On this day in history 09/24/23. In 1929 James Doolittle guides a Consolidated N-Y-2 Biplane over Mitchell Air Force Base in NY in the first flight to use only instrument guidance to take off, fly a set course and land. James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his daring raid on Japan during World War II. Doolittle's most important contribution to aeronautical technology was his early advancement of instrument flying. He was the first to recognize that true operational freedom in the air could not be achieved until pilots developed the ability to control and navigate aircraft in flight from takeoff run to landing rollout, regardless of the range of vision from the cockpit. In 1929, he became the first pilot to take off, fly and land an airplane using instruments alone, without a view outside the cockpit. Having returned to Mitchell Field that September, he helped develop blind-flying equipment. He helped develop, and was then the first to test, the now universally used artificial horizon and directional gyroscope. He attracted wide newspaper attention with this feat of "blind" flying and later received the Harmon Trophy for conducting the experiments. These accomplishments made all-weather airline operations practical. Now you know. Abstracted from On This Day & Wikipedia. #jamesdolittle #aviationpioneer #instramentflying #mitchellairforcebase #year1929
