Six F-16 Fighting Falcons with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team fly in delta formation in front of the Empire State Building during an air show. The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a modern multi-role
jetfighter aircraft built in the
United States. Designed as a lightweight fighter, it evolved into a successful multi-role aircraft, and is serving with 25 countries.
Coloured smoke reveals a vortex of air created by the wing of an airplane, also known as wake turbulence or jetwash. This turbulence can be especially hazardous during the landing and take off phases of flight, where an aircraft's proximity to the ground makes a timely recovery from turbulence-induced problems unlikely.
The F-15 Eagle is an American-built all-weather tactical
fighter designed to gain and maintain
air superiority in aerial combat. As of 2005, the F-15 in all air forces has a combined kill record of 104 confirmed kills to zero losses in air combat, although some F-15s have been claimed by
surface-to-air missiles.
The
airshipUSS Akron} flying over the southern tip of
Manhattan circa 1931–1933. The Akron was a commissioned 'ship' of the United States Navy, built for them by the
Goodyear Zeppelin Corporation in
Akron, Ohio. She cast off for her maiden voyage on 2 November 1931, but crashed less than two years later.
The first ejector seats were developed during the war by
Heinkel. Early models were powered by
compressed air and the first aircraft to be fitted with such a system was the
Heinkel He 280 prototype
jetfighter in
1941. One of the He 280 test pilots,
Dipl.-Ing. Rudolf Schenk, flying for
Argus, became the first person to escape from a stricken aircraft with an ejector seat on January 13, 1942. During a flight with the still engine-less V-1 towed by a Heinkel He 111 he had to leave his airplane because he could not release the towing cable due to icing of the coupling. By December
2003, Martin-Baker ejector seats had saved 7028 lives. The total figure for all types of seat is unknown but must be considerably higher.
A portrait of Wernher von Braun standing in front of the cluster of F-1
rocket engines on the base of the first stage of a
Saturn V launch vehicle. Von Braun had a lifelong aspiration to fly to the
moon. A pioneer of rocket development, in the
Second World War von Braun led the German development of the
V-2 rocket at
Peenemünde. Along with his team of engineers, he surrendered to the
American forces in the closing stages of the war, then helped to establish the military rocket program in the United States. In
1958 he transferred to the newly established
NASA program, developing the
Saturn V rocket that successfully delivered a man to the moon in
1969.
An F-15D Eagle from the 325th Fighter Wing based at
Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida releasing
flares. The F-15 is a multi-role tactical
fighter designed by
McDonnell Douglas. The first flight of the F-15A was in July 1972, but since then it has been produced in six model variations with both single seat and dual seat versions. The original and largest operator of the F-15 is the
United States Air Force, but it is also operated by the air forces of
Israel,
Japan,
Saudi Arabia and
South Korea.
U.S. F/A-18 Hornet flying at
transonic speeds. In
aerodynamics, the
sound barrier is a physical boundary that was once thought to be stopping large objects becoming
supersonic. When an
aircraft is near to the speed of sound, an unusual
cloud sometimes forms. A drop in pressure, in this case due to shock wave formation, causes water droplets to condense and form the cloud.
San Francisco International Airport (
IATA: SFO) opened on May 7, 1927 on 150 acres (607,000 m²) of cow pasture leased from prominent local landowner
Ogden L. Mills, and was named Mills Field Municipal Airport. During the economic boom of the 1990s and the
dot-com boom, SFO became the 6th busiest international airport in the world. However, since the boom times ended, it has fallen back out of the top twenty.
The planes that serve as Air Force One can be operated as a military command center in the event of an incident such as a
nuclear attack. Operational modifications include
aerial refueling capability,
electronic countermeasures (ECMs) which jam enemy
radar, and flares to avoid heat-seeking missiles. The heavily shieleded electronics onboard include around twice the amount of wiring found in a regular
Boeing 747-200.
During a winch launch, a
glider is pulled by a wire cable like a
kite, raising it to an
altitude of around 1000 ft (300 m). For the rest of its flight, being un-powered, the heavier-than-air
aeroplane is always falling. However a pilot can gain height by circling within a strong
thermal — a column of air that is rising at a faster rate than the plane is falling. On a good day, an experienced pilot can travel hundreds of miles before landing.
