Aviation races began in 1911 with numerous competions in France. Many other events were soon arranged. The following are some important races organised during the early days.

Below are some resources for further information on these races.

 

Date
Race
kms (miles)
  Winner
Nationality
Aeroplane
kms/hr (mph)
______________________________________________________________________ 


28 August 1909
Gordon Bennett Trophy at Reims, France
20 (12)
  Glenn Curtiss
American
Curtiss 'Golden Flyer'
75 (47)
 

29 October 1910
Gordon Bennett Trophy at Belmont Park, NY
100 (62)
  Claude Grahame-White
British
Blériot monoplane
98 (61)
 

30 October 1910
Statue of Liberty race
56 (35)
  Claude Grahame-White
British
Blériot XI monoplane
 

21 May 1911
Paris - Madrid race
1,407 (874)
  Jules Védrines
French
Morane-Borel monoplane
93 (58)
 

28 - 31 May 1911
Paris - Rome
1,484 (922)
  André Beaumont
French
Blériot XI monoplane
70 (44)
 

18 June 1911
Circuit de l'Europe
(1,010)
  André Beaumont
French
Blériot XI monoplane
42 (26)
 

1 July 1911
Gordon Bennett Trophy at Eastchurch, England
150 (93)
  Charles Weymann
British
Nieuport II monoplane
126 (78)
 

22 - 26 July 1911
Daily Mail Circuit of Britain race
1,698 (1,055)
  André Beaumont
French
Blériot XI monoplane
72 (45)
 

8 June 1912
First Aerial Derby around London
130 (81)
  Tom Sopwith
British
Blériot XI monoplane
94 (59)
 

9 September 1912
Gordon Bennett Trophy at Chicago, Illinois
200 (120)
  Jules Védrines
French
Deperdussin monoplane
169 (105)
 

16 April 1913
First Schneider Trophy race for seaplanes
280 (174)
  Maurice Prévost
French
Deperdussin monoplane
74 (46)
 

16-30 August 1913 Daily Mail Seaplane Circuit of Britain Race
2,480 (1,540)
  Harry Hawker
(did not finish)
British
Sopwith Type C floatplane
77 (48)
 

20 September 1913
Second Aerial Derby around London
153 (95)
  Gustav Hamel
British
Morane-Saulnier monoplane
121 (75)
 

29 September 1913
Gordon Bennett Trophy at Reims, France
200 (120)
  Maurice Prévost
French
Deperdussin monoplane
201 (125)

 

For the Gordon Bennett Trophy races:
Blue Ribbon of the Air by Henry Serrano Villard (Smithsonian, 1987)
The First Air Race by Owen S Lieberg (Doubleday, 1974)
Wikipedia

For the 1911 races:
Mes Trois Grandes Courses by André Beaumont (Hachette, 1912)

For the Aerial Derby races:
The "Daily Mail" Flying Prizes 1907-1919 by Paul Wittreich (Trafford, 2006)

For the Scheider Trophy races:
Schneider Trophy Races

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