Featured News Archives - Page 87 of 286

U.S. Army Not Keen on Flying A-10s

The U.S. Army has no interest in taking over the Air Force’s fleet of Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II attack planes, even if it would save the venerable Cold War-era aircraft from the bone yard. The service’s top civilian, Army Secretary John McHugh, rejected the idea of accepting hand-me-down A-10 Warthogs from the Air Force. “No chance,” […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1895 – Birth of Will Hubbard, British World War I flying ace who also served in the Royal Australian Air Force in World War II. 1959 – Frenchman André Turcat, flying the Nord 1500 Griffon II (a French ramjet-powered aircraft), breaks the world speed record over 62 miles at an average of 1,021 mph. 1963 […]

N.C. Museum Readies Provider for Flight

The Warriors & Warbirds flying collection in Monroe, N.C., has been going for almost ten years now. They have become well known for their flying displays, including paratrooper drops, from a Curtiss C-46 Commando nicknamed “Tinker Belle.” The beautiful green and grey beast of the type which once flew The Hump in the China-Burma-India theatre of operations […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1898 – Birth of Gerald Frank Anderson, South African World War I flying ace. 1940 – First flight of the Hawker Typhoon (shown), a British single-seat fighter-bomber. 1943 – The second of three top German night fighter aces to die during the month, Paul Gildner, is killed in a crash after an electrical failure aboard his Messerschmitt Bf […]

Jet-Launched Satellite Tests Near

Small satellites could hitch rides to space on an Boeing F-15 Eagle fighter jet by next year, according to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the agency responsible for developing new technologies for the U.S. military. DARPA’s so-called Airborne Launch Assist Space Access (ALASA) program is an ambitious project that aims to launch small satellites more […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1916 – Birth of Paul Warfield Tibbets, Jr., brigadier general in the U.S. Air Force; he becomes best known for being the pilot of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress “Enola Gay,” the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb in the history of warfare. 1945 – Last Allied ship sunk by the Luftwaffe in World War II is […]

Global Hawk Makes Flight Down Under

A Northrop Grumman Corporation RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system (UAS) landed Feb. 21 at the Avalon Airport in Australia for display at the Australian International Air Show. The system’s ability to conduct high-altitude surveillance missions for greater than 30 hours is ideally suited for the vast Asia-Pacific region. “This is the first time that […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1912 – Birth of John “Johnny” Milne Checketts, New Zealand World War II fighter ace; he also becomes responsible for introducing the de Havilland Vampire to form the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s first jet squadron. 1939 – First flight of the Douglas DC-5, the least known of the famous DC airliner series; the 16-22 seat, twin-propeller aircraft […]

The Latest on ‘Columbine II’ Resto Efforts

Recently, there was quite the buzz on the internet about the possible return to flight of President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s presidential transport, the Lockheed C-121A Constellation known to the world as “Columbine II.” News reports stated that Dynamic Aviation, a global aeronautics solutions company based in Bridgewater, Va., is evaluating “Columbine II” with the hopes that they can return […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1896 – Birth of Edmond Eugene Henri Caillaux, French World War I flying ace. 1941 – First flight of the Grumman XP-50 (shown), American twin-engine fighter prototype; it is the land-based development of the shipboard F5F-1 Skyrocket. 1957 – After 12 years of production, Douglas delivers the last of 3,180 AD Skyraiders to the Navy. 1958 […]