Credit: Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III, U.S. Air Force
A B-1B Lancer drops back after air refueling training over the Pacific Ocean September 30. The B-1B is deployed to
Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, as part of the
Pacific Command's continuous bomber presence in the Asia-Pacific region, enhancing regional security and the U.S. commitment to the Western Pacific. The B1 is from the
28th Bomb Wing,
Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota.
The Controlled Impact Demonstration was a joint project between
NASA and the
FAA in which a
Boeing 720 was deliberately crashed in order to test the ability of the fuel additive FM-9, to inhibit the ignition and flame propagation of
Jet-A fuel.
An airfield traffic pattern is a standard path followed by
aircraft when
taking off or
landing at an
airport.The pattern (or circuit) is used to coordinate air traffic, and differs from straight-in approaches and departures in that aircraft remain in close proximity to the airport. Circuits are usually employed at small
general aviation (GA) airfields and military
airbases.
The Ryan
X-13 Vertijet was designed to explore the feasibility of a pure-jet vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) fighter aircraft. Here, the X-13 is about to moor itself to a dual-role flatbed transport/launch trailer.
A test firing of twin linear XRS-2200 Aerospike engines. The aerospike engine is a type of
rocket engine that maintains its efficiency across a wide range of altitudes through the use of an aerospike nozzle.
A standard rocket engine uses a bell shaped
nozzle to contain and direct the exhaust gases. However the optimum shape of the bell depends on the
air pressure which reduces as the rocket climbs. An aerospike uses the air flowing past the rocket to form half of a 'virtual bell' which automatically compensates for the reducing pressure.
A flight control system consists of the flight control surfaces, the respective cockpit controls, connecting linkage, and necessary operating mechanisms to control aircraft in flight.
Credit: Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Jonathan Chandler, U.S. Navy
An F/A-18C Hornet, assigned to the "Golden Dragons" of Strike Fighter Squadron One Nine Two (VFA-192), launches from the flight deck of the conventionally powered
aircraft carrierUSS Kitty Hawk (CV 63). Kitty Hawk and embarked Carrier Air Wing Five (CVW-5) are currently returning to their homeport after a scheduled deployment in the 7th Fleet area of responsibility.
A
newsreel showing the breaking of the sound barrier on 14 October 1947 by
Chuck Yeager in the rocket-powered
Bell X-1. Flying at an altitude of 45,000 ft (13.7 km), Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier in level flight.
Nevada test Site, August 7, 1957. The tail, or “After” section of a U.S. Navy Blimp is shown with the Stokes cloud in background. Blimp was in temporary free flight in excess of five miles from ground zero when collapsed by the shock wave from the blast. The airship was unmanned and was used in military effects experiments on blast and heat. Navy personnel on the ground in the vicinity of the experimental area were unhurt. On ground to the left are remains of the forward section.
Captain
Joseph Kittinger steps from a
balloon-supported gondola at the altitude of 102,800 feet (31.3 km), or almost 20 miles on August 16, 1960, as part of Project Excelsior, a series of high-altitude
parachute jumps, testing a system that would allow a safe controlled descent after a high-altitude aircraft ejection. In
freefall for 4.5 minutes at speeds up to 625 mph (1,005 km/h) and temperatures as low as −94°F (−70°C), he opened his parachute at 17,500 feet (5.3 km). The whole descent took 13 minutes and 45 seconds. This is the current world record for the highest parachute jump and was the longest freefall until Adrian Nicholas broke the record in 1998 with a wingsuit skydive lasting 4 minutes 55 seconds.
USAF aircraft of the 335th Fighter Squadron (
F-16,
F-15C and
F-15E) fly over Kuwaiti oil fires, set by the retreating Iraqi army during
Operation Desert Storm in 1991.
The Lockheed SR-71, commonly known as the "Blackbird," was an advanced, long-range,
Mach 3 strategic
reconnaissance aircraft that flew from 1964–98. The SR-71 was one of the first aircraft to be
shaped to have an extremely low
radar signature. The aircraft flew so fast and so high that if the pilot detected a
surface-to-air missile launch, the standard evasive action was simply to accelerate. During its entire operational life, more than 3,000 missiles were fired at the aircraft, yet no SR-71 was ever shot down.
