1946 in aviation

yearbox
in?=in aviation
cp=19th Century
c=20th century
cf=21st century
yp1=1943
yp2=1944
yp3=1945
year=1946
ya1=1947
ya2=1948
ya3=1949
dp3=1910s
dp2=1920s
dp1=1930s
d=1940s
dn1=1950s
dn2=1960s
dn3=1970s

This is a list of aviation-related events from 1946:

Events

January

* January 1 - a British South American Airways Avro Lancastrian becomes the first commercial flight to depart Heathrow Airport
* January 10 - a Sikorsky R5 sets an unofficial helicopter altitude record of 6,400 m (21,000 ft) at Stratford, Connecticut.
* January 26 - Col William Councill sets a new US transcontinental speed record of 4 hours 13 minutes in a Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star

February

* February 6 - TWA makes its first international flight, from New York to Paris
* February 11 - U.S. and British negotiators reach the Bermuda Agreement, the first bilateral agreement regulating air transport. The two countries agree to fix transatlantic air fares through the International Air Transport Association.

March

* March 8 - the Bell 47 receives the first type certificate awarded to a commercial helicopter.
* March 21 - Strategic Air Command of the United States Army Air Force is formed.

May

* May 31 - London Heathrow Airport is officially opened.

June

* June 15 - the Navy's new Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, gives its first public performance at Craig Field in Jacksonville, Florida.
* June 21 - a USAF P-80 Shooting Star carries the first airmail flown by jet.

July

* July 1 - a B-29 Superfortress drops an atomic bomb on Bikini Atoll in a nuclear test.
* July 21 - a McDonnell FH Phantom makes the first landing by a jet aboard a US aircraft carrier, USS "Franklin D. Roosevelt"

eptember

* September 7 - a Royal Air Force Gloster Meteor established a new world absolute air speed record of 615.65 mph (990.79 km/h) flown by Group Captain E.M. Donaldson off the coast of West Sussex, England.
* September 16 - Italian airline Alitalia was formed.
* September 19 - Portuguese airline Transportes Aéreos Portugueses (TAP) is formed.
* September 27 - Geoffrey de Havilland Jr is killed when the de Havilland DH.108 breaks up in mid-air
* September 29 - a United States Navy Lockheed P2V Neptune sets a new distance record of 11,235 miles (18,082 km)

October

*October 3 – A Berlin-bound 4 engine Douglas C-54 named 'Flagship New England' crashed into a mountainside outside of Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The flight, operated by American Overseas Airlines was mostly carrying wives and children of US Army personnel serving in post-war Germany. All 39 people on board died. At the time, it was the worst accident of its kind among US civilian airlines.

November

*November 23 - An Avro Lancastrian powered with Rolls-Royce Nene turbojets is credited with the first international passenger jet flight from London to Paris. The flight time was just 41 minutes.

First flights

January
* January 19 - Bell X-1 (unpowered)

February
* February 28 - Republic XP-84 Thunderjet "45-54975"

April
* April 24 - Mikoyan-Gurevich I-300, the Soviet Union's first jet
* April 24 - Yakovlev Yak-15 (three hours after the I-300)

May
* May 17 - Douglas XB-43, first US jet bomber "44-61508"
* May 22 - de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk

June
* June 6 - Aérocenter NC.3020 Belphégor
* June 7 - Short Sturgeon prototype "RK787"
* June 25 - Northrop XB-35 flying wing bomber "42-13603"

July
* July 7 - Hughes XF-11
* July 27 - Supermarine Attacker prototype "TS409"

August
* August 8 - Convair XB-36 "42-13570"

September
* September 11 - Lavochkin La-150
* September 11 - North American XFJ-1, prototype of the FJ Fury, the first jet aircraft to enter service with the US Navy

November
* November 11 - SNCASO SO-6000 Triton, France's first jet
* November 11 - Avions Fairey Belfair "OO-TIA"
* November 13 - Sukhoi Su-9
* November 16 - Saab 90 Scandia prototype "SE-BCA"

December
* December 2 - T-34 Mentor
* December 12 - Westland Wyvern "TS371"

Entered service

September
* September 1 - Vickers Viking with British European Airways ("G-AHOP")
* September 30 - Short S.26 with BOAC "Golden Hind (G-AFCI)"