1954 in aviation

January
January 10 - a de Havilland Comet 1 operating BOAC Flight 781, crashes into the Mediterranean Sea near Elba, with the loss of all 35 people aboard.

April
April 1 - Last operational flight by an RAF Spitfire, a photo-reconnaissance sortie against bandits in Malaya

June
June 2 - Yugoslavian Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15s attack a Belgian Douglas DC-3, which lands in Austria

June 21 - three USAF B-47 Stratojets cross the Pacific Ocean in under 15 hours

July
July 22 - a CPA--Cathay Pacific Airways Douglas DC-4 is shot down near Hainan Island

July 26 - Soviet Air Force Lavochkin La-7s attack two US Navy A-1 Skyraiders searching for survivors from the CPA flight. The Skyraiders respond and shoot down the La-7s

November
November 2 - the VTOL Convair XFY transitions from vertical to horizontal flight and back

November 7 - Soviet Air Force MiG-15s shoot down a USAF B-29 Superfortress off Hokkaidō, claiming it was spying.

November 17 - a B-47 is forced by bad weather to remain aloft for 47 hours 35 minutes, needing nine aerial refuellings.

First flights

March
March 4 - Lockheed XF-104 Prototype of the F-104 Starfighter

June
June 14 - PAC Fletcher

July
July 15 - Boeing 367-80, prototype of the Boeing 707 and Boeing C-135 families

August
August 3 - Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig (free flight)
August 4 - English Electric P.1, prototype of the English Electric Lightning
August 23 - Lockheed YC-130 Hercules, from Palmdale, CA to Edwards Air Force Base

September
September 29 - Maiden flight of a McDonnell F-101A Voodoo by test pilot Robert C. Little[1] [2]

October
October 3 - Douglas XF4D-1
October 6 - Fairey FD.2

Entered service

Tupolev Tu-16 in the Soviet Air Force

February
Supermarine Swift with No. 56 Squadron RAF

September
FJ Fury with VF-173
September 27 - F-100 Super Sabre with 479th Fighter Day Wing