The Manta Ray That Broke the Speed Record

The Manta Ray That Broke the Speed Record

Look at it from above and the name explains itself. The Douglas F4D was a broad, tailless delta with gently rounded wingtips — the silhouette of a manta ray gliding through water. The Navy called it the Skyray. The pilots, with magnificent deadpan, called it the...
The Three-Engine Jet That America Forgot

The Three-Engine Jet That America Forgot

Count the engines. Most jets have two, or four. The Martin XB-51 had three — two slung under the nose in pods, and a third buried in the tail, breathing through an intake at the base of the fin. It is one of the strangest combat aircraft the United States ever...
Alaska and Hawaiian Hit 150 Starlink Jets

Alaska and Hawaiian Hit 150 Starlink Jets

The Wi-Fi on your next Alaska or Hawaiian flight may now be faster than the connection in your living room. Alaska Air Group says roughly 150 of its aircraft are flying with SpaceX’s Starlink internet — and for a lot of passengers, it is free.The group...
The Greyhound Flies Its Last Carrier Landing

The Greyhound Flies Its Last Carrier Landing

For sixty years, one of the most welcome sounds on an American aircraft carrier was not a fighter. It was the drone of two big turboprops on approach. The C-2 Greyhound brought the mail, the spare parts, the fresh food, and the sailors heading home on leave. On 25...