THIS MONTH IN AIRPOWER HISTORY: First Transcontinental Flight

November 05, 1911: 110 years ago today, Calbraith Perry Rodgers, flying a Burgess-Wright biplane he named the Vin Fiz, completed the first transcontinental flight from New York, NY to Pasadena, CA. — a distance of 3,390 miles at a top speed of 62 mph. The 49-day flight required more than 70 stops for fuel, maintenance or repairs due to countless crashes and mechanical problems. A train carrying mechanic Charlie Taylor followed Rodgers as he made his way across the country using the Union Pacific rail line for basic navigation. Less than six months later at the height of his fame, Rodgers was killed when his aircraft encountered a flock of birds during an expedition over Long Beach, CA. Read more at 5 November 1911 - This Day in Aviation