgers was an American aviation pioneer. He made the first transcontinental airplane flight across the U.S. from September 17, 1911, to November 5, 1911, with dozens of stops, both intentional and accidental. The feat made him a national celebrity, but he was killed in a crash a few months later at an exhibition in California.

Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps Military unit

The Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps (1907–1914) was the first heavier-than-air military aviation organization in history and the progenitor of the United States Air Force. A component of the U.S. Army Signal Corps, the Aeronautical Division procured the first powered military aircraft in 1909, created schools to train its aviators, and initiated a rating system for pilot qualifications. It organized and deployed the first permanent American aviation unit, the 1st Aero Squadron, in 1913. The Aeronautical Division trained 51 officers and 2 enlisted men as pilots, and incurred 13 fatalities in air crashes. During this period, the Aeronautical Division had 29 factory-built aircraft in its inventory, built a 30th from spare parts, and leased a civilian airplane for a short period in 1911.

Wright Exhibition Team

The Wright Exhibition Team was a group of early aviators trained by the Wright brothers at Wright Flying School in Montgomery, Alabama in March 1910.

George William Beatty

George William Beatty was a pioneer aviator who set early altitude and distance records, including one record set on the same day that he flew his first solo flight.

William R. Badger American aviator

William R. Badger was a wealthy pioneer aviator. He was orphaned early in life and inherited a sizable fortune from his parents. He and fellow aviator St. Croix Johnstone of Chicago died in two separate incidents on the same day at the 1911 Chicago International Aviation Meet at Grant Park.

St. Croix Johnstone American aviator

St. Croix Johnstone (1887-1911) was an early US aviator who died in a tragic aeroplane accident in 1911 at the Chicago International Aviation Meet. A Chicago native, Johnstone was a chaeuffer before becoming an aviator. His father tried to discourage him from taking up flying. He died at the same Chicago Air Meet that William R. Badger crashed at. Johnstone flew a Moisant monoplane, an american version of the Bleriot XI built under license in the United States. At 500 feet Johnstone plummeted into Lake Michigan and drowned.

References

  1. 1 2 Souter, Gerry (28 June 2010) Guts and Glory: The Last Great Aerial Tournament, Chicago History Journal, Retrieved December 2, 2015
  2. The Chicago daily news almanac and year book for 1912, 362–63 (1911)
  3. Lynch, Christopher. Chicago's Midway Airport: the first seventy-five years (2002) ( ISBN   978-1-893121-18-8)
  4. St. Croix Johnstone; EarlyAviators.com Retrieved October 9, 2017
  5. "W.R. Badger Crushed by His Engine and St. Croix Johnstone Drowned at Chicago". The New York Times . August 16, 1911. Retrieved 2010-11-07. Two airmen were killed here on this, the fourth day of the big aviation meet at Grant Park, after three days without a serious accident. The victims were William R. Badger, son of a wealthy Pittsburgh family, and St. Croix Johnstone of Chicago, both young men, and the double tragedy took place in the presence of 500,000 spectators.