September 3 in U.S. military history

1908: The Wright Brothers and their 1908 Wright Flyer are at For Myer (today’s Joint Base Myer–Henderson Hall at Arlington, Va.) for acceptance trials. Lt. Frank Lahm goes up for a six-minute flight, becoming the first U.S. military officer to fly in a powered airplane.

1943: The Kingdom of Italy signs the Armistice of Cassible, surrendering to the Allies. Germany quickly takes over the country and installs a puppet fascist government.

1950: The 35-member Military Assistance Advisory Group dispatched by President Harry S. Truman lands in Saigon to begin their mission of overseeing the $10 million in military aid to the French.

1996: Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bombers and U.S. Navy surface vessels and submarines launch dozens of Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Iraq. This is in response to Saddam Hussein ordering an offensive into Kurdistan — in violation of a United Nations Security Council Resolution.