1877 – Maurice Farman, French aviation pioneer and manufacturer, is born. He set world endurance and speed records in flying in 1909 and manufactured airplanes. 1916 – U.S. Coast Guard Capt.-Commandant Ellsworth P. Bertholf orders Coast Guard experimentation with the use of aircraft and directs Third Lt. Elmer F. Stone to begin flight training. It is the [...]

Alaska’s premier event for flying enthusiasts and families as well as the state’s largest aviation tradeshow, the Great Alaska Aviation Gathering will be held in the FedEx Maintenance Hangar at Anchorage’s Ted Stevens International Airport May 4-5. Admission is free. Nearly 300 exhibitors will showcase state-of-the-art aviation technology, products, safety,innovations and more. The show will [...]

For a celebrated warplane, spraying mosquitoes in Florida was an ignominious way to retire. That’s why Paul Luehring said he and his buddies were so excited to welcome the World War II veteran to its hangar at Air Heritage Inc. in Beaver Falls, Pa., last December. The museum and aircraft restoration facility at the Beaver County [...]

Two of World War II’s most iconic aircraft, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress and the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, will be back at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh this summer as part of the Commemorative Air Force’s “Ghost Squadron” at The World Greatest Aviation Celebration. The airplanes will be among the two most noteworthy of the hundreds of warbird aircraft at [...]

The U.S. Army Parachute Team – better known as the Golden Knights – recently made it first paratroop jumps from a new Twin Otter aircraft procured by the Fixed Wing Project Office at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. The jumps took place at Florida’s Homestead Air Reserve Base where team members conduct winter training. The Army’s [...]

If you’ve seen the 1990 movie “Memphis Belle,” you may have recognized the big World War II-era plane that was soaring above San Diego on Monday. The fully restored Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress featured in the film is here on the West Coast for the first time as part of a national tour. In this KFMB-TV video [...]

1898 – Jake Swirbul, American co-founder of Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp., was born. 1916 – German ace Ernst Udet scores his first kill; his 62 victories were second only to Manfred von Richthofen, his commander in the Flying Circus. 1939 – The first Boeing Model 307 Stratoliner, due to be delivered to Pan Am after testing and certification, crashes, killing all 10 [...]

A 787 built for LOT Polish Airways is expected to be the first flight test to verify the system, to prove to the Federal Aviation Administration that Boeing’s upgraded battery is safe. Two months ago on the evening of January 16, the FAA announced it would immediately ground the 787 fleet. That was the day [...]