Civilian Archives - Page 157 of 175

U.S. DC-8 Operations Winding Down

After nearly 54 years of service, DC-8 operations in the U.S. are set to become even rarer with the pending retirement of Air Transport International’s (ATI) remaining DC-8 fleet, according to an Aviation Week report on Tuesday. ATI is withdrawing its last four DC-8s from service early this year and replacing them with 757s. Once […]

787 Woes Continue, This Time on ANA, JAL

A Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight by Japan’s All Nippon Airways had to be cancelled Wednesday because of a brake problem, an airport spokesman said, the third problem to hit the aircraft in as many days. ANA 698 was cancelled because brake parts from the rear left undercarriage needed to be replaced, said the spokesman at Yamaguchi […]

Aviation Buff’s Cockpit Display Draws Driveway Crowd

A plane enthusiast restored the cockpit of a Cold War fighter jet and proudly parked it on his driveway. Neil McCarthy, 37, renovated the nose of the battered de Havilland Vampire T.11 jet for display in front of his family home in Seaton Burn, North Tyneside, England. He says his wife Amanda and children Ryan, two, and Nathan, 18 months, […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1881 – William T. Piper, Sr., founder of what became the Piper Aircraft Corp., is born in Knapps Creek, N.Y. 1945 – The Mitsubishi J8M1 rocket-fighter makes its first flight in Hyakurigahara, Japan. 1964 – Air Force Cross posthumously awarded to Major Rudolf Anderson, Jr., the only causality of the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. 1982 – […]

Spitfire Collapses on U.K. Runway

Airport officials say an antique Spitfire aircraft owned by engine company Rolls Royce collapsed shortly after landing at East Midlands Airport in central England. The airport said in a statement the World War II-era plane’s undercarriage failed as it touched down Monday afternoon. The pilot was unharmed and the damaged aircraft was towed away. The sleek-looking […]

10th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards Takes Flight

Many of aviation’s best-known names will be attending the 10th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards, presented by Bell Helicopter and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, later this month in California. The event, set for Jan. 18 at the Beverly Hilton, will be hosted by John Travolta and will celebrate a decade of recognition during aviation’s second hundred years. The program starts […]

Brothers Restore Lancaster Bomber as Tribute to Brother

The night he was told that his brother had been shot down, Fred Panton ran off into a barn and hid. “I daredn’t go back in the house,” says Fred, who was 13 at the time. “I was sure it would hit my mother hard.” His big brother, Christopher, was only 19, but had already […]

On This Day in Aviation History

1785 – The English Channel is crossed for the first time by air as Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries fly their hydrogen balloon from Dover, England, to a forest near Calais, France. 1929 – The U.S. Army’s Fokker C-2 “Question Mark” sets an endurance record for a refueled aircraft, 150 hours, 45 minutes. 1942 – […]

Aviation Geek Fest 2013 Set for February

If you want an inside look at Boeing’s commercial airplane plants in Washington state, then you’ll want to consider attending Aviation Geek Fest 2013, a two-day tour sure to please any plane buff, on Feb. 16-17. For details on the event in SeattlePI.com, click here.

Spitfire Search Team Arrives in Myanmar

A search team led by a British aviation enthusiast arrived in Myanmar on Sunday to begin a dig they hope will unearth dozens of rare British Spitfire fighter planes said to have been buried in the Southeast Asian country at the end of World War II. The 21-member team led by farmer and businessman David […]