This Day in Aviation History
June 8th, 1921
Harold R. Harris becomes the first pilot to fly a pressurized aircraft.
 
On June 8, 1921 Harris became the first pilot to fly a pressurized aircraft when he successfully flew a Dayton-Wright USD-9A with an experimental pressurized cockpit. Two McCook Field test pilots had previously tried to fly the aircraft without success, including test pilot John A. Macready, who held the world altitude record in an oxygen equipped unpressurized aircraft. On August 11, 1921, Harold R. Harris flew the first airmail aircraft designed to pick up airmail sacks from the ground….
 
Source:
Wikipedia, Harold R. Harris: http://gstv.us/25Fbo8K
 
Book Quotes:
During June 1921, Harris flew the first pressurized aircraft, an experimental D-99-A single-engine biplane. Owing to the circumstance that the pressurization system capability greatly exceeded the outflow valve capability, with no pilot control of cabin pressure, the aircraft cabin became pressurized to 914m (3,000ft) below sea level as the aircraft climbed out. The cabin air became hot and Harris was fortunate to get the airplane unharmed on the ground. Much was learned from his experience. – Fundamentals of Aerospace Medicine
 
One June 8, 1921, Lt. Harold R. Harris became the first pilot to fly a pressurized aircraft when he successfully flew a Dayton-Wright USD-9A with an experimental pressurized cockpit. Two other test pilots had previously tried to fly the aircraft without success, including Lt. John A. Macready, who held the world altitude record in an oxygen-equipped unpressurized aircraft. The USD-9A had an airtight spherical chamber in place of a cockpit. The chamber had only a control stick and small portholes to view the instruments, which had been relocated outside. While at McCook Field, Harris held the prestigious title of the of the Flight Test Branch, Engineering Division. – Dayton Aviation: The Wright Brothers to McCook Field
 
NYT, Harold Ross Harris Is Dead at 92;, Early Pilot and Aviation Pioneer: http://gstv.us/25Fcwtb
 
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