January 16

What happened on January 16 in aviation and space history.

• January 16, 1957

  Operation Power Flite: first non-stop round-the-world flight by jet aircraft

  Record — Three B-52Bs of the 93rd Bombardment Wing took off from March Air Force Base, California, on 16 January 1957 and returned to the same base on 18 January after covering 39,147 km (24,325 miles) in 45 hours 19 minutes, with several in-flight refuelings by KC-97s. It was the first non-stop round-the-world flight by a jet aircraft, and the 93rd Bomb Wing received the Mackay Trophy for the feat.