June 13, 1943
1943: Eighth Air Force loses 26 of 60 bombers in a raid on Kiel, Germany, demonstrating the need for fighter escorts.
June 12, 1918
1918: The 96th Aero Squadron carries out the first American daylight-bombing mission in World War I from Amanty Airdrome.
June 9, 1967
1967: USAF starts evacuating 1,300 military and civilian Americans from Middle East due to Arab-Israeli War.
June 8, 1953
1953: The Thunderbirds – officially known as the 3600th Air Demonstration Flight – give their first performance, at Luke AFB, AZ, flying the F-84G.
June 7, 1912
1912: Capt Charles DeForest Chandler becomes the first person to fire a machine gun from an airplane in the US.
June 6, 1970
(courtesy Chicago Tribune, June 7, 1970) 1970: MAC Commander Gen Jack J. Catton flies the 1st C-5 for an operational wing from Lockheed Marietta to Charleston AFB.
June 5, 1944
1944: Operation OVERLORD. Through 6 June, the IX Troop Carrier Command uses 1,400 C-47s, C-53s, and gliders to drop 13,000 Allied paratroopers on Normandy.
June 2, 1995
1995: Thru 8 June, after SAM downs his F-16, Capt Scott O’Grady evades capture for 6 days until Marine helicopters rescue him.
