Share this story Quick Facts EventFirst US combat aircraft shot down by enemy fire since April 8, 2003 Aircraft LostF-15E Strike Eagle (494th Fighter Squadron, 48th Fighter Wing, RAF Lakenheath) DateApril 3, 2026 Previous ShootdownA-10 Thunderbolt II over Baghdad,...
Share this story He never built it. The notebooks where he sketched it weren’t even published until 1797 — nearly three centuries after his death. But the flying machines Leonardo da Vinci drew in the late 1400s show a mind that grasped the fundamental problem...
Share this story Related: F-15E Down Over Iran — Crew Fate Unknown Quick Facts Date April 3, 2026 Operation Epic Fury (ongoing since February 28, 2026) Aircraft Lost One F-15E Strike Eagle (494th Fighter Squadron, RAF Lakenheath) + one A-10C Thunderbolt II F-15E Crew...
Share this story Quick Facts The WWII Pass Multiple Allied pilots flew under the Eiffel Tower during the Liberation of Paris (August 1944) Most Famous WWII Pilot William Overstreet Jr., P-51C Mustang “Berlin Express,” chasing a Bf 109 (1944) The 1991 Pass Serge...
Share this story Quick Facts Fox One Semi-active radar-guided missile launch (e.g. AIM-7 Sparrow) Fox Two Infrared/heat-seeking missile launch (e.g. AIM-9 Sidewinder) Fox Three Active radar-guided missile launch (e.g. AIM-120 AMRAAM) Origin NATO brevity code system...
Share this story Quick Facts What It Is A secondary combustion system that injects raw fuel into a jet engine’s exhaust Thrust Increase 40–70% above maximum dry (non-afterburning) thrust Fuel Penalty Fuel consumption roughly triples during afterburner use Duration...
Share this story Quick Facts Aircraft Supermarine Type 300 (prototype K5054) First Flight March 5, 1936, Eastleigh Aerodrome (now Southampton Airport) Test Pilot Captain Joseph “Mutt” Summers Designer R.J. Mitchell, Supermarine Aviation Works Engine Rolls-Royce Merlin...
Share this story Quick Facts Aircraft Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird (tail number 61-7972) Record Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. in 64 minutes 20 seconds Date March 6, 1990 (final operational flight) Distance 2,299 miles (3,701 km) Average Speed 2,145 mph (Mach 3.2+) Crew...
Share this story Quick Facts Unit 588th Night Bomber Regiment, Soviet Air Forces Nickname Nachthexen (“Night Witches”) — given by terrified German soldiers Aircraft Polikarpov Po-2 biplane (1920s design, wood and canvas) Personnel All-female — pilots, navigators,...
Share this story Quick Facts Who Needs This Every student pilot — and every rusty private pilot who hasn’t practised lately Why It Matters Emergency procedures are tested on every checkride and save lives in real emergencies The Five Drills Engine failure after...
Share this story Quick Facts What It Stands For METeorological Aerodrome Report Format Standardised worldwide by ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) Updated Every hour (or more frequently via SPECI reports for significant changes) Used By Every pilot,...
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