Aviation and Space Anniversaries to Celebrate in 2016
FAI will continue to celebrate aviation and space anniversaries in 2016, with various publications and posts in the social media.
Beside the achievements or world records of famous pioneers and personalities such as Steve Fossett, Otto Lilienthal and Alberto Santos-Dumont will also feature extraordinary performances by less known – but nevertheless fascinating – sportsmen and women.
FAI’s oldest competition, the Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett long-distance gas balloon race, will turn 110 this year.
This article is available in English , French , German , Spanish and Russian (PDF format).
| Date | Name | Country | Category | Description | Performance | Record |
| 08.02.2006 | World Team 2006 | Intl | Parachuting | Largest formation | 400 skydivers | Current |
| 11.02.2006 | FOSSETT Steve | USA | Powered Aeroplanes | Distance | 41'467.53 km | Current |
| 26.02.2011 | STS-133 & ISS 26 crews | Astronautics | Assembled mass of spaceships linked in flight (Discovery – International Space Station) | 515’085 kg | Current | |
| 29.03.1936 | BURZYNSKI Zbigniew | POL | Gas Balloons | Altitude | 10’853 m | Superseded |
| 12.05.2011 | WEXLER Judith* | USA | Experimental/New Tech. | Duration - 1st Human-powered rotorcraft record | 4.2 sec | Superseded |
| 09.05.1926 | BYRD Richard | USA | Powered Aeroplanes | 1st attempt to fly over the North Pole | Not a record | |
| 17.06.2006 | MARDNA Toomas* | EST | Aeromodelling | Distance - Seaplane model aircraft | 111.01 km | Current |
| 12.07.1936 | THADEN Louise | USA | Female – Powered Aeroplanes | Speed over 100 km | 176.35 km/h | Superseded |
| 23.07.2006 | CAZAUX Charles | FRA | Paragliding | Speed over a triangular course of 25 km | 41.15 km/h | Current |
| 28.07.1976 | ELDON Joersz | USA | Powered Aeroplanes | Speed | 3’529.56 km/h | Current |
| 10.08.1896 | LILIENTHAL Otto | GER | 120th anniversary of the aviation pioneer’s death | Not a record | ||
| 11.08.1986 | EGGINTON Trevor | GBR | Rotorcraft | Speed over a straight 15/25 km course | 400.87 km/h | Current |
| 29.08.2006 | FOSSETT Steve* | USA | Gliding | Altitude | 15’460 m | Current |
| 07.09.1956 | KINCHELOE Iven | USA | Astronautics | 1st flight above 100’000 feet | Not a record | |
| 22.09.1936 | CLAISSE Maurice | FRA | Rotorcraft | Altitude | 158 m | Superseded |
| 30.09.1906 | * | 1st Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett | Not a record | |||
| 12.11.1906 | SANTOS-DUMONT Alberto | BRA | Powered Aeroplanes | 1st officially observed flight in Europe greater than 25 m | Not a record | |
| 13.11.1926 | DE BERNARDI Mario | ITA | Seaplane | Speed over 100 km | 399.42 km/h | Superseded |
| 17.12.1996 | STS-80 crew* | USA | Astronautics | Duration Longest shuttle mission (Columbia) | 17d 15h 53m 17s | Current |
* Separate articles will be published about these records
