Henry Wrigley (1892–1987) was an air vice marshal in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). A pioneering flyer and aviation scholar, he piloted the first trans-Australia flight from Melbourne to Darwin in 1919, and afterwards laid the groundwork for the RAAF's air power doctrine. During World War I, he joined the Australian Flying Corps and saw combat with No. 3 Squadron on the Western Front, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross; he later commanded the unit and published a history of its wartime exploits. He was awarded the Air Force Cross for his 1919 cross-country flight. He was a founding member of the RAAF in 1921. In 1936, he was promoted to group captain and took command of RAAF Station Laverton. Raised to air commodore soon after the outbreak of World War II, he became Air Member for Personnel in November 1940. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire the next year. He served as Air Officer Commanding RAAF Overseas Headquarters, London, from 1942 until his retirement from the military in 1946. His writings on air power were collected and published posthumously as The Decisive Factor in 1990.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Wrigley

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

321:

Emperor Constantine I decreed that Sunday, the day honoring the sun god Sol Invictus (disc pictured), would be the Roman day of rest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sol_Invictus

1277:

Étienne Tempier, Bishop of Paris, promulgated a condemnation of 219 philosophical and theological propositions that were being discussed at the University of Paris. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condemnations_of_1210%E2%80%931277

1850:

In support of the Compromise of 1850, United States Senator Daniel Webster gave his "Seventh of March" speech, which was so unpopular among his constituency he was forced to resign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Webster

1900:

The German ocean liner SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse became the first ship to send a wireless telegraph message to an onshore receiver. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Kaiser_Wilhelm_der_Grosse

1968:

Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam began Operation Truong Cong Dinh to sweep the area surrounding the Mekong Delta town of Mỹ Tho to root out Viet Cong forces in the area. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Truong_Cong_Dinh

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

at one blast: At once, at the same moment in time. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/at_one_blast

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

What is history … without politics? A guide who walks on and on with no one following to learn the road, so that his every step is wasted; just as politics without history is like a man who walks along without a guide.   --Alessandro Manzoni https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alessandro_Manzoni