United 232: The DC-10 That Landed With No Hydraulics
Quick Facts FlightUnited Airlines Flight 232, Denver to Chicago DateJuly 19, 1989 AircraftMcDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 (N1819U) CrewCaptain Al Haynes, First Officer Bill Records, Flight Engineer Dudley Dvorak, plus off-duty instructor Captain Dennis Fitch...
Your Instrument Checkride: What Really Happens
Quick Facts What It IsThe FAA practical test for an Instrument Rating — the licence to fly in clouds, fog, and low visibility PrerequisitesPrivate Pilot Certificate, 50 hours cross-country PIC, 40 hours actual or simulated instrument time, instrument ground school,...
The Go-Around: Aviation’s Most Dangerous Safe Decision
Quick Facts What It IsAborting an approach and climbing away instead of landing When It’s RequiredUnstable approach, runway not in sight at minimums, traffic on runway, wind shear, ATC instruction Accident Factor~83% of approach-and-landing accidents involve a...
Pentagon Orders 85 F-35s and a $6.6 Billion Engine Deal
Quick Facts AircraftLockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II 2027 Budget Request85 F-35s total — 38 for the Air Force, remainder for Navy, Marines, and allies Engine Contract$6.6 billion for Pratt & Whitney F135 engines (Lots 18 and 19) Contract Breakdown$3.8 billion...
B-52s Now Dropping JDAMs Directly Over Iran
Quick Facts AircraftBoeing B-52H Stratofortress Deployment BaseRAF Fairford, England (8 B-52s and 15 B-1s forward-deployed) Primary WeaponGBU-31 JDAM (2,000-lb GPS-guided bomb, ~$80,000 each) Payload CapacityUp to 20 x 2,000-lb JDAMs or 30 x 1,000-lb JDAMs per sortie...
CIA Deception Saved the Downed F-15E Weapons Officer
Related: F-15E Down Over Iran — Crew Fate Unknown Quick Facts EventRescue of F-15E Weapons Systems Officer (WSO) shot down over Iran DateApril 5, 2026 — approximately 36 hours after shootdown on April 3 Aircraft LostF-15E Strike Eagle (494th Fighter Squadron, 48th...
Supercruise: The F-22 Outruns Everything Without Afterburner
Quick Facts: SupercruiseDefinitionSustained supersonic flight without afterburnerFirst Operational FighterF-22 Raptor (2005)Supercruise SpeedMach 1.5+ (approx. 1,000 mph / 1,600 km/h)Engine2x Pratt & Whitney F119-PW-100Thrust (each, dry)~26,000 lb (est.)Fuel...
Flight 961: The Hijacking That Ended in the Ocean
Quick Facts FlightEthiopian Airlines Flight 961 DateNovember 23, 1996 AircraftBoeing 767-260ER (ET-AIZ) RouteAddis Ababa to Nairobi (diverted by hijackers) CaptainLeul Abate (Ethiopian Airlines) Passengers/Crew175 total (163 passengers, 12 crew) Survivors50 of 175...
The Ejection Seat: 12,000 Lives Saved by Controlled Violence
Quick Facts InventionThe rocket-powered ejection seat Lives SavedOver 12,000 worldwide (all manufacturers combined) First Use (Combat)January 1945 — Luftwaffe pilot in a Heinkel He 162 Leading ManufacturerMartin-Baker (UK) — 7,700+ lives saved, seats in 93 air forces...
World’s Only Airworthy Yak-7B Takes Flight at Wanaka
Quick Facts AircraftYakovlev Yak-7B (Flugwerk reproduction, ZK-YKB) StatusOnly airworthy Yak-7B in the world First FlightMarch 26, 2026 — Omaka Aerodrome, Blenheim, NZ OwnerMike O’Rourke (New Zealand) Restored ByJEM Aviation, Blenheim (Jay McIntyre)...
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