Description
HMS Hibernia first ship aircraft takeoff 1912 IWM Q 71041.jpg
AWM caption : "This image shows the moment
Commander C Samson
of the
Royal Naval Air Service
took off from
HMS HIBERNIA
in his modified Shorts S.38 “hydro-aeroplane” to be the first pilot to take off from a ship underway at sea. The S.38 T.2 aircraft had air-bag floats to enable landing on water and was launched via a trolley-shuttle system off of a ramp which stretched from Hibernia’s bridge to bow, over her forward 12 inch guns."