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100th Anniversary Logo with the 100 in large letters and the museum logo
Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week.
FREE Admission & Parking

First Shot Fired from an Airplane

The first shot fired from an airplane occurred on Aug. 20, 1910, at Sheepshead Bay race track near New York City. With Mr. Glenn Curtiss piloting, Lt. Jacob E. Fickel fired a rifle at a 3-foot-by-5-foot target from an altitude of 100 feet. The next month, Lt. Fickel and Mr. Curtiss repeated the experiment in Boston, Mass., this time using an Army semi-automatic pistol.

Click here to return to the Early Years Gallery.