:Aviation in Rhode Island
{{Prose|date=December 2011}}
{{Infobox aviation in region
| region = Rhode Island
| series = Aviation in the United States
| image = {{flagicon|Rhode Island|size=220px}}
| caption = Rhode Island State Flag
| cs_primary = 1
| cs_non-primary = 2
| general_aviation = 1
| other_public-use = 1
| military = 0
| first_flight = 1856 - Balloon
}}
Aviation in Rhode Island is the aeronautical history of that American New England state.
Rhode Island's first aeronautical event was a flight by James Allen in 1856 in a hot air balloon.{{cite web|title=Rhode Island Aviation Hall of Fame|url=http://www.riahof.org/inductees.htm#2003|accessdate=26 December 2011}}
Events
- 1896, Edson Fessenden Gallaudet demonstrated a wing warping glider four years before the Wright Brothers. The glider is on display at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.
- 1916, Providence born pilot, Godfrey DeCourcelles Chevalier participates in the first production catapult launches.
Aircraft Manufacturers
- Gallaudet Aircraft Company (–1923), Merged with Consolidated Aircraft in 1923.
- Textron, Providence, Rhode Island, (1923–) is a conglomerate that includes Bell Helicopter, E-Z-GO, Cessna Aircraft Company, and Greenlee, among others.
Airports
- T. F. Green Airport has nearly four million passenger movements per year.
- List of Airports in Rhode Island
Commercial Service
- New England Airlines provides regional air service.
Organizations
Government and Military
- All flight operations in Rhode Island are conducted within FAA oversight.Ri
- The Rhode Island Air National Guard was founded 1915 operating two Curtiss flying boats.
- Former Governor Bruce Sundlun served as a Boeing B-17 gunner in World War II. Later becoming a partner in Executive Jet Aviation.
- The Rhode Island Airport Corporation operates a Bell 407 Helicopter in support of all state agencies.
- The Rhode Island Airport Corporation enforces the provisions of the Uniform Aeronautical Regulatory Act (UAR).
Museums
- Quonset Air Museum {{cite web|title=Quonset Air Museum|url=http://www.quonsetairmuseum.com/|accessdate=26 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916025708/http://www.quonsetairmuseum.com/|archive-date=2015-09-16|url-status=dead}}
- Rhode Island Aviation Hall of Fame is managing the John F. Kennedy Aircraft Carrier Project.{{cite web|title=USS John F. Kennedy|url=http://www.ussjfkri.org/|accessdate=26 December 2011}}