What were the first aircraft that the USAF had?

Question

like before, during, and after WWI

Answer 1

The USAF was not created Until July 26, 1947. So it's first aircraft would be what was in the inventory of the USAAF( us army airforce). There were dozens of different types in use at the time. So there is no real first aircraft. The VC-54C transport on which President Truman signed the legislation is known as the "Sacred Cow." It is considered the birthplace of the Air Force. It is on display at the Air force Musuem at Wright Paterson AFB.

Now as for pre WW1? The first Airplane bought by the Army Signal Corps, was the Wright Military Flyer of 1909. Upon being purchased by the Signal Corps for $30,000 on Aug. 2, 1909, the original airplane was redesignated Signal Corps Airplane No. 1, the world’s first military heavier-than-air flying machine. It was used in October 1909 for giving flight instructions to Lts. Frank P. Lahm and Frederic E. Humphreys, and in 1910 it was used by Lt. Benjamin D. Foulois to teach himself how to fly. By March 1911, the airplane was no longer fit for use and was retired. The original is now on display at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

Answer 2

Actually, the Army bought the first aircraft from the Wright Bros for evaluation purposes. The Air Force wasn't even instituted until after WWII.Before that, it was the US Army air force. The Nieuport 17 was a French made biplane popular with American flyers. The SPAD was the American craft, known as the flying brick for its unpowered flight characteristics.



The Lineage of the United States Air Force
Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps 1 August 1907 - 18 July 1914
Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps 18 July 1914 - 20 May 1918
Division of Military Aeronautics 20 May 1918 - 24 May 1918
U.S. Army Air Service 24 May 1918 - 2 July 1926
U.S. Army Air Corps 2 July 1926 - 18 September 1947**
U.S. Army Air Forces 20 June 1941 - 18 September 1947**
United States Air Force 18 September 1947 - Present
** The Air Corps became a subordinate element of the Army Air Forces on 20 June 1941, and it continued to exist as a combat arm of the Army until 1947.

Answer 3

Since the USAF was incorporated in 1947, its first aircraft were all those in the inventory of the U.S. Army Air Corps at the time.

I believe the first U.S. military heavier-than-air aircraft (the Army used balloons for observation in the War Between the States, if not earlier) for service rather than just testing was the Curtiss flyer. If I recall correctly, the first pursuit or fighter planes the U.S. used in WWI were the Neiuport 17s.

Answer 4

A whole bunch..........When the Air Corps became the USAF in about 1948 the bunch was transferred over (on paper) en mass