by Budd Davisson When Grumman engineering pilots climbed out of a captured FW-190A in England after their first flight, they were astounded: it made their beloved Hellcat look like a plow horse. It was light, rolled like lightning and climbed like an artillery shell. It represented a whole new world of performance that was only [...]

The Hundred Knot Warrior or Going to war in a Stringbag by Budd Davisson Itís impossible to look at the Fairey Swordfish, affectionately known as the ìStringbag,î and not say, ìYou have to be kidding! This was one of the Royal Navyís most effective weapons of WWII?î A gigantic, bi-winged personification of the word ìanachronistic,î [...]

by Budd Davisson One thing we often forget is that war is always fought by kids and, in the case of WWII aviators, that meant they were also extremely inexperienced. When I flew my first fighter, which happened to be the Mustang, I was 29 years old and had nearly 2,500 hours of flight time [...]

by Budd Davisson When World War One broke out in 1914, the airplane was barely eleven years old and was nothing more than a plodding, noisy kite barely more dangerous than an observation balloon. As a weapon, it was difficult to take seriously. Four short years later it had been transformed into a multi-dimensional weapon [...]

by Budd Davisson A peanut. Thatís what you feel like after youíve scaled the side of a Corsair and into the cockpit. You are so small and inconsequential compared to the airplane that you feel like a peanut. This thing is BIG! And intimidating! If looks could kill, you wouldnít even have to fire it [...]

by Budd Davisson Okay, letís get one thing absolutely clear: the Pitts Special is NOT, repeat NOT, just an airplane. I know some people think that it is, but ask any long time Pitts driver and weíll all tell you the same thing: there are airplanes and there are Pitts Specials and the two shouldnít [...]

by Budd Davisson  Zero! Normally thatís a number signifying nothing, but to those who know history it indicates an able foe. A dainty, but lethal, dancer that cut a swath across the Pacific so bloody that for the first six months of World War Two it appeared as if nothing could stop it. The stories [...]

The World’s Primary Trainer by Budd Davisson The first time I strapped on a Tiger Moth I had to laugh. For one thing, there was this HUGE compass projecting up off the floor between my knees. It was fashioned of polished brass and swung in gimbals to keep it level in all attitudes. It would [...]

Lethal Wooden Wonder Letís try to put the Albatros-Flugzeugwerke series of WWI fighters in perspective. First, the Wrights flew in 1903 but didnít really reveal many secrets to the world until 1905. Then it was closer to 1908-1910 that Glenn Curtis jumped into the game with ailerons, elevators and all that other ìrealî airplane stuff [...]

by Budd Davisson The F-16 Falcon, AKA Viper, is a maverick, borne of mavericks and for years was at odds with much of the Air Force establishment. They resented the fact that the airplane had been literally rammed down their throats by congress as the result of the persuasive lobbying efforts of what has become [...]

Warrior to the end by Budd Davisson The P-40 Warhawk will never be enshrined in the Hall of Fame of Fantastic Fighters. It was too slow, couldnít turn tight enough, was hard to handle on the ground and, compared to some fighters, had nasty stall characteristics. Further, its hydraulic system was too complicated, its landing [...]

Big Legend in a Small Package by Budd Davisson Trying to characterize the Monocoupe in only a few words is like trying to explain icons like Jimmy Stewart, George Patton or the P-51 Mustang in twenty-five words or less. In its time, the Monocoupe stood tall as the first truly high performance airplane available to [...]

by Budd Davisson Whatís better than a biplane? Thatís obvious: a biplane with a round motor. And whatís better than a biplane with a round motor? A round-motored biplane thatís designed by Curtis Pitts! When youíre saddling up the Model 12, it feels like a much bigger than a normal two-place Pitts, when in reality [...]

by Budd Davisson It could be argued that modern air transportation began in 1931with the tragic death of Knute Rockne, the much-loved Notre Dame football coach. A national figure of legendary status, his death in a Fokker Tri-motor airliner touched off a national furor to upgrade airline transportation. The airlines responded immediately with frantic demands [...]