Subscribe to Aviation History magazine today!

FEATURES

Able Dog
By E.R. Johnson
“Even after all these years of progress,” says Marine Skyraider pilot William Smith, “I believe the AD is still the best airplane ever made for close-in attack.”

Saint-Ex
By Stephan Wilkinson
Throughout his career, author-aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry flaunted flight safety rules to the point of a seeming death wish. In July 1944, while he was at the controls of a Lockheed F-5B, his wish came true.

The Road Not Taken
By C.V. Glines
Designers have been trying to build a practical flying car for more than a century—yet daunting challenges still confront hybrid developers.

Kamikaze Kismet
By Bennett Richardson & Fumiko Hattori
Two members of a failed suicide mission look back on a 1945 dogfight that miraculously spared their lives.

Arado 234
By David Ison
Germany’s Arado jet bomber might have changed the course of World War II if developed earlier.

The Greatest Balloon Buster
By Jon Guttman
Belgian World War I ace Willy Coppens specialized in the dangerous mission of flaming kite balloons.

COVER:

Bob Grondzik, aka “Skyraider Bob,” pilots a Douglas AD-6 at the 2007 Planes of Fame Airshow. The workhorse Skyraider saw service with the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and later Air Force for 25 years.