Attaboy Snoopy!

"100 years ago, WWI’s ‘Red Baron’ met defeat."

*Sniff Sniff* Roast Chicken For Supper?

Um...no.

An airline flight from Wales to Egypt was forced to land after a flock of seagulls was sucked into the jet's engines.

No, not that flock of seagulls:

Restoring F4U Corsairs In Idaho

"To preserve history, to honor veterans and to satisfy my artistic soul."

That's a worthy use of a man's life, I think.

Fly Amistad Airlines!

"On Jammed Jets, Sardines Turn on One Another."

When your main concern when flying is how low you can get a fare, don't complain when airlines respond by packing you in like sardines - - or slaves.

Plane That Survived Pearl Harbor Coming Home To USA

A P-40B Warhawk, which was in a hangar being repaired during the attack by the Japanese.

For You Airplane Fans

"How the B-52 Became Immortal."

Was a Douche Involved, Too?

The pilot of Asiana Flight 214 that crashed in San Francisco is claiming that he was blinded by the light.

Federal crash investigators revealed Wednesday that the pilot flying Asiana Airlines flight 214 told them that he was temporarily blinded by a bright light when 500 feet above the ground.

Presidential Airplane For Sale

A DC-9 that has served as Air Force One is being auctioned:

Pic:



Starting bid $50,000.

For You Airplane Fans

There's a restored British Mosquito bomber at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, VA.

Sorry, no pics with the article. It's the only flyable Mosquito in the world. Here is the museum's website.

Frankenstein's Spitfire Flies

Assembled from the parts of dead Spitfires from around the world,it comes to life:



Here's a vid of its first flight:

Restoring a Spitfire

A fine article from The Daily Mail.

Pic:

Those Burmese Spitfires?

Might not exist after all.

Click the link for details. They've found some crates, but one crate proved to be full of water; others are buried under power/phone cables and require careful extraction. It's not looking as if there is a squadron of pristine Spitfires ready to fly again.

Want To Help Restore a B-17?

Here's your chance.

SPRINGFIELD, OHIO — The stakes aren’t as high as when 12,726 of them were built during World War II, but the effort to restore one B-17 in Urbana still needs everyone to do their part.

Close to 90 volunteers at the Champaign Aviation Museum have so far spent seven years returning a single Flying Fortress to flying condition, and they can always use another Rosie the Riveter.

“The door’s open,” project manager Randy Kemp said. “Come get acquainted and see what you like.”

Don’t worry about experience — all you need is the same can-do spirit that won the war in the first place.

“Most of these guys have never before bent a piece of aluminum in their lives,” Kemp explained recently. “But, pretty soon, you’re building an engine nacelle.”

For history buffs, it’s an open invitation to come tinker on the ultimate muscle car — only this one could carry 8,000 pounds of muscle in its bomb bay.

I know I have some readers that would probably enjoy the chance to work on this project.

Other Than That It Was a Great Airplane

"The U.S. Navy gave it to the Marines. Pilots thought it was a sweet plane to fly, but noticed that the wheel struts sometimes broke, that the engine leaked oil, and that the guns sometimes didn't fire. And when they flew it against the nimble fighters of Japan, too often they didn't come back."

Some parts of a Brewster F2A Buffalo have been found in 10 feet of water in the lagoon at Midway Atoll.

The Buffalo is widely recognized as one of the worst airplanes to fly during WWII. There's only one left in existence, in a museum in Finland.

Pic:

Sort of short and fat, isn't it? I remember playing with model planes as a kid and the Buffalo was one of my favorites, for some reason.

Amazing Military Airplane Discovery

Over at Peter's is the story of an incredible discovery of WWII-era military airplanes: Spitfires, buried in their shipping crates in Burma ahead of the Japanese invasion.

Click the link to read the story. If the crates withstood the elements for all these years then this could be one of the great aviation discoveries of the new century.

The P-47 of Green Swamp, NC

The story of who flew it and how it ended up in a swamp in North Carolina for most of its life.

Together with a gallery of 96 photos.

Well worth reading for you aviation buffs among my readers.

You Don't Want 'Em? We'll Take 'Em Off Your Hands

The US Navy and US Marine Corps agree to buy all of the Royal Navy Harrier jets, plus spare parts.

I used to watch Harriers take off and land when I was in the Navy, serving on board USS Saipan (LHA2) and USS Nassau (LHA4). Impressive, to say the very least. I'm sorry that Great Britain is in such distress that it can't afford them any more, but glad we got them so we can extend their use in our own fleet.

"Miracle On the Hudson" Airplane Arrives In Charlotte

It's going to be a featured attraction at the Carolinas Aviation Museum.

It Took Him Nine Years...

...because he built it one piece at a time, like Johnny Cash's Cadillac:

Effing COOL!

Let's turn a Douglas DC-6 into a restaurant.

Pics:

Exterior:



Interior:




And presumably you can get inside without having your privates groped by TSA agents.