Aviation in Florida

Aviation in Florida
Aviation in the United States
Florida State Flag
Airports
Commercial – primary	20
Commercial – non-primary	22
General aviation	58
Other public-use airports	29
Military and other airports	24
First flight
Balloon - 1878 Heavier-than-air - 1914

The first aeronautical event in Florida was presented on January 28, 1878, when a balloon flew over Jacksonville. Florida has since hosted four major aviation events.

Events

• January 1914 - St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line becomes the first airline in the world using heavier-than-air vehicles.
• December 1916 - Navy takes delivery of its first airship, the DN-1
• April 1, 1926 - Florida Airways starts Commercial Air Mail (CAM) Service.
• Sun 'n Fun air show started in 1974.

Aircraft manufacturers

• Comp Air - Merritt Island, Florida
• Piper Aircraft - Vero Beach
• Progressive Aerodyne - Tavares, Florida

Aerospace

• Florida Institute of Technology
• Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University

Airports

• List of airports in Florida

Commercial service

• Air Florida based in Florida from 1971 to 1984
• Red Arrow Flying Service - Chalk's Ocean Airways - Chalk's International Airlines founded in Miami in 1917.
• National Airlines founded in 1934.

Organizations

• Florida Aviation Association - Founded in 1936 in Orlando
• Space Florida

Government and military

• Florida Department of Transportation
• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration bases its aircraft at the Aircraft Operations Center in Lakeland.

Museums

• Air Force Armament Museum, Valparaiso, Florida
• Air Force Space and Missile Museum, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station
• Airport Museum (Melbourne, Florida)
• DeLand Naval Air Station Museum, DeLand, Florida
• Fantasy of Flight, Polk City, Florida
• Florida Air Museum, Lakeland, Florida
• Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Merritt Island, Florida
• Kissimmee Air Museum
• National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola, Florida
• United States Astronaut Hall of Fame, south of Titusville, Florida
• US Space Walk of Fame, Titusville, Florida
• Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum, Titusville, Florida
• Wings of Dreams Aviation Museum, Keystone Heights, Florida
• Wings Over Miami, Tamiami Airport, Miami