An attitude indicator (AI), gyro horizon or artificial horizon, is an
instrument used in an
aircraft to inform the pilot of the orientation of the airplane relative to
earth.
The inverted Jenny (or Jenny Invert) is a
United Statespostage stamp of
1918 in which the image of the
Curtiss JN-4airplane in the center of the design was accidentally printed upside-down; it is probably the most famous error in American
philately. Only 100 of the
inverts were ever found, making this
error one of the most prized in all philately; an inverted Jenny was sold at a Robert A. Siegel auction in June
2005 for US$525,000.
A Supermarine Spitfire Mark XVI. The Spitfire was an iconic
British single-seat
fighter used by the
RAF and many Allied countries in the
Second World War. The Spitfire saw service during the whole of WWII in all theatres of war, and in many different variants. It is often credited with winning the
Battle of Britain.
The Wright Flyer was the first powered aircraft designed and built by the
Wright Brothers in
1903. It is generally considered to be the first successful powered, piloted aircraft.
In this photograph of the first flight at
Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Orville Wright is at the controls, lying prone on the lower wing with hips in the cradle that operated the
wing warping mechanism. Wilbur Wright running alongside, has just released his hold to balance the machine.
Credit: U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Mark J. Rebilas
An F-14D Tomcat assigned to the "Tomcatters" of Fighter Squadron Three One (VF-31) sits poised for launch on one of four steam-powered catapults aboard the nuclear powered aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). Stennis and her embarked Carrier Air Wing One Four (CVW-14) are currently at sea conducting training exercises.
Flying a modified
X-15A-2 in October, 1967, US Air Force Major
William Joseph Knight reached Mach 6.72 (4,520 mph), which remains the highest speed ever attained in an airplane.
Schlieren photography (from the German word for "streaks") allows the visualization of density changes, and therefore shock waves, in fluid flow. Schlieren techniques have been used for decades in laboratory wind tunnels to visualize supersonic flow about model aircraft, but not full scale aircraft until recently. Dr. Leonard Weinstein of
NASALangley Research Center developed the first Schlieren camera, which he calls SAF (Schlieren for Aircraft in Flight), that can photograph the shock waves of a full sized aircraft in flight. He successfully took a picture which clearly shows the shock waves about a
T-38 Talon aircraft on December 13, 1993 at
Wallops Island, MD. The camera was then brought to the NASA
Dryden Flight Research Center because of the high number of supersonic flights there.
Cumulus clouds are characterized by dense individual elements in the form of puffs, mounds or towers, with flat bases and tops that often resemble
cauliflower. They are formed due to
convection. Buoyant, upward air currents, known as
thermals rise to a height at which the moisture in the air can condense. Because of this, they "grow" vertically instead of horizontally. Though most common in warm, summer weather, cumulus clouds can be formed at any time of year.
Boeing-Stearman Model 75's. Taken in 1936 at NAS Pensacola during training of the first class of the Naval Aviation Cadet program. Photo includes Boone Guyton (plane in rear) who later became a test pilot for Chance-Vought (Vought Sikorsky) in 1939.
A formation of F-4 Phantom II fighter aircraft fly in formation during a heritage flight demonstration here. The heritage flight program was established in 1997 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the U.S. Air Force.
Capt.
Lowell H. Smith and Lt. John P. Richter performing the first
aerial refueling on 27 June 1923. The
Airco DH.4 biplane remained aloft over the skies of
Rockwell Field in San Diego, California, for 37 hours. The airfield's logo is visible on the aircraft.
Lt. Col. James Hecker (front) and Lt. Col. Evan Dertein line up their F/A-22 Raptor aircraft behind a KC-10 Extender to refuel while en route to Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Colonel Hecker commands the first operational Raptor squadron -- the 27th Fighter Squadron at Langley Air Force Base, Va. The unit went to Hill for operation Combat Hammer, the squadron's first deployment, Oct. 15. The deployment has a twofold goal: complete a deployment and to generate a combat-effective sortie rate away from home.
This JRF-5 Grumman JRF-5 Goose was assigned to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida (USA), in 1941 and remained on the station throughout the Second World War. Only one of these aircraft flew from the station and was used for utility purposes, including photography.
