World Aviation in 1917 - Part 2

Part 1 | Part 3

5 June
The United States Army's First Aeronautic Detachment arrives in France.

6 June
French fighter ace Georges Guynemer is awarded entry into the Legion d'Honneur.

13 June
Fourteen Gotha bombers execute the first large-scale daylight bombing raid on London, leaving 162 dead and 432 injured. These casualties represent nearly 20% of all those caused in Britain by aeroplanes between 1914 and 1918.

13 June
Hauptmann Ernst von Brandenburg, the leader of the mass Gotha raids, wins the Pour le Mérite.

14 June
Leutnant Karl Allmenroder, who honed his skills as a combat pilot under Manfred von Richthofen in Jasta 11, is awarded the Pour le Mérite. He scores 30 air combat victories during the First World War.

14 June
Zeppelin LZ92 (L43) is shot down by British aircraft over the North Sea.

16 June
93 civilian mechanics sail from the United States for England to study the British and French aviation industries.

17 June
Zeppelin LZ95 (L48) is shot down by British aircraft over Suffolk in England by British aircraft.

17 June
Zeppelin LZ28 (L40) is wrecked at Neuenwald in Germany.

26 June
Prompted by the entry of the United States into the war, the German Army Air Service unveils its Amerika-programm (America Programme), which provides for the creation of 40 new fighter squadrons and the expansion of aircraft manufacturing output from 1,000 to 2,000 aircraft per month.

28 June
Commercial airmail flights are instituted between Naples and Palermo in Italy.

30 June
Lieutenant Colonel William 'Billy' Mitchell replaces Major T.F.Dodd as Aviation Officer of the American Expeditionary Forces.

7 July
A large formation of Gotha and Friedrichshafen bombers attacks London, leaving 57 dead and many injured.

23 July
Major B.D. Foulois takes command of United States Army Signal Corps' Airplane Division.

24 July
The United States Congress in Washington DC passes a bill earmarking $640 million for expenditure on military aviation.

26 July
German Jagdgeschwader I, comprising Jastas 4, 6, 10, and 11 is formed and led by Manfred von Richthofen, it soon acquires the nickname of the 'Flying Circus'.

27 July
In Washington DC a naval aircraft factory is approved for Philadelphia.

27 July
A British Airco (de Havilland) DH4 bomber arrives in USA for evaluation and the first American manufactured DH4, powered by a Liberty engine, appears in February 1918.

31 July
The Third Battle of Ypres, better known as Passchendaele, begins. Approximately 850 Allied aircraft contend with some 600 German for control of the air over the battlefield.

1 August
The Australian naval air fleet is formed.

8-9 August
The first Allied bomber is shot down by German night fighter defences near Frankfurt in Main.

12 August
The last large-scale, daylight bombing raid on England by German Gothas leaves 78 casualties.

13 August
The United States 1st Aero Squadron, commanded by Major Ralph Royce, sails for France.

17 August
In France, an airmail service is instituted between Paris, Le Mans and St Nazaire.

18 August
Dutch Marine Luchtvaartdienst is established.

Part 1 | Part 3