The North Island era: Birth of naval aviation

Detail: Ely launches from the Birmingham

This official U.S. Navy photograph appears on a Navy web site. The caption on the web page reads, "Eugene Ely, 24, a civilian pilot, took off in a 50-hp. Curtiss plane from a wooden platform built over the bow of the light cruiser USS Birmingham (CL-2). The ship was at anchor in Hampton Roads, Va., and Ely landed moments later on Willoughby Spit."

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