1987 in aviation

January
January 1 - United States Coast Guard HH-65 Dolphins and US Navy H-3 Sea Kings help rescue people trapped inside the Dupont Plaza hotel Puerto Rico after a fire there on New Year's Eve

January 7 - French Air Force jets attack the Libyan Air Force base in Ouadi Doum to avenge a raid by Libya against the French military 3 days before.

February
February 1 - Peoplexpress Airlines ceased operations.

February - British Airways privatised.

April
April 2 - a Royal Air Force Vickers VC-10 sets a new record time between the UK and Australia, landing in Perth after a flight of 16 hours 1 minute.

April 10 Mr. Johan Åhling -Sweden- introduces the 'Mosquito', a foot launched Powered Hang Glider harness.

May
May 9 - An Ilyushin Il-62 of LOT Polish Airlines bound for New York, crashes on take-off, killing 183 persons.

May 29 - Mathias Rust, 19 years old, a West German pilot, shocks people by landing his Cessna 172 plane in Red Square, Moscow.

June
June 21 - Air France pilot Partick Fourticq and friend Henri Pescarolo once again walk into the record books, completing an around the world flight aboard a Lockheed 18, in 88 hours and 19 minutes.

August
August 16 - a McDonnell Douglas MD-80 of Northwest Airlines crashes on take-off for a flight from Detroit to Phoenix. 154 are killed.

August 30 - Israel's government cancels the IAI Lavi programme

September
September 15 - a Eurocopter Panther sets new time-to-altitude records for helicopters in its class

October
October 23 - the last F-104 Starfighter is phased out of Luftwaffe service

October 31 - British Airways accepts the airline's first women pilots.

November
November 14 - Air Transat began airline operations.

November 26 - a DC-9 of Continental Airlines crashes in Denver, Colorado on take-off during a snowstorm. 26 lose their lives and 56 are gravely injured.

First flights

February
February 13 - Fokker 50
February 22 - Airbus A320

March
March 9 - Yakovlev Yak-141

April
April 30 - Promavia Jet Squalus

June
June 10 - Boeing Vertol Model 360
June 24 - Grob/E-Systems/AlliedSignal Egrett

October
October 9 - EHI EH101

November
November 24 - F-14 Tomcat - model "D"

December
AEA Maverick
December 29 - Scaled Composites AT³

Entered service
April - Tu-160 in Soviet Air Forces (184th Guards Heavy Bomber Regiment in Pryluki)