News and Stories Archives - Page 4 of 11

Model 12 Pitts Special Biplane – The Definition of “Bitchin'”

What’s better than a biplane? That’s obvious: a biplane with a round motor. And what ís better than a biplane with a round motor? A round-motored biplane that’s designed by Curtis Pitts! When you’re saddling up the Model 12, it feels like a much bigger than a normal two-place Pitts, when in reality it’s not. […]

Piper J-3 Cub: Piper’s Lightweight aircraft is a gift to mankind

Like most pilots, I’m not certain I can remember a time before I flew a J-3. That’s probably because I too started out in a Cub. I was fifteen years old and even then found one of the biggest hurdles to flying a Cub to be simply getting in it. The dance includes the following […]

Military Helicopters USA August 24-26

The sunny city of Pensacola, Florida will host this year’s Military Helicopters USA event which will take place August 24-26. Don’t miss the opportunity to attend the only event specifically tailored to support ALL BRANCHES, where industry leaders and military personnel will come together to discuss, share, learn and develop their knowledge of helicopters in an […]

Hansa Jet Displayed in Istanbul’s Koc Museum

By Bruno Cianci The Rahmi M. Koç Müzesi, an open-to-the-public, but private museum of Turkey, is fully devoted to transports, industry and scientific instruments. Located in Istanbul, it is situated next to the waters of the Golden Horn, and has recently added a HFB-320 Hansa Jet manufactured in Germany (#1043) to its collection. Donated by […]

Shackleton to Fly?

By Geoff Jones Last operational with the RAF in 1991 and South African Air Force in 1984, and with a design lineage dating back to the Avro Lancaster bomber, the UK-based Shackleton Preservation Trust (SPT) have agreed to work on a program that could see the Shackleton MR.2 WR963 fly again. Avro’s maritime reconnaissance and […]

X-47B Begins Flights from Carrier

By Robert F. Dorr The Boeing X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator (UCAS-D) made a catapult launch from the aircraft carrier USS George H. W. Bush (CVN 77) on May 14 off the coast of Virginia. With no human on board, the X-47B executed several planned landing approaches to the carrier before landing at Patuxent […]

F-15SA Advanced Fighter Aircraft Takes Wing

By Steve Pace On 20 February 2013, an F-15SA advanced fighter aircraft destined for the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) made a successful first flight out of Boeing’s St. Louis, Missouri facility. The flight went as planned, meeting all test objectives to support the on-schedule development of this new version of the F-15 Eagle. The […]

Fifty years old and it could still be the most improved manned interceptor on the planet…

By Steve Pace It was first publicly known as the A-11, then the YF-12A, but it actually began life in total secrecy as the AF-12. We’ll call it the YF-12A because that’s what its buyer, the U.S. Air Force, designated it and it was just one of the many derivatives of the Lockheed-built CIA-funded A-12 […]

The first of two YF-100A aircraft on its first flight. (Photograph courtesy of the National Museum of tahe United States Air Force)

The Hun Hits the Big 60

By Steve Pace The supersonic North American Aviation F-100 Super Sabre was a follow-on to its subsonic F-86 Sabre. But more importantly, it gave the U.S. Air Force, specifically its Tactical Air Command, the first turbojet-powered fighter cable of supersonic speed in level attitude flight, and this was proved during its very first test flight […]

One of a Kind: Boyd Flying Craft Model C

By Jay Miller During the heart of the Depression, a stunning number of one-offs and prototype aircraft were designed, and in many cases, built and test flown, under the most humble of circumstances. There were hundreds of these experimental, often homemade, flying machines created not only in hangars, but also in barns, tin sheds, wooden […]