Warbirds

During his news conference Wednesday at Oshkosh about his work at One Aviation, Alan Klapmeier remarked in passing that in his experience, it’s not money that dissuades potential buyers from committing to aviation, it’s fear of complexity. When airplanes are designed to be intuitive and easy to fly, he went on, the market will grow, […]

Anyone who has been in the military—any military—will understand what a shock to the psyche it is merely to enter. Comfortable routine and the warm embrace of family and friends are suddenly displaced by harsh, at times abusive, discipline and an utter lack of even the slightest self determination. Life in the military is defined […]

It’s funny how a rendezvous with old friends can inspire acts of either derring-do or works of complete insanity. Sometimes you just can’t help yourself. I attended the Dawn Patrol Rendezvous in 2005, flying a Dennis Wiley-designed Jenny and came away with a terrible resolve after talking with Robert Baslee during the dedication dinner. We […]

Fans of Royal Air Force warbirds will be in for a treat at this year’s EAA AirVenture show when a rare de Havilland Mosquito flies to Oshkosh to take part in multiple warbird shows. The Canadian-built World War II-era fighter and bomber was restored by AVspecs of New Zealand and is now operated by the […]

Two divers have discovered the wreckage of a Korean War-era Douglas A-1 Skyraider off the San Diego coastline, KSWB Fox 5 reported this week. Dennis Burns and Ruth Yu were exploring the shallow waters off Mission Beach when they found an airplane submerged about 60 feet deep. Its identification plate confirmed it was a Skyraider […]

Sixfighter planes that were part of a collection of warbirds sold to a dealer in August will be restored and sold by Boschung Global Ltd. of Switzerland, the company said Thursday. The fighters, a version of German Messerschmitts, operated in World War II and were last flown for the making of the 1969 film “Battle […]

A Hawker Hunter owned by Airborne Tactical Advantage Company (ATAC), a civilian tactical airborne training organization, crashed Wednesday on approach to Naval Base Ventura County, near Point Mugu, California. The pilot was declared dead at the scene. No one on the ground was injured. An investigation into the cause is underway. ATAC’s website says it […]

The U.S. Marine Corps announced that it is determined to meet its goal of having its first squadron of 10 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighters ready for combat in July 2015. In an interview with Reuters, outgoing Marine Corps Commandant General James Amos was asked if the Marines would miss the target date for declaring an […]

As the season changes, the fly-in circuit shows no sign of slowing down-our review of all things SocialFlight uncovered everything from an air race for everyone through an historic airport appreciation day to a fly-in for omelets. The Cleveland Air Races are being revived-a bit more than 1000 miles away and using airplanes that mere […]

As part of the 100th anniversary celebration for its first-in-the-nation Aeronautical (now Aerospace) Engineering Department, the University of Michigan is staging a flyoverof a fleet of historic aircraft before Saturday’s football game at the Big House. Honoring an engineering school that turned out such notables as Clarence “Kelly” Johnson, founder of Lockheed’s famed Skunk Works, […]