Today in 1939, First Lieutenant Benjamin Scovill (“Ben”) Kelsey took the prototype Lockheed XP-38 on a record-breaking transcontinental flight and crashes.

Today in 1917, Edwin Harris Dunning of the Royal Naval Air Service became the first person to land an aircraft on the deck of a ship underway.

Today in 1938, Howard Hughes talks about defying death three times with his four companions during their record-breaking flight around the world.

Today in 1957, John Glenn went 725 mph strapped to a Vought F8U Crusader. Three hours, 23 minutes later, he set a transcontinental speed record.

Today in 1933, Wiley Hardeman Post took off from Floyd Bennett Field, Long Island, on the first solo around-the-world flight in a Lockheed Model 5C Vega.