1937 in aviation

March
March 5 - Imperial Airways opens a new flying boat base at Hythe, Hampshire.

April
April 9 - The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London - it is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe.

April 12 - Sir Frank Whittle ground-tests the first jet engine designed to power an aircraft at the British Thomson-Houston factory in Rugby, England.

April 26 - Luftwaffe bombers of Legion Condor attack Guernica

April 30 - Nationalist Spanish battleship España sunk by air attack by Republican forces.

May
May 6 - German zeppelin Hindenburg caught fire and was destroyed whilst attempting to dock with its mooring mast at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in Lakehurst, New Jersey.

June
June 18-20, Valery Chkalov, G.F.Baidukov, A.V.Belyakov flew from Moscow to Vancouver, Washington, USA via the North Pole

July
July 3, Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappear on a flight from Lae, New Guinea to Howland Island, and are never seen again.

July 3-6 - Pan Am and Imperial Airways flying boats conduct joint survey flights over the Atlantic in preparation for the commencement of regular services.

July 12-14 - Mikhail Gromov, A. B. Yumashev, and S. A. Danilin establish a new distance record of 10,148 km (6,303 miles) from Moscow to San Jacinto, California, USA via the North Pole.

August
August 15 - Lufthansa begins seaplane services between the Azores and New York with the assistance of seaplane tenders stationed along the route.

September
September 1 - Air Canada, Canada's largest airline, began operations.

November
November 16 - A Sabena Junkers Ju 52 en route from Cologne, Germany to London via Brussels crashed near Ostend with 11 on board. All aboard were killed, including the Grand Duke and eight-months pregnant Grand Duchess of Hesse and their two small sons.

First flights

January
January 13 - Fairey Fulmar

February
February 9 - Blackburn Skua

March
Miles Magister
March 10 - Hawker Henley

April
April 10 - Junkers Ju 88 V2 D-AREN

May
May 7 - Lockheed XC-35
May 20 - de Havilland Albatross
Arado Ar 196

June
June 18 - de Havilland Don
June 19 - Airspeed Oxford
June 22 - de Havilland Moth Minor

July
July 27 - Short Mayo Flying-boat / seaplane composite
July 27 - Focke-Wulf Fw 200 prototype D-AERE
July 29 - Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra

August
August 11 - Boulton Paul Defiant prototype K 8310

September
September 1 - Bell YFM-1 Airacuda
September 13 - Junkers Ju 88 V3 D-ASAZ

October
October 16 - Short S.25 K 4774, prototype of the Short Sunderland

December
Brewster B-139, prototype of the Brewster Buffalo
December 24 - Macchi C.200

Entered service

February
Gloster Gladiator with No. 3 and No. 72 Squadron RAF

March
March 4 - YB-17 Flying Fortress with U.S. 2nd Bombardment Group
March 9 - Armstrong Whitworth Whitley with No. 10 Squadron RAF
Bristol Blenheim with No. 114 Squadron RAF

April
Vickers Wellesley
Junkers Ju 87 with I/StG 162
April 16 - Supermarine Stranraer

May
May 20 - Fairey Battle with No. 63 Squadron RAF

October
Miles Magister
TBD Devastator with VT-3 aboard USS Saratoga

November
Airspeed Oxford

December
SB2U Vindicator with VB-3 aboard USS Saratoga