Vi Cowden during her service with the WASPs in the 1940s.

Military Aviation

Legends of Vietnam: Shoulder to Shoulder

The Grumman A-6 was ugly, but it sure could cook.
By Rafael Lima

Tracer rounds and rockets rain down on "Yodaville" during a Weapons and Tactics Instructors training exercise.

Thuds, the Ridge, and 100 Missions North

How the Republic F-105 got good at a mission it was not designed to fly.
By Carl Posey

<b><i>“The muralist, painter, and author Tom Lea,”</b></i> reported the <i>New York Times</i> in 2000, “is probably the only person, dead or alive, who can say he has been threatened by Pancho Villa, interrupted by Chiang Kai-shek, and regaled by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Oddly enough, Mr. Lea was mostly forgotten until he was quoted this month by Gov. George W. Bush [in his speech accepting the Republican Party’s nomination for president].” <br>

<br>In 1941, Texas-born artist Tom Lea received a telegram from <i>Life</i> magazine offering an assignment as a war “artist-correspondent” aboard a U.S. Navy destroyer in the North Atlantic. Lea accepted, and spent the next four years—along with six other artists—painting the lives of men at war. <a href="http://www.tamu.edu/upress/"target="_new">Texas A&M University Press</a> has recently published a lavishly illustrated book documenting those years titled <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Two-Thousand-Yard-Stare-Military/dp/1603440089/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1233947915&sr=8-1"target="_new"><i>The Two Thousand Yard Stare: Tom Lea’s World War II</i></a> (2008, edited by Brendan M. Greeley Jr.). <br>

<br>Lea’s first assignment was to paint four portraits of soldiers training for war at Fort Sam Houston and Randolph Field. One of the men was aviation cadet Bill Kelly, shown here in the cockpit of his basic trainer. Lea noted that Kelly “wouldn’t even smoke or drink coffee, much less take a snort for fear it would disturb his flying.” <br>

<br><i><b>Click on the thumbnails at right to see more images from the book.</b></i>

Where Have All the Phantoms Gone?

How a fighter-bomber-recon-attack superstar ended up as fodder for target practice.
By Ralph Wetterhahn

Above & Beyond: Take a Left at Portugal

By James A. Jimenez

After 25 missions, the crew and the <i>Belle</i> went on a War Bonds tour, stopping at Patterson Field in Ohio. Recalling the tour decades later, Commander Robert Morgan wrote: "In today

Restoration: The Memphis Belle

For this famous B-17, surviving 25 missions in World War II was the easy part.
By Mark Bernstein

Heir to the P-47, the A-10 Thunderbolt II is a purpose-built CAS aircraft, one of many types Marines can call on in a jam.

Air America's Black Helicopter

The secret aircraft that helped the CIA tap phones in North Vietnam.
By James R. Chiles

A gaggle of Hawkeyes operating out of the Naval Air Facility in Atsugi, Japan, takes to the air during a training mission.

Above & Beyond: I Have a Flameout

By Richard G. Woodhull, Jr.

Brooks Bash (center) oversees the training of Iraqi pilots and ground crew.

A & S Interview: Brig. Gen. Brooks Bash

A talk with the commander of the Air Force transition team in Iraq.
By Paul Hoversten

The book that robbed the enemy of his secrets. A key to shapes shows a circle can be a haystack or a gun emplacement.

Calling All Mustangs

This September a super-size squadron of P-51s will relive the legend.
By Stephen Joiner

Reader Scrapbook

Snapshot

Air & Space Videos

	Armstrong’s Close Call A fiery bailout while training to land on the moon.
	The First Lunar Landing One of history's great voyages, captured on 16mm film.
	Aviation Training in the United States, 1917-18 Rare footage of Army pilots learning to fly Jennies during World War I.
	Mercury Astronauts Meet the Press, 1959 ...and answer the question: "What was your least favorite test?"
	Marines Test the Joint Strike Fighter A Marine takes the new F-35 for a spin.
	On the Prowl Climb into the cockpit for a flight in an EA-6B Prowler.
	Dodging Missiles F-105 pilots recall the dangers of flying over North Vietnam.
	F-105 Walkaround Get a close look at the National Air and Space Museum’s Thunderchief.
	PTQ: Put Together Quickly Watch Boeing technicians repair an airliner—in two minutes.
	Operation Tumbler-Snapper Atomic bombs versus airplanes in the Nevada desert.

