The First Dogfight?
Published on November 30, 2012 “The war-time aviator gets a lot of thrills, risks his neck innumerable times, and — if he comes out of it alive — has a
Month: November 2012
Sink the Shinano
Published on November 29, 1944 The largest aircraft carrier built in all of World War II, Japan’s 72,000 ton Shinano, was well on the way to achieving operational status when
First German Bomber over London
Published on November 28, 2012 On this date in aviation history, in 1916, two German men took off in an LVG C.IV (s/n 262/16) and flew to London on a
Zero Fighters Raid Saipan!
Published on November 27, 2012 By August 1944, the US had captured Saipan in the Marianas, one of the last in a series of island invasions that were the hallmark
The craft… was shaped like a cigar
“The people of Sheerness are not altogether alone in their ability to hear German airships passing overhead. A correspondent writing to the Edinburgh Evening Dispatch has also became so uneasy
A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
This Week’s Hints to help you along: Without an engine, clearly a glider. Designed for training rather than pleasure. Extremely sensitive on the rudders. A French tail flash gives an
One a Day in Tampa Bay
Published on November 25, 2012 On this date in aviation history, November 25, 1940, the Martin B-26 Marauder made its first flight. A radical design, it was a sleek, bullet-shaped
D.B. Cooper’s Jump into History
Published on November 24, 2012 On this date in aviation history, November 24, 1971, an unidentified man going by the nom de crime of “Dan Cooper”, hijacked a Boeing 727-100
The Mystery of Argo 16
Published on November 23, 2012 It was just an airplane, nothing more than that one might say. Code-named Argo 16, it wasn’t even new, but rather a World War II
Shiga into the Bay
Published on November 22, 2012 By Thomas Van Hare Descending through fog on approach into San Francisco, JAL Flight #2 passed through 600 feet on the pressure altimeter. On his
“Das Afrika-Schiff”
Published on November 21, 2012 By November 1917, the Great War had expanded to the farthest reaches of Germany’s colonial holdings in Africa. British troops were marching on General Paul Emil
“Alpha, Alpha, Alpha”
Published on November 20, 2012 Coming in from due west, the C-130E(I) Combat Talon code-named “Cherry 01” made a pass at 1,500 feet over the target compound, dropping illumination flares.
Yankee Squadron
Published on November 19, 2012 The history of aviation and military air power are deeply linked. Yet this past is more than just a study of machines and of triumph
An Innovative Float Plane
This Week’s Hints to help you along: Those corrugated aluminum wings remind us of a Ford Trimotor. A mid-wing design when most others were high wing or biplanes. A radial
100 Years Ago :: Night Flying
Published on November 18, 2012 Night flying was a new experience for aviators 100 years ago, carrying untold risks and yet drawing the interest of many who heard tales of
The Disaster of Operation White
Published on November 17, 2012 The convoy had departed Gibraltar two days earlier at dawn. Royal Navy Admiral James Somerville’s command included the aircraft carriers HMS Argus and HMS Ark
Lebaudy Patrie
Published on November 16, 2012 The storm winds were picking up as the French officers yelled to their men to hold onto the lines of the greatdirigible. With 200 men,
To India by White Moth
Published on November 15, 2012 “The KING has been graciously pleased to approve of the award of the Air Force Cross to Mr. Thomas Neville Stack (Flying Officer, Reserve of
Ely’s Daring Deed
Published on November 14, 2012 On November 14, 1910, the light cruiser USS Birmingham was at anchor in the harbor at Hampton Roads, Virginia. On its foredeck, a makeshift wooden
Adrift at Sea
Published on November 13, 2012 Seventy years ago today in aviation history, deep in the South Pacific, three men sat in a single life raft adrift at sea. Earlier, there
First Aerial Refueling
Published on November 12, 2012 Things have come a long way over the years. No story illustrates that more clearly than the tale of Wesley May, Frank Hawks and Earl
A Serious Record-Setter
This Week’s Hints to help you along: Built by an unlikely company in an unexpected place. Highly streamlined — for speed records or for something else. Massive in size with
The 11th Hour on the 11th Day of the 11th Month
Published on November 11, 2012 On this day in aviation history, at the 11th Hour, on the 11th Day of the 11th Month, in 1918, the Armistice was signed in
Continue readingThe 11th Hour on the 11th Day of the 11th Month
100 Years Ago :: Flying in India
Published on November 10, 2012 The two aeroplanes had just arrived in India after a long transit by ship from England. They were hoisted ashore into the dockyards of Bombay
First Jet on Jet Kill
Published on November 9, 2012 VF-111, known as “The Sundowners”, was deployed off the coast of Korea. It was late 1950 and the Korean War had turned finally to the
The Anti-G Suit
Published on November 8, 2012 Like all Australians, Professor Frank Cotton of the University of Sydney was apprehensive about the war. Japan had invaded China and was threatening much of
Reds Down U.S. Bomber; 1 Dead
“The United States Air Force RB-29 of the Ninety-First Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron, which crashed yesterday morning, went down after it was fired upon by two Russian-built MiG-type fighters. Both MiGs
The First Jet Landing on a Carrier
Published on November 6, 2012 On this day in aviation history, November 6, 1945, just a few months after the end of the war, the US Navy achieved the first
Ocean to Ocean in the Vin Fiz
Published on November 5, 2012 The prize money was extraordinary, $50,000 offered by the famed publisher named William Randolph Hearst for the first “ocean to ocean” flight across the United
At the Grand Palais
This Week’s Hints to help you along: This curious design was displayed at the Grand Palais in November 1912. 100 years ago today this was one of the most innovative
100 Years Ago :: The Paris Aero Salon
Published on November 4, 2012 Paying just one franc apiece for entry to the Grand Palais, Parisians and others who came from far and wide came to the Paris Air
Fu-Go
Published on November 3, 2012 A group of young Japanese women sat on their knees in a gymnasium floor carefully gluing three squares of mulberry leaf paper together with a
Flight of the Spruce Goose
Published on November 2, 2012 The giant flying boat is the largest ever built. On November 2, 1947, it taxied out into Long Beach Harbor. Inside were 32 people, including
Bombs at Ain Zara
Published on November 1, 2012 “Today I have decided to try to throw bombs from the aeroplane. It is the first time that we will try this and if I