CAF Houston Wing

Join us in wishing a happy birthday to the USA that's older than the USA! 😉

Established as the Continental Army on 14 June 1775, the US Army predates the Declaration of Independence by more than a year, making it older than the nation it would help create.

Just two weeks after its 132nd birthday, the Army would begin an aviation lineage that carries through to the present day:

✪ 1 Aug 1907: Creation of the Aeronautical Division, Signal Corps
✪ 18 Jul 1914: Aviation Section, Signal Corps
✪ 20 May 1918: Division of Military Aeronautics
✪ 24 May 1918: Air Service, U.S. Army
✪ 2 Jul 1926: United States Army Air Corps (USAAC)
✪ 20 Jun 1941: United States Army Air Forces (USAAF)

Even after the independent US Air Force was created in 1947, the Army retained an Aviation Branch, which today operates over 4300 aircraft, roughly 4000 of which are helicopters. In fact, the Army operates more helicopters than the air forces of most nations operate aircraft of all types combined. Army Aviation is one of the largest aviation organizations in the world.

Any Army Aviators in the audience?

In June 1939, North American Aviation's trainer officially received the designation "AT-6"line when the U.S. Army Air Corps formally adopted the designation for its latest advanced trainer. Sources vary somewhat on the exact paperwork dates, but by the middle of 1939 the AT-6 name had entered official use, beginning the aircraft's long association with pilot training around the world.

That same month, North American secured a contract for 94 AT-6-NAs (company designation NA-59), and deliveries to the Army Air Corps began during the summer of 1939. The U.S. Navy would later acquire its own versions, leading to the development of the SNJ designation familiar to generations of naval aviators. And, of course, Canada would also build them under license as the Harvard. Our own Ace in the Hole was built in Canada by Noorduyn.

The path to becoming the AT-6 was a winding one. Its ancestry can be traced to the NA-16 of 1935, an open-cockpit trainer with fixed landing gear that looked markedly different from the machine that would eventually earn worldwide recognition. The transformation came through a series of major improvements, including retractable landing gear, all-metal construction, and a more powerful engine. Much of this development was financed through British purchases of the Harvard during 1937 and 1938.

At roughly the same time, the Army Air Corps adopted the design under the somewhat awkward "Basic Combat" classification, ordering approximately 180 BC-1s. Despite the different designation, these aircraft were essentially direct predecessors of the AT-6. By early 1939, Army officials concluded that the BC category no longer accurately described the aircraft's role and quietly abandoned it, reviving the long-unused "Advanced Trainer" designation instead. As a result, the appearance of the AT-6 name represented less a new airplane than an administrative realignment for a design that had already matured.

📸 Brian Lambert

Have you ever wondered why there's no such thing as "Boeing Airlines"? Well, there used to be, and if you live in Houston, we're sure you've heard of it.

You see, before 1934, several major aircraft manufacturers were vertically integrated, meaning they built airplanes, engines, and operated airlines under the same corporate umbrella. The most famous example was William Boeing's United Aircraft and Transport Corporation (UATC), which controlled Boeing aircraft manufacturing, Pratt & Whitney engines, Sikorsky, Hamilton Standard propellers, airports, and what became United Air Lines.

The Hoover administration had actually encouraged these combinations as a way to grow the young aviation industry, but the arrangement became politically toxic during the Air Mail Scandal of 1934. Critics argued that the large aviation conglomerates had undue influence over government mail contracts and could squeeze out competitors.

The Air Mail Act of June 12, 1934, broke up these holding companies and prohibited airlines and aircraft manufacturers from being under common ownership or control. Boeing's empire was split into three separate companies: Boeing Airplane Company, United Aircraft (later United Technologies), and United Air Lines.

Interestingly, one of the biggest consequences of the Air Mail Act was personal. William Boeing was so frustrated by the forced breakup that he effectively left the aviation business. Rather than work under the new rules, he retired from active involvement in Boeing shortly after the law took effect.

It's a big sky. You should see it up close: https://www.houstonwing.org/aircraft-rides/

📸 Katherine Hamilton

Our Vultee BT-13 Valiant was one of the most widely used trainers of WWII. You can ride on it or one of our other trainers on July 18 in Brenham: https://www.houstonwing.org/aircraft-rides/

Nicknamed the “Vultee Vibrator” for its tendency to shake and rattle during flight, the BT-13 helped prepare thousands of American pilots for the transition from primary flight training to advanced flight training in high-performance aircraft. More than 11,000 were built during the war. The majority served with the U.S. Army Air Forces, but the U.S. Navy also operated the type, designating it the SNV. The BT-13 even found its way into the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan in Canada, where it was known as the “Yale”.

📸 Brian Kosior

Did you ever wonder where our PT-19 came from? The big one *OR* the small one? Turns out, they're related!

Richard Addams of Pratt, Kansas, served as a U.S. Navy radio operator aboard P-2 Neptunes during the postwar era, flying missions around Enewetak Atoll during U.S. hydrogen bomb tests and helping monitor radiation levels and maintain safety around the test area. After his military service, Addams earned his pilot's license and purchased Fairchild PT-19 N50808 with the goal of restoring and flying the aircraft. In the 1950s, Curtis E. Huitt acquired the PT-19 for $200 and flew it for many years, sharing his passion for aviation with others before eventually selling it.

The aircraft's whereabouts were unknown for decades until it was acquired and restored by the Commemorative Air Force Houston Wing in 2013. In 2026, Curtis' son, Randy Huitt, rediscovered N50808 during a visit to the Houston Wing and later donated a scale model of the aircraft that had hung in his family's former aviation business, ensuring that both the aircraft and its "mini me" continue to be preserved for future generations.

Our cadet program gives kids a unique and structured way to explore their love of aviation! For information on how your student can join, message our page!

📸 Thad S.

For the second time in six months, Admiral Halsey sailed his fleet into a typhoon on 5 June 1945.

U.S. Navy Task Force 38 sailed into the storm now referred to as Typhoon Viper southeast of Okinawa. The aircraft carriers USS Hornet (CV-12), USS Bennington (CV-20), USS Belleau Wood (CVL-24), USS San Jacinto (CVL-30), USS Windham Bay (CVE-92), and USS Salamaua (CVE-96) were all damaged and the task force lost 76 aircraft. The heavy cruiser USS Pittsburgh (CA 72) lost 104 feet of her bow. All told, six men were killed and 50 injured.

Fortunately, it was not the disaster the previous storm was. Typhoon Cobra in December of 1944 was the worst natural disaster in U.S. Navy history and one of the worst non-combat losses ever suffered by the Navy. It resulted in the loss of the destroyers USS Hull (DD-350), USS Monaghan (DD-354), and USS Spence (DD-512). Nearly 800 sailors were killed, and 146 aircraft were lost or damaged.

A Court of Inquiry convened to investigate Typhoon Viper recommended that Admirals Halsey and McCain be assigned to other duties, and Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal sought to retire Halsey. By June 1945, however, Halsey was one of the most celebrated combat commanders in the U.S. Navy, and concerns about the impact on morale contributed to the decision not to retire him. McCain did relinquish command of Task Force 38 two months later.

The typhoon essentially ended Hornet's combat service, though. She did conduct search and rescue air operations even with the damaged flight deck shown in the photo, but after that retired for repairs. By the time repairs were completed, the war was over, though she did return to the Pacific as part of Operation Magic Carpet, returning American servicemen home.

Cadet Lindsay G. gets her cockpit briefing in the BT-13 before her ride flight. You can do the very same thing on July 18 in Brenham, TX! Grab a seat in one of our historic trainers at https://www.houstonwing.org/aircraft-rides/