Date On This Date In Aviation History Information Source 5/19/1942 Bomber Command Target: Mannheim The Bomber War by Robin Neillands 5/19/1956 First flight of the AERFER Sagittario II lightweight fighter. Complete Book of Fighters, 2001 5/19/1986 First flight of the BAe Hawk 200 lightweight single seat fighter.   5/19/1928 Maj. Charles A. Lutz, USMC, won the Curtiss Marine Trophy Race at Anacostia in an F6C-3 making a speed of 157.6 MPH over the 100 mile course. United States Naval Aviation 1910-1960 by Deputy Chief Of Naval Operations 5/19/1908 Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge became the first U.S. Military officer to fly an aircraft, when he piloted White Wing, designed and built by Dr. Alexander Graham Bell's Aerial Experiment Association (AEA). Wright To Fly, by Peter R. March 5/19/1952 The world's first variable-geometry fighter, the Grumman XF10F-1 Jaguar, made its initial flight. Wright To Fly, by Peter R. March 5/19/1967 Maiden flight of the Dassault Mirage V, intended as an export version of the existing IIIE. Wright To Fly, by Peter R. March 5/19/1986 First flight of the BAe Hawk 200 prototype. Wright To Fly, by Peter R. March 5/19/1991 First flight of Dassault's initial prototype Rafale C, the single seat production variant. Wright To Fly, by Peter R. March 5/19/1908 Lieutenant Thomas E. Selfridge becomes the first American military man to fly solo in an airplane. He flies an aircraft designed by F.W. Baldwin known as the White Wing, near Hammondsport, New York, future home of the Curtiss Aircraft Factory. The White Wing features hinged ailerons rather than the Wright design, which uses 'wing warping' for directional control. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 5/19/1967 First flight of the Dassault Mirage 5 ground attack fighter. Complete Book of Fighters, 2001 5/19/1952 First flight of the Grumman XF10F prototype "Jaguar" variable-sweep fighter. Complete Book of Fighters, 2001 5/19/1918 Famed Lafayette Escadrille pilot Raoul G. Lufberry is killed in combat. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 5/19/1924 Lieutenant J. Macready, piloting a LePere Liberty 400, sets a new altitude record of 35,239 feet over Dayton, Ohio. U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 5/19/1956 First flight of the Ambrosini Sagittario. X Planes and Prototypes By Jim Winchester 5/19/1953 The Navy announces that Vought Aircraft Corp. has been awarded the initial contract to build two XF8U-1 Crusader prototypes. Aeroplanes Vought 1917-1977 by Gerald P. Moran 5/19/1945 Twentieth Air Force sends 272 B-29s to bomb the city of Hamamatsu, Japan U.S. Airforce - A Complete History by The Air Force Historical Foundation 5/19/1952 First flight of the only Grumman XF10F-1 Jaguar to ever fly. American Secret Projects - Fighters and Interceptors 1945-1978 by Tony Buttler