Aviation in Norway

In the early days of Norwegian aviation the Norwegian enthusiasts lacked an engine and were therefore unable to perform real flights. The first engine powered airplane was ordered during the World's first air show in Reims and came to Oslo in December 1909. It was purchased by Wilhelm Henie (Sonja Henie's father) and was a Voisin biplane. The plane was however so damaged by a snowstorm that it would never fly.

In 1910 engineer Einar Lilloe Gran constructed the first motorised airplane in Norway. It had a wing span of 10 meters and cost 12 000 Norwegian kroner to build. There were made several attempts to make the airplane airborne, but without any significant results.

Norwegian aviator Tryggve Gran (1889-1980) became a skilled pilot at Louis Blériot's aviation school in Paris, and on July 30, 1914, became the first pilot in history to cross the North Sea. He took off from Cruden Bay, Scotland, and landed about 4½ hours later at Jæren, Norway, flying a Blériot XI-2 monoplane.

'The first confirmed flight was by the Swedish baron Carl Cederström on 14 October 1910. A 23 minute flight over Oslo with a top speed of 52 knots. 'The first military flight was made by Hans Dons in the HNoMS Start on 1 June 1912.'The longest domestic non-stop flight is Scandinavian Airlines' Oslo-Longyearbyen service, well over 2000 kilometres.

External links

* [http://www.mil.no/luft/start/omlf/historikk/ Royal Norwegian Air Force history]
* [http://luftfart.museum.no/Engelsk/ Norwegian Aviation Museum]