The Valkyrie was the biggest and fastest nuclear strike bomber ever made and could fly its entire mission at an impressive Mach 3. It was a remarkable design with many innovations that pushed the boundaries of aeronautic propulsion and materials. Wake Vortex However, the Valkyrie’s history was cut short, and only two of these planes […] More
The Helldiver is perhaps the best example of a potentially excellent aircraft design that was ruined by its uncompromising requirements. Here’s how: Origins Early in 1938, the US issued requirements for a diver that would be: Powered by the 1500 hp 14-cylinder Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone, Carry a greater fuel load than the SBD Dauntless […] More
The Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing, electronic warfare plane that was used by the US Marine Corps and the US Navy. No other aircraft design can match its prowess when it comes to electronic warfare. It also accommodates a trio of electronic countermeasures officers. Electronic Warfare Initially, the Air Force and […] More
At the height of the Korean War, the F-84 Thunderjet was developed to be the P-47 Thunderbolt,’s successor. Soon, the aircraft would find itself face to face with its most deadly adversary, the Soviet-built MiG-15. Outmatched, outpaced, but never outdone, this jet created a legacy of its own. Beginnings In 1944, Alexander Kartveli, the mastermind […] More
This interceptor and multirole fighter plane combine impressive maneuverability and speed. This is the story of one of the greatest fighters ever built, just at the wrong time, and at the wrong place. Inception The Soviets built a new training center called 1521 in the Airbase Mary called the ‘Soviet Top Gun Program,’ and the […] More
The Blohm & Voss P 170 bomber is one of Blohm & Voss’s strange aircraft designs in a sense that strongly resembles the pod racers from Star Wars. The P 170 Measuring 13 meters long and 16 meters wide, the P17 would have a very unique-looking three-engine layout, one in the center and one in […] More
The XB-70 Valkyrie, with its planned cruise speed of Mach 3 and operating in an altitude of 70,000 feet, was supposedly the ultimate high-speed, high-altitude manned strategic bomber. The events that followed afterward, however, caused it to play a far different role in aviation history. Start of the Valkyrie Program The US Air Force issued […] More
The Vickers-Armstrong Type 559 559 is a supersonic interceptor plane developed by the British aircraft company Vickers-Armstrong. Read all about the UK’s newly built overkill super interceptor. Soviet Nuclear Bomber Threat Nuclear-capable Soviet bombers posed the biggest threat to the stability and freedom of the West during that time, and in response, there was a […] More
Captain David McCampbell and his wingman, Ensign Roy Rushing with their F6F Hellcats soared the skies above Luzon poised to hunt the notorious Japanese Zeroes. Soon, they encountered a massive formation made up of 60 Japanese fighters, but the two men were undeterred. They soon realized that after a series of fiery dice attacks, the […] More
The US isn’t the only nation in the world with several top-secret aerospace projects. In fact, some of the wildest ideas came from the other side of the Iron Curtain. Here are three examples of the Soviet Union’s black projects: M-25 Sonic Boom Designed to fly low and fast over a battlefield, the M-25 was […] More
On December 14, 1942, the Giant Soviet PS-124 Aircraft went into deep dive and crashed, immediately killing everyone onboard. The details of the crash arguably became the strangest, and perhaps the most ridiculous accidents in Russian aviation history. World’s Largest Aircraft During the 1930s, Tupolev began planning the biggest aircraft in the world. It found […] More
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is arguably the most lethal jet fighter of all time. This American single-seat, twin-engine, all-engine stealth fighter plane is developed for the USAF. King of the Skies When the Raptor finally entered service in 2005, there were no doubts that it was an absolutely lethal machine that had been created. […] More