In the Magazine

Air & Space Interview

A&S Interview: Captain Eric Brown

Holder of the Guinness World Record for most types of aircraft flown

New Worlds

Confidence Booster

This little known Apollo artifact caused astronauts to rest a little easier.

View full archiveRecent Issues

About Us

Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine has been delighting aerospace enthusiasts with the best writing about their favorite subject since April 1986. As an adjunct of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, Air & Space matches the grand scope of the Museum, encompassing every era of aviation and space exploration. With stories that range from the Wright Brothers to the design of NASA's next lunar lander, Air & Space emphasizes the human stories as well as the technology of aviation and spaceflight.

During World War II, WASPs proved that an airplane couldn’t tell the difference between a male and female pilot. By Jonna Dootlittle Hoppes

From the impossible dream of a space-based shield, missile defense has come down to Earth. But will it work? By Ben Iannotta

The Grumman A-6 was ugly, but it sure could cook. By Rafael Lima

Population: Zero. Threat level: High By Ed Darack

In April 1975, escaping Saigon meant crowding into a darkened C-130 in the middle of the night. By Fred Reed

Meet J.T. Bachmann, the first USMC pilot to fly the Joint Strike Fighter. By Michael Klesius

To residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast, the Joint Strike Fighter says “Won’t you be my neighbor?” By Richard P. Hallion

Despite the best training and technology, why do pilots still die from not knowing which end is up? By Tom LeCompte

Occasional dispatches from our man in Afghanistan. By John Sotham

How the Republic F-105 got good at a mission it was not designed to fly. By Carl Posey

The paintings of Tom Lea, Life magazine's artist-correspondent during World War II.

How a fighter-bomber-recon-attack superstar ended up as fodder for target practice. By Ralph Wetterhahn

It's an addiction. Admitting you have it is the first step.

By James A. Jimenez

For this famous B-17, surviving 25 missions in World War II was the easy part. By Mark Bernstein

On the ground with Marines in Afghanistan, the author sees a different side of close air support. By Ed Darack

By airspacemag.com

From the desk of the Director of the National Air & Space Museum By J. R. Dailey

Cleaning up an aircraft carrier. By Phil Scott

Between the F-80 and the F-104, a supersonic pioneer fought the Cold War...in its own way. By Jorge and Karen Escalona

From Al Asad Air Base, portraits of U.S. aircraft and crews in the fourth year of fighting. By the Editors

The secret aircraft that helped the CIA tap phones in North Vietnam. By James R. Chiles

The Navy's newest Hawkeye gets closer to the fight. By Preston Lerner

How Iranian air crews, cut off from U.S. technical support, used the F-14 against Iraqi attackers. By Tom Cooper

By Richard G. Woodhull, Jr.

A talk with the commander of the Air Force transition team in Iraq. By Paul Hoversten

Photographs taken from the world’s first warplanes changed the course of battle. By Robin White

How P-47s became the tank busters of World War II By Robert F. Dorr and Thomas D. Jones

More recollections of the fabled fighter. By airspacemag.com

Portraits of military aviation's first fleet. By airspacemag.com

Aviation historian Ron Dick takes a closer look at an old warbird. By Diane Tedeschi

Life came at you fast when you flew the X-15. By Peter Garrison

You might say that Osprey pilots are neither fish nor fowl. By John Croft

Too trouble-prone for nuclear alert and sidelined in the first Gulf War, the B-1 is today the busiest bomber in the fleet. By David Noland

