Take The “Wings Over Kansas” Aviation History Quiz!

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This is a fun quiz that covers the Top Aerospace Milestones, designed to test your aviation history knowledge.

If you’re like many aviation history buffs, aviation enthusiasts and aerospace professionals, you’ll enjoy testing your knowledge of major aviation achievements and accomplishments in this nine-part series of multiple questions. If you don’t know the answer, you’ll learn once you’ve checked for the correct answer at the end of the quiz. However, if you’ve visited WingsOverKansas.com “100th Anniversary of Flight” page, you’ll have already learned the answers to these intriguing questions.

Now here’s “Wings Over Kansas” History Quiz, Part #5, The Fifties:

1. What is the gas turbine engine, which drives a conventional propeller?

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Turboprop

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2. Who was famous during the fifties in German-American rocket technology development?

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Werner Von Braun

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3. What rocket engine launched America’s first orbiting satellite? The Explorer I was launched in 1958 using this engine and in 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space when he was launched on a suborbital flight by this same engine.

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Redstone rocket engine

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4. In 1952, what was the first all-jet, swept-wing bomber to make intercontinental bombing runs?

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Boeing B-52 bomber

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5. In the fifties, what was the supersonic fighter designed to escort bombers, serve as a fighter-bomber, an all-weather interceptor and a photo-reconnaissance aircraft?

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McDonnell F-101 Voodoo

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6. In 1956, what was the only jet tanker designed specifically to refuel aircraft in flight?

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KC-135

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7. What was the first successful jet airliner to enter passenger service? It carried 181 passengers and traveled at 550 mph. Pan Am flew this aircraft in 1957 and other airlines were quick to order this aircraft along with the DC-8. By 1958 over a million passengers had flown the Atlantic, surpassing the total of Atlantic steamship passengers for the first time. Hint: This aircraft was modeled after the KC-135.

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Boeing 707

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8. In 1955, what was the aircraft that Russia developed as the first sustained jet transport service in the world?

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T-104

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9. What was the first U.S. turboprop airliner in 1958?

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Lockheed Electra

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10. What was the first Douglas jet transport that could carry 259 passengers flying more than 4,500 miles nonstop?

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DC-8

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11. In 1958, what was the agency established to be charged with running the air traffic control system and with all safety issues, certification, training, and maintenance?

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Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

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12. In 1954, what was the first operational military fighter capable of sustained flight at Mach 2?

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Lockheed F-104

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13. What was the advanced technology military aircraft developed during this time period?

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Northrop B-49 Flying Wing 66

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14. In 1951, what was the first liquid-fueled intercontinental missile with a range of more than 5,000 miles? Combined with nuclear warheads, and computer guidance systems, this missile changed the nature of warfare and our concept of preparedness.

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Atlas (Convair)

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15. What was the turbine engine for helicopters first flown by a Kaman 225, on December 10, 1951, which offered reduced noise, less vibration, and higher power to weight ratio and greater reliability? This engine proved to be a major breakthrough for the helicopter industry.

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Boeing 502 gas turbine engine

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16. What was the first jet airliner put into service by BOAC in 1952? Great Britain was the first nation to use gas turbine propulsion for air transports. Two accidents caused by metal fatigue caused airlines to cancel their orders and gave the American jet industry a chance to catch up.

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The Comet

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17. What did Jack St. Clair Kirby and Robert N. Noyce co-invent which eliminated the need for hundreds of heavy vacuum tubes in electronic equipment for planes?

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Integrated circuits

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18. What was the extremely long-range, high altitude reconnaissance jet used in 1955?

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U2

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19. What was the first Soviet launched satellite in space in 1957? This event catalyzed the development of the U.S. space program.

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Sputnik

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20. What was created by then President Eisenhower and Congress in 1958 to develop a non-military space exploration program?

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NASA

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21. What was the first U.S. satellite launched in space in 1958?

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U.S. Explorer 1

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Write down all your answers first, and then the correct answers here.