An organization of pioneers who flew solo before December 17, 1916
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Courtesy of Indiana Historical Society
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The Early Birds of Aviation is an organization devoted to the history of early pilots. The organization was started in 1928. Membership was limited
to those who piloted a glider, gas balloon, or airplane, prior to December 17, 1916. The cutoff date was set at December 17 of 1916 to correspond to the
first flights of Wilbur and Orville Wright. 1916 was chosen because large numbers of people were trained in 1917 as pilots for World War I. Many Early Birds,
went on to establish careers in public service and the aviation industry.
The original organization dissolved once the last living member had died. This occurred with the death of 99-year-old Early Bird George Debaun Grundy, Jr.
on May 19, 1998. The current organization is devoted to collecting and publishing biographies on those who met the 1916 deadline. There are pilots who soloed
before the 1916 deadline that never applied to the club to be members. Some have been made honorary members.
A few notable Hispanic aviators are part of the of early birds list, however it becomes obvious to even the amateur aviation historians, that many of the
pioneer fliers were not members of the Early Bird organization. Even those who soloed before the cutoff date, December 17, 1916 and were otherwise eligible,
were either overlooked as candidates or didn't bother to apply. Nevertheless, I think they deserve our respect and remembering, if we are to understand and
appreciate the roles they played in the development of aviation. To that end, I hope to add a few to this page as time and opportunity permits.
This article is a tribute and recognition of the contributions to aviation of early Hispanic aviators, and includes all known Hispanic aviators whether they
were part of the original Federation Aeronautic Internationale or not.
View prominent Hispanic Aviators missing from the Early Bird list.
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