Aircraft
A ZEPPELIN OVER AFRICA I
Ludwig Bockholt Though streng geheim, the secret purpose of the super Zeppelins being built in the cavernous sheds at Friedrichshafen, the Luftschiff mother base, in September 1917, had long been known to every urchin on the streets of the town. And to Central Power allies as far away as Constantinople. And of course to the Room 40 code breakers, and…
Most Recent
J-6 fighter family
In the mid-1950s Soviet fighter aviation entered the supersonic era with the MiG-19 (NATO reporting name Farmer). Taking the line of development begun with the MiG-15 and MiG-17 further, the aircraft had sharply swept mid-set wings, swept tail surfaces (conventional ones this time) and a nose air intake. The powerplant…
VM-22 Osprey
000100-M-0000P-001U.S. Marine Corps parachutists free fall from an MV-22 Osprey at 10,000 feet above the drop zone at Fort A.P. Hill, Va. on Jan. 17, 2000. The Marines from the 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C., became the first to deploy from the Osprey. Twenty-four successful…
Marauder
Certainly one of the most elegant bomber aircraft to appear in the early years of World War II, Martin’s B-26 Marauder stemmed from a US Army Air Corps high-speed medium bomber specification which had been circulated to US manufacturers in January 1939. This called for a number of characteristics which,…
RAAF/RAF Spitfires in the Far East Part III
The Supermarine Spitfire is one of the most famous fighter aircraft of the Second World War. It has the distinction of being the only fighter produced prior to 1939 that was manufactured right through the war, and into the years beyond. Ultimately, 20,351 Spitfires, in 40 major variants, were rolled…
MiG-15 and Sabre
The appearance of the MiG-15 jet fighter in November 1950 threatened UN air superiority over Korea because the MiG outperformed available U. S. aircraft. FEAF requested the newest and best jet fighters, and on December 6, less than a month later, the 27th Fighter-Escort Wing, flying F-84 Thunderjets, arrived at…
Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II – ‘actual death from above!’
An A-10 Thunderbolt II, like this one, is among the various U.S. Central Command Air Forces air assets available for providing close-air support for International Security Assistance Force troops in contact with enemy forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The A-10 is specially designed for close air support of ground…