Tanks Are Used in Battle for the First Time
On September 15, 1916, British tanks were used for the first time in battle at Flers-Courcelette on the Somme.
The Boeing B-29 Superfortress Makes Its First Flight
On September 21, 1942, the first B-29 Superfortress flew from Seattle, the largest and most advanced bomber of the Second World War.
The First V-2 Rocket Reaches Space
On October 3, 1942, a German V-2 rocket reached 84.5 km, the first man-made object to reach space.
Operation Market Garden Begins in the Netherlands
On September 17, 1944, Operation Market Garden dropped 35,000 airborne troops into the Netherlands to seize bridges to Arnhem.
Britain Tests Its First Atomic Bomb
On October 3, 1952, Britain detonated its first atomic bomb, Hurricane, off Western Australia.
The United States Conducts Its First Underground Nuclear Test
On September 19, 1957, the US fired Rainier, its first fully contained underground nuclear test, in a tunnel in Nevada.
The USS Enterprise, First Nuclear-Powered Aircraft Carrier, Is Launched
On September 24, 1960, the USS Enterprise was launched at Newport News, the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in the world.
The Soviet Union Tests the Tsar Bomba
On October 30, 1961, the Soviet Union detonated the Tsar Bomba, the largest nuclear blast ever.
China Tests a Nuclear-Armed Missile
On October 27, 1966, China carried out its first flight test of a nuclear-armed missile, which detonated at its target in the west.