Aircraft Types
Powered and unpowered aircraft, including fixed-wing, hybrid, rotary and lighter-than-air
The Bear Is Back
The winning-est Bearcat in air racing steps up once more to the starting gate.
November 2009 |
By Preston Lerner
Sweet 17
When a Staggerwing casts its spell, it can surprise even Olive Ann Beech.
November 2009 |
By James Wynbrandt
The First Parachute Jump
On this day in 1797, André-Jacques Garnerin made the first high-altitude jump using a parachute, over Parc Monceau in Paris. Garnerin's contraption—a basket suspended from a silk parachute—was cut loose from a balloon at an altitude of 2,000 feet. An eyewitness recalled:
He made a dreadful lurch i...
October 22, 2009 |
By Tony Reichhardt
Is Winning Everything?
For an air racing legend named Rare Bear, yes.
September 29, 2009 |
By Diane Tedeschi
Reno Wrap-up
What was hot—and what was not—at the 2009 National Championship Air Races.
September 28, 2009 |
By Linda Shiner
Over the No-Fly Zone
Patrolling over northern Iraq in 2001 felt like driving through a small town with Hell's Angels.
September 22, 2009 |
By Randy Gordon
First Around the World
For balloonists Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones, the end of one journey marked the beginning of another.
September 17, 2009 |
By Linda Shiner
Hot-Rod Helicopters
There’s just no way to add 100 mph to the speed of a helicopter. Or is there?
September 2009 |
By James R. Chiles
Tiltrotors for the Rest of Us
An Osprey for commuters? Bring it on. Can we get a quiet car too?
September 2009 |
By Mark Wolverton
The Electric Airplane
Quiet, smooth, dependable—shouldn’t we be flying these by now?
August 2009 |
By Peter Garrison
Into the Mushroom Cloud
Most pilots would head away from a thermonuclear explosion.
August 2009 |
By Mark Wolverton
