JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
Oct. 17, 1967 - The U.S. Air Force accomplished the final balloon launch in a series to test the feasibility of using parachutes with the Voyager capsule for a soft landing on Mars.
Oct. 18, 1985 - First flight of an F-111 aircraft with the Mission Adaptive Wing took place at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The wing had no flaps, slats, ailerons, or spoilers, but used internal hydraulic actuators to change its camber in flight. The wing also had a flexible composite covering to maintain a smooth surface.
Oct. 19, 1999 - An RQ-4A Global Hawk flew a 24.8-hour mission from Edwards AFB, Calif., to Alaska. The extended-range sortie included its first mission over water and its first flight beyond the continental U.S. During the flight, the Global Hawk collected and relayed 193 ground images to ground stations.
Oct. 20, 1960 - The Department of Defense set up an Army-Navy-Air Force program under the Navy to develop a prototype vertical takeoff and landing aircraft to test its suitability for air transport service.
Oct. 21, 1950 - In the first use of a helicopter in support of an airborne operation, the 3rd Air Rescue Squadron sent H-5s to evacuate some 35 paratroopers and rescue seven American prisoners of war from the Sukchon and Sunchon area in Korea. A C-47 used loudspeakers to persuade some 500 enemy troops hiding in houses near Kunmori to surrender. Combat Cargo Command began aeromedical evacuations from Pyongyang.
Oct. 22, 1957 - During Operation Far Side, the four-stage, 10-engine rocket, fired from a balloon at 100,000 feet above Eniwetok, a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean, penetrated at least 2,700 miles into outerspace. It carried a scientific research capsule.
Oct. 23, 1984 - An HH-3 Jolly Green Giant from the 31st Air Rescue and Recovery Service rescued nine people trapped on the roof of the Pines Hotel in Baguio, Philippines. A C-130 Hercules from the 374th Tactical Airlift Wing, carried 48 people to Clark Air Base, Philippines, for treatment.