October 24, 1947

Oct. 24, 1947
Company pilots Fred Rowley and Carl Alber make the first flight of the Grumman XJR2F- 1, the prototype of the SA-16 (redesignated HU-16 in 1962) Albatross rescue amphibian, at Bethpage, Long Island, N.Y. Air Force and Navy Albatross crews will rescue nearly 1,100 downed airmen from hostile waters during the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

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