Date On This Date In Aviation History Information Source 7/19/2001 First flight of MH-60R, rebuilt SH-60B Bu.No. 166402 for test program. International Air Power Review, Winter 2001 7/19/1943 First flight of Curtiss XP-55 Ascender USAAF SerNo 42-78845 prototype. Aeroplane Monthly, August 2006 7/19/1909 Hubert Latham, attempting to win the London Daily Mail's prize for the first to fly across the English Channel, takes off from Sangatte, France in his 50 horsepower Antoinette IV monoplane only to have the engine fail in mid-channel. Aviation Century - The Early Years by Ron Dick & Dan Patterson 7/19/1918 Seven Sopwith Camels took off from HMS Furious near the coast of Schleswig-Holstein and attacked Zeppelins in their lair at Tondern. Zeppelins L.54 and L.60 were destroyed by 50 pound bombs. Only 3 of the Camel pilots were recovered by the ship, 3 were interned in Denmark and one was drowned. All seven Camels were lost but that was a small price to pay for two Zeppelins. Aviation Century - The Early Years by Ron Dick & Dan Patterson 7/19/1962 First flight of a production standard Mirage IIIB 2 seater at Merignac. Royal Air Force Flying Review, October 1962 7/19/1934 Lieutenant Colonel Hap Arnold, leading ten Martin B-10s, sets out for a round trip flight from Washington, D.C. to Alaska and back. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1941 The first class of African-American pilots to be trained by the military arrives at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1941 Captain Claire Chennault , a retired Air Corps pilot, assumes duties as chief instructor for Marshall Chiang Kai-shek's Chinese Air Force. Chennault leads the American Volunteer Group (AVG) - the Flying Tigers - into combat against the Japanese. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1943 Flying from bases in Benghazi, Libya, B-17s carry out the first Arm Air Forces bombing raids on Rome, attacking rail yards there. B-25 and B-26 medium bombers strike nearby airfields. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1945 Along with mine laying operations and attacks on oil facilities at Amagasaki, 470 B-29s firebomb the cities of Fukui, Hitachi, Chosi and Okazaki. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1950 In an aerial engagement near Taejon, Fifth Air Force Lockheed F-80 Shooting Stars shoot down 3 enemy Yaks. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 7/19/1950 7 Lockheed F-80s of the 8th Fighter-Bomber Group destroy 15 enemy planes on the ground near Pyongang. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation