The flight attendant greeting at the aircraft door is also a safety check: crews are trained to spot intoxication, helpers, bags and vulnerable passengers.
Aircraft Leasing Explained: Why Airlines Rent Their Jets
More than half the world’s airliners are leased. How dry, wet and damp leases work, what airlines pay, and how Ireland became the capital of aircraft leasing.
Hawker Hunter Tower Bridge Flight: Alan Pollock’s 1968 Protest
On 5 April 1968, angry that the RAF’s 50th birthday had gone unmarked, Flt Lt Alan Pollock broke away from his formation, circled Parliament three times and flew his Hawker Hunter through Tower Bridge.
ICAO to FAA: How a Foreign Pilot Licence Becomes a US Certificate
ICAO to FAA: a foreign licence never converts, but 14 CFR 61.75 issues a US private pilot certificate on its back, with strings attached.
Sandy 57: The A-10 Rescue of F-14 Pilot Slate 46 in 1991
On 21 January 1991, Capt. Paul Johnson flew his A-10 farther into Iraq than any Warthog had been, found a hidden F-14 pilot with a wandering ADF needle and a drifting INS, and brought a Pave Low in to get him.
ATR 72 vs Q400: How the Two Big Turboprops Really Compare
The ATR 72-600 and the Dash 8-400, or Q400, are the last big Western turboprop airliners. One is built for low costs, the other for speed.
Cuxhaven Raid: Britain’s Christmas Day Seaplane Strike of 1914
On Christmas Day 1914, three converted ferries launched seven fragile Short seaplanes against the Zeppelin base near Cuxhaven. Every airman came home, and naval warfare quietly changed.
How Jump Jets Hover: Harrier Nozzles vs the F-35B LiftFan
How jump jets hover: the Harrier swivels four engine nozzles, while the F-35B drives a 29,000-horsepower fan behind its cockpit.
Franciszek Jarecki: The MiG-15 Pilot Who Fled to Bornholm
On the morning Stalin died, a 21-year-old Polish lieutenant dived his MiG-15 out of formation and landed on a Danish island, handing the West its first intact example of the jet. Two months later, a friend did the same.
Singapore Airlines New Cabins: Doors, Double Beds and a 2027 Debut
Singapore Airlines has unveiled new long-haul First, Business, Premium Economy and Economy cabins worth more than S$2 billion, due from the second half of 2027 on A350s and Boeing 777-9s.
Junkers F 13: The World’s First All-Metal Airliner
The Junkers F 13 of 1919 was the first all-metal airliner: a corrugated duralumin monoplane that flew with airlines worldwide for more than 30 years.
F-15EX Conformal Fuel Tanks: Oregon’s Eagle IIs Finally Bulk Up
Two operational F-15EX Eagle IIs of the Oregon Air National Guard’s 142nd Wing are now flying with conformal fuel tanks borrowed from Air Combat Command, a configuration the US Air Force once said its front-line jets would not need.
Cheapest Aircraft to Own: The Real Cost at 20 and 100 Hours a Year
From a $10,700 paramotor to a Cessna 172: we priced the fixed and hourly costs of six aircraft at 20 and 100 hours a year, and found that fixed costs, not fuel, decide what flying really costs.
Philippine Air Force Retires the UH-1H Huey After 57 Years
The Philippine Air Force has decommissioned its last six Bell UH-1H Hueys at a ceremony in Lapu-Lapu City, closing a chapter that began at Villamor Air Base in March 1969.
Operation Kiddy Car: The 1950 Airlift That Saved Korea’s Orphans
On 20 December 1950, an Air Force chaplain and his sergeant got nearly 1,000 Korean orphans onto 16 C-54 transports out of Kimpo, hours before Seoul fell for a second time.
China Eastern LEAP-1A Deal: Engines Picked for 101 Airbus A320neo
China Eastern Airlines has chosen CFM International LEAP-1A engines, spares and long-term support for the 101 Airbus A320neo family jets it ordered in March.
AESA Radar Explained: How a Fighter Radar Steers Without Moving
AESA radar explained: how thousands of tiny transmit/receive modules let a fixed fighter radar steer, hide and resist jamming.