Rebecca Maksel

Rebecca Maksel is a senior associate editor at Air & Space.

U.S. Navy flight deck personnel taxi an AV-8B Harrier assigned to Marine Attack Squadron 542 across the flight deck aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard in 2012. Should amphibious assault ships replace the traditional aircraft carrier?

The Future of Aircraft Carriers

A debate at the Naval Academy Museum leads to some surprising conclusions.

Was there really a Star?

What Was the Star of Bethlehem?

Who better to ask than the Vatican?

Best Children’s Books of 2014

The year’s best aviation- and space-themed books for young readers

Air America flew everything from the iconic Bell UH-1 (here, a Huey in descending hover in Vietnam, circa late 1960s) to Cessnas to the CH-54 Skycrane—more than 30 different aircraft in all.

“Just Fly This Sumbitch Myself”

Air America’s pilots liked danger—and a bit of fun.

An Inter-Island Airways Sikorsky S-43 flies past Molokai mountains and lagoon.

Hawaii by Air

A new exhibit gives a rich account of the state’s aviation history.

“The Lousy Bums of Hierson” displays Miller’s typical wit: “Tibbets on the right has been thru a lot. He is a typical little dried up Yankee. He has been decorated by the British for work during the Spring Somme Show 1918,” while “Mitten...can make even a German private see a joke.”

Diary of a World War I Ace

Air combat, prison camp, and the will to fly again.

Andy Weir’s science fiction thriller, The Martian, is filled with "enough keen wit to satisfy hard science fiction fans and general readers alike," according to Publishers Weekly.

Andy Weir, Author of The Martian

A conversation with a space nerd-turned-novelist.

Aviation Pranks, Circa 1910

If you wanted to spice up your lodge meeting at the turn of the 20th Century, the DeMoulin brothers had some suggestions.

In 1933, Charles and Anne Morow Lindbergh flew survey flights across the North and South Atlantic in this Lockheed Sirius, nicknamed "Tingmissartoq," or "One who flies like a big bird."

Flight Suits or Goggles? How Museums Decide What to Exhibit

An inside look at the choices that went into creating a Lindbergh display

A VH-60 White Hawk of the Marine Helicopter Squadron One (HMX-1) flies over the Potomac.

The Inside Scoop on Marine One

Why the “white tops” got painted white, and what exactly is a “Weelo”

The Fifinella patch was worn by the women of the 318th and 319th AAFTD.

The Roald Dahl Aviation Story that Disney Refused to Film

The RAF pilot-turned-children’s-author starred a gremlin in his first book.

Ronstadt in concert, 1977.

Linda Ronstadt Tried to Capture the Sound of a B-29 in Her Songs

Raised near an Air Force base, she thought it sounded somewhere between a cello and a double bass.

Gordon Cooper prepares for his Mercury 9 launch on May 15, 1963.

If a Mercury Astronaut Came Down in a Communist Country, the U.S. Had a Plan

In 1963, the State Department was understandably nervous about the longest American spaceflight to date.

Qantas' campaign is inspired by artist Gemma O'Brien.

Turning Airsick Bags into Art

Qantas is looking for submissions to its “Spew Bag Challenge.”

The Big Guy is back. We're going to need some F-15s and HALO jumpers.

Kadena Air Base: We Could Take Godzilla

The Air Force’s largest combat wing is ready to master the mayhem

Both on the ground (volunteer satellite trackers in Pretoria, South Africa, above) and in the air, volunteers watched the skies for the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's Moonwatch Network.

Pilots—Watch the Skies!

In the 1960s, as part of a Smithsonian project, airline pilots acted as lookouts for satellites, meteors, and UFOs.

A Remotely Piloted Aircraft training simulation at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico.

Drone Pilots Find it Hard to Balance Warfighting With Personal Lives

A new GAO report highlights the stresses that UAV pilots face.

Apollo 11's tickertape parade, New York City.

In 1969, One Nation Refused a Visit by the First Moonwalkers

Why Hungary spurned the Apollo 11 astronauts

Video Proof: Fruit Flies Maneuver Just Like Fighter Pilots

High-speed photography shows the bugs evading their enemies using banked turns.

Theoretically, this paper airplane will fly for as long as you continue to walk with and guide it, say Stephen Voltz and Fritz Grobe, aka "The Coke and Mentos Guys."

The Paper Airplane That Flies Forever

Make your own walkalong paper glider

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