[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 168 (Friday, November 4, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2010]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           IN RECOGNITION OF THE CENTENNIAL OF NAVAL AVIATION

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JEFF MILLER

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, November 4, 2011

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the 
Centennial of Naval Aviation and its service to the United States of 
America.
  Throughout the last century, the men and women of the United States 
Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard who have heeded freedom's call have 
become America's front line of defense. Generation after generation of 
children from the Emerald Coast have watched our country's finest 
aviators overhead and dreamt of following in their footsteps. I am 
proud to say that the First Congressional District of Florida holds a 
special place in its heart for the Blue Angels and all who fly in our 
nation's defense.
  Naval Air Station Pensacola, NAS Pensacola, welcomed its first 
aviation unit on January 20, 1914, less than three years after the Navy 
purchased its first planes. On December 7, 1917, Pensacola was 
designated as the first permanent U.S. Naval Air Station. It was 
America's sole Naval Air Station until World War I. In the ensuing 
years, tens of thousands of America's finest Naval Aviators have 
trained at NAS Pensacola, including Neil Armstrong and Ted Williams. 
Today, all U.S. Naval Aviators begin their training at the Cradle of 
Naval Aviation.
  From the first Naval Aviator, Lieutenant Theodore Ellyson, to the 
current class of flight students at NAS Pensacola, thousands of Naval 
Aviators have protected America's interests around the world and in 
outer space. Just like their predecessors from previous generations, 
today's students at NAS Pensacola go through rigorous training to serve 
on shore and at sea, at home and abroad, to protect the United States 
and support freedom wherever and whenever they are called. From combat 
patrols over Iraq and Afghanistan to relief missions in Haiti and 
around the world, Naval Aviation is a touchstone of America's naval 
might.
  Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to recognize Naval Aviation for its 
contributions during its first 100 years and to honor it as it takes 
flight in the next 100 years.

                          ____________________