Aviation Firsts — The Jet Age Dawns — Aviation Heritage — FlyCurrent
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“"Test running log for Whittle W.1 engine"”
Aviation Firsts — The Jet Age Dawns
Frank Whittle, "The Early History of the Whittle Jet Propulsion Gas Turbine," First James Clayton Lecture, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Vol. 152, Issue 1 (June 1945), documenting 1928 conception, January 1930 patent, and May 14, 1941 first flight. - Science Museum Group Collection, "Test running log for Whittle W.1 engine" (sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk), covering 12 April to 30 May 1941 with flight entry on 14 May 1941. - British Thomson-Houston (BTH) archival report, "GEC-Whittle paper" (warwickshireias.org), citing W.1 flight engine clearance and Gloster E.28/39 first flight at Cranwell, 15 May 1941 (recorded as 14 May in Whittle's lecture and 15 May in some BTH logs; the accepted date is 14 May 1941 per Whittle's contemporary account). - GEC/Whittle historical records, "Copy of Report from B.T.H. Files," documenting 1930 patent filing and Power Jets Ltd. formation March 1936.
Why it matters to you
Frank Whittle's turbojet — patented in 1930, first flown in the Gloster E.28/39 in May 1941 — opened the jet age that defines modern aviation.