Sophie Blanchard, French Balloonist. Ascent of August 15th 1811 at Milan. Full-length portrait of French balloonist Marie-Madeleine-Sophie Armand Blanchard, standing in the decorated basket of her balloon during her flight in Milan, Italy, in 1811, in the presence of the imperial and royal highness.
Credit: U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Samuel Rogers
[1]
Capt. Matt Buckner, an F-15 Eagle pilot assigned to the 71st Fighter Squadron at Langley Air Force Base, Va., flies a combat air patrol mission Oct. 7 over Washington, D.C., in support of Operation Noble Eagle.
JetBlue Airways Flight 292, an
Airbus A320-232, making an
emergency landing at
LAX on September 21, 2005 after the
front landing gear malfunctioned. The front gear was turned
perpendicular to the runway causing the tires to be torn off and sparks to fly up on impact. No one was injured during the landing and passengers began to disembark less than seven minutes later.
The
Blue Angels use a
United States Marine CorpsC-130T Hercules, nicknamed "Fat Albert", for their logistics, carrying spare parts, equipment, and to carry support personnel between shows. Beginning in 1975, "Bert" was used for
Jet Assisted Take Off (JATO) and short aerial demonstrations just prior to the main event at selected venues, but the JATO demonstration ended in 2009 due to dwindling supplies of rockets.
A diagram of a typical turbojet engine.
Air is compressed as it enters the
engine, and is mixed with
fuel that burns in the
combustion section. Released through the exhaust, the resulting hot gases
provide forward
thrust and turn the
turbines that drive the fan blades of the compressor.
Credit: Master Sgt. Andy Dunaway, United States Air Force
An F-22 Raptor flies over Kadena Air Base, Japan, Jan. 23 on a routine training mission. The F-22 is deployed from the 27th Fighter Squadron at Langley Air Force Base, Va.
A T-45A Goshawk executes a turning rejoin during a recent formation flight over South Texas. The T-45 is a twin-seat, single-engine jet trainer and is the only aircraft in the Navy's inventory used specifically for training pilots to land aboard aircraft carriers.
The Let L-410 Turbolet is a twin-engined short-range transport aircraft, manufactured by the
Czech aircraft manufacturer
LET, mostly used for passenger transport. The L-410 first flew in 1969, and with more than 1100 produced, is the most popular 19-seat plane in history.
A
Bell 212 Twin Huey carrying a
helicopter bucket, a specialized bucket suspended on a cable to deliver water for helitack operations, which is
aerial firefighting using
helicopters. Helitack crews are used to attack a
wildfire and gain early control of it, especially when inaccessibility would make it difficult or impossible for ground crews to respond in the same amount of time.
A
schematic of the V-2rocket, the first
ballistic missile, the first man-made object to achieve
sub-orbital spaceflight, and the progenitor of all modern rockets. Developed by
Wernher von Braun on behalf of
Nazi Germany, and based on work by
Robert H. Goddard, over 3,000 V-2s were launched during
World War II against
Allied targets, resulting in the death of an estimated 7,250 military personnel and civilians. An estimated 20,000 inmates at
Mittelbau-Dora died constructing V-2s, making the V-2 perhaps the only weapon system to have more deaths caused by its production than its deployment.
On December 1, 1984,
NASA and the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conducted the Controlled Impact Demonstration, where they deliberately crashed a
Boeing 720 aircraft with the intent of improving occupant
crash survivability. Seen left-to-right, top-to-bottom, the plane makes a practice approach, hits the ground, slides for a short distance, strikes posts cemented in the ground, and becomes engulfed in flames.
The Airbus A330 is a
wide-body twin-engine jet
airliner made by
Airbus which was introduced in 1994. The A330-200, such as pictured here in
Aeroflot livery, entered service in 1998 and was considerably more popular than the earlier A330-300. In December 2012 there were 476 A330-200s in operation.
An
F/A-18 Hornet performs an automated aerial refueling operation on another. This was part of a study by the
Dryden Flight Research Center to evaluate the ability of the F/A-18 as an in-flight refueling tanker to develop analytical models for an automated aerial refueling system for
unmanned aerial vehicles. The project is documenting how an operational tanker's
drogue basket responds when in the presence of the receiver aircraft.