U.S. Navy Aviation History: Celebrating 100 Years The history of aviation in the Navy is actually quite recent. Beginning in 1910, the Navy has really driven its aeronautical program to new heights. From its modest beginnings before World War I, aviation in the Navy has come a long way. It was not until World War II that the Navy really understood just how important aviation capabilities were and the investment in aircraft carriers helped win the war in the Pacific against a heavily fortified Japanese navy with landing strips on a variety of islands throughout the region. Innovation seemed to stall until new threats in the Cold War once again demanded the Navy to invest in innovation to protect the nation's waters. The height of the Cold War saw the introduction of jet planes and nuclear capabilities on aircraft carriers. In the years after, the Navy has continued to play a crucial role in supporting Army ground offenses, as well as providing much needed assistance in humanitarian efforts for ocean related disasters. Today, the Navy has celebrated over 100 years of aviation within its ranks and the two have become synonymous in regards to the strength and power seen in the Navy today.

It was not until the turn of the Twentieth Century that the U.S. Navy employed aviation on a large scale. Theodore Roosevelt, as Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1898, was a huge supporter in the U.S. Navy implementing flying aircraft into its regiments (Naval History and Heritage Command 1). At the time, the Navy lacked the technology to really acquire and use aircrafts, but with time came greater opportunities.

One of the earliest pioneers of American Navy aviation was Glenn Curtiss (Naval History and Heritage Command 3). Curtiss was crucial in helping demonstrate to the Navy that planes could be transported via ships at sea and that these ships could provide enough runway space for planes...

The first American Navy pilot to actually successfully take off from a Navy ship Eugene Ely. The attempt took place off the coast of Virginia on one of the Navy's top ships of the day, the U.S.S. Birmingham, in 1910 (Naval History and Heritage Command 3). Curtiss was successful in flying a model A-1 from a plane and worked continuously to improve the technology aboard Navy ships to accommodate aircraft. In 1911, the Navy would launch the A-2 as its second aircraft design to fly off a ship at sea. Ely was also crucial in helping demonstrate that planes could also land on U.S. Navy ships out at sea as well, with his successful landing on the U.S.S. Pennsylvania in the waters near San Francisco also in 1910 (Dann 4).
From these initial demonstrations, Curtiss continued to work with the Navy to develop platforms that would allow for the successful taking off and landing of the top planes so that the Navy could incorporate aviation into its battle arsenal. Curtiss' work was augmented with the help of Henry C. Mustin, who helped develop the catapult launch in 1915 that was used to successfully launch the Navy's AB-2 flying boat (Naval History and Heritage Command 16). Still, World War I saw little use of Navy spearheaded aviation strategies and most of the planes used by the U.S. Navy were heavy sea planes that could not land on ships at sea. However, just after World War I in 1919, Admiral William Benson spearheaded efforts to stop aviation practices within the Navy. The research suggests that Benson wanted to stop the Navy from using aviation and instead create an entirely separate government entity, the Department of Aeronautics. Yet, a number of top officials, including then Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt campaigned successfully to keep an aviation program active within the ranks of the U.S. Navy. Just like his cousin,…