[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 36 (Monday, March 2, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E515]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST MILITARY FLIGHT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. LAMAR SMITH

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 2, 2009

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Madam Speaker, United States military aviation 
was born in San Antonio on March 2, 1910, when 1st Lt. Benjamin Foulois 
launched a Wright Brothers ``Aeroplane'' into the air from a wooden 
take-off ramp at the Fort Sam Houston Parade Field. This first flight 
revolutionized military combat, and dramatically influenced public 
transportation and commerce around the globe.
  March 2, 2010, will mark the 100 year anniversary of military 
aviation, and San Antonio would like to celebrate this in a special 
way. They would like to make military aviation a theme for the entire 
year, encompassing everything from San Antonio's Fiesta celebration to 
The Chamber's annual ``Celebrate America's Military''.
  This anniversary will include a reenactment of Foulois' first flight 
using a replica of the original Wright Flyer at Fort Sam Houston, 
Texas.
  San Antonio is home to many aviation legends and firsts, among them: 
In 1924, Charles Lindberg became a flying cadet in the United States 
Air Reserve, training at Brooks and Kelly fields. Dr. Francis Kane 
developed the GPS system, which was originally used for precision 
bombing. On June 3, 1965, astronaut Edward Higgins White, II, a San 
Antonio native, became the first American to conduct a spacewalk. Gen 
Schielberg is father of space missile defense. U.S. astronauts used the 
centrifuge at Brooks City-Base for nearly 40 years to conduct space 
training. Brooks AFB was the first center for manned space travel.
  All of this occurred as a result of the first military flight in San 
Antonio.

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