CURRENT ISSUE

July 2012

Features

The 120,000-Foot Leap

Can space-diver Felix Baumgartner break the sound barrier without breaking his neck?

Mark Betancourt

Europe’s Typhoon Fighter

For the first time since World War II, fighters are stationed at RAF Northolt

Carl A. Posey

My Other Vehicle Was a Spacecraft

Now that the space shuttle has retired, astronauts are rediscovering the joys of flying airplanes

Phil Scott

A New Time-to-Climb Record

A Yak 3U gets to 10,000 feet in 125 seconds.

George C. Larson

Inside Boeing’s 787 Factory

The Dreamliner’s quiet revolution

Stephen Joiner

Cancelled: Vertical Flyer

The Coléoptère was one weird-looking aircraft.

Jeremy Davis

Hurry-Up Satellites

These Pentagon mavericks want to launch spacecraft within a week of taking the order. Wish them luck.

Todd Neff

Piggyback Airplanes

Ten of aviation's most famous hitch-hikers

Lynn Keillor

Departments

Viewport

Viewport: Champion of the Fleet

Discovery takes a victory lap before settling in at the National Air and Space Museum.

J.R. Dailey

Soundings

Gyroplanes Swarm in Florida

The Annual Bensen Days fly-in welcomes rotorheads.

Bill Wilson

In the Museum

Summer at the Smithsonian

Planning a visit to the Museum? We provide some helpful hints.

Above & Beyond

Bait and Switch in Libya

Naval aviators push Qaddafi's buttons in a 1981 exercise

Commander Thompson E. Sanders U.S. Navy (Ret.)

Flights & Fancy

Short Strips and Flying Pigs

When flying in Papua, be prepared for surprises.

Nate Gordon

Moments and Milestones

Making a Smoother (and Speedier) Airplane

Within months of its first flight, August Bellanca's Skyrocket II set five world speed records.