Amazing But True Aviation Stories
These 10 aviation tales prove that sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction.
The U-2C “Dragon Lady” Spy Plane
In the era preceding satellite imagery, the U-2, nicknamed the “Dragon Lady,” was America’s reliable way to produce images of nonaccessible regions.
Fiorello La Guardia: From Congressman to WWI Hero in the Air
Future NY Mayor Fiorello La Guardia was a 35-year-old freshman congressman when the United States went to war in 1917.
Fatal Airliner Collision Over the Grand Canyon
A tragic accident led to the creation of the modern air traffic control system and the FAA
This Daring F-16 Pilot Went on a Kamikaze Mission on 9/11
On September 11, 2001, Air Force pilot Heather "Lucky" Penney was asked to do the unthinkable
Helicopters of the Vietnam War
Images of 11 helicopters that played a vital role in the Vietnam War.
Hawker Hurricane Mark I
The Hawker Hurricane accounted for more than half of the 2,741 aerial victories claimed by RAF Fighter Command during the 1940 Battle of Britain
Aviation History Book Review: Flying Tiger Ace
On the night of December 19, 1944, Lt. Col. William N. Reed, commander of the 3rd Fighter Group, Chinese-American Composite Wing (CACW), was forced to bail out of his Curtiss P-40N somewhere in China’s Szechwan Province.
The Long Haul: The C-141 Starlifter in Vietnam
This iconic aircraft carried some of the heaviest loads during the Vietnam War
Aviation History Book Review: Race of Aces
Bestselling author John Bruning begins his massive, exhaustively researched and fast-paced account of the competition for the title of American ace of aces in World War II with a startling statistic:
Letter From Aviation History: A Marauder’s Tale
If this bomber could talk, it would have quite a story to tell. In a way it can, as every nick and scratch, every dent, every patched hole speaks of its hard-fought service during World War II.
“Last to Die,” 75 Years Ago: Last American Killed in Combat in World War II
August 18 marks the 75th anniversary of the death of the last American service member killed in combat in World War II.
A Closer Look at the F-8E Crusader
A closer look at the F-8E Crusader, the last U.S. fighter plane with guns as its primary armament.
Warplanes of a Different Stripe
A tragic 1943 friendly fire incident in Sicily prompted development of aircraft identification markings that saved countless lives on D-Day
Northrop’s Radical Flying Wing Bomber of the 1940s
Jack Northrop dreamed big with his futuristic flying wing, but the radical bomber proved too great a technological leap for his company to bridge in the late 1940s.