What we learned about stealth technology from the combat career of the F-117. By Bill Sweetman

The war in the Pacific ended as it began, with a surprise attack by Japanese warplanes. By Stephen Harding

Meet the men who kept the Thunderbolts flying. By Thomas D. Jones and Robert F. Dorr

How a milk run from an aircraft carrier nearly killed me. By Chris McKenna

New pilots, new government. By George C. Larson

This September a super-size squadron of P-51s will relive the legend. By Stephen Joiner

Reader Scrapbook

Snapshot

Most Popular

Air & Space Videos

In the Magazine

Air & Space Interview

New Worlds

View full archiveRecent Issues

Newsletter

Subscribe Now

About Us

Explore our Brands

During World War II, WASPs proved that an airplane couldn’t tell the difference between a male and female pilot.
By Jonna Dootlittle Hoppes

From the impossible dream of a space-based shield, missile defense has come down to Earth. But will it work?
By Ben Iannotta

The Grumman A-6 was ugly, but it sure could cook.
By Rafael Lima

Population: Zero. Threat level: High
By Ed Darack

In April 1975, escaping Saigon meant crowding into a darkened C-130 in the middle of the night.
By Fred Reed

Meet J.T. Bachmann, the first USMC pilot to fly the Joint Strike Fighter.
By Michael Klesius

To residents of Florida’s Gulf Coast, the Joint Strike Fighter says “Won’t you be my neighbor?”
By Richard P. Hallion

Despite the best training and technology, why do pilots still die from not knowing which end is up?
By Tom LeCompte

Occasional dispatches from our man in Afghanistan.
By John Sotham

How the Republic F-105 got good at a mission it was not designed to fly.
By Carl Posey

How a fighter-bomber-recon-attack superstar ended up as fodder for target practice.
By Ralph Wetterhahn

For this famous B-17, surviving 25 missions in World War II was the easy part.
By Mark Bernstein

On the ground with Marines in Afghanistan, the author sees a different side of close air support.
By Ed Darack

From the desk of the Director of the National Air & Space Museum
By J. R. Dailey

Cleaning up an aircraft carrier.
By Phil Scott

Between the F-80 and the F-104, a supersonic pioneer fought the Cold War...in its own way.
By Jorge and Karen Escalona

From Al Asad Air Base, portraits of U.S. aircraft and crews in the fourth year of fighting.
By the Editors

The secret aircraft that helped the CIA tap phones in North Vietnam.
By James R. Chiles

The Navy's newest Hawkeye gets closer to the fight.
By Preston Lerner

How Iranian air crews, cut off from U.S. technical support, used the F-14 against Iraqi attackers.
By Tom Cooper

A talk with the commander of the Air Force transition team in Iraq.
By Paul Hoversten

Photographs taken from the world’s first warplanes changed the course of battle.
By Robin White

How P-47s became the tank busters of World War II
By Robert F. Dorr and Thomas D. Jones

More recollections of the fabled fighter.
By airspacemag.com

Portraits of military aviation's first fleet.
By airspacemag.com

Aviation historian Ron Dick takes a closer look at an old warbird.
By Diane Tedeschi

Life came at you fast when you flew the X-15.
By Peter Garrison

You might say that Osprey pilots are neither fish nor fowl.
By John Croft

Too trouble-prone for nuclear alert and sidelined in the first Gulf War, the B-1 is today the busiest bomber in the fleet.
By David Noland

What we learned about stealth technology from the combat career of the F-117.
By Bill Sweetman

The war in the Pacific ended as it began, with a surprise attack by Japanese warplanes.
By Stephen Harding

Meet the men who kept the Thunderbolts flying.
By Thomas D. Jones and Robert F. Dorr

How a milk run from an aircraft carrier nearly killed me.
By Chris McKenna

New pilots, new government.
By George C. Larson

This September a super-size squadron of P-51s will relive the legend.
By Stephen Joiner