The "Ghost Rider" B-52 Rises From The Grave To Ride Again

U.S. Air Force serial number 61-0007, a B-52H known by its nose art as "Ghost Rider," was brought out of seven years of storage at the Defense Department's boneyard in Arizona. Its new mission? To replace an active B-52H that was badly damaged by fire while on the ground at Barksdale Air Force Base and make the USAF arms treaty-dictated fleet of 76 B-52s whole once again (foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com) More...

Why the DC-3 is such a Badass Plane

Eight decades after its first flight, the DC-3 remains an aviation legend. (www.popularmechanics.com) More...

How the Boeing jet no one wanted became the plane airlines scour the planet for (BA, DAL)

The Boeing 717-200 went out of production in 2006. Only 156 of the planes have been built. A decade later, the airlines that operate the 717 want more of them. (www.yahoo.com) More...

United States of America's Lost Airforce One

A YouTube presentation. In 1953 the near miss of Eastern Airlines flight 8610 and Air Force flight 8610 over NY City resulted in the historic change and designation of Air Force One. (www.youtube.com) More...

An inside look at the cockpit of a B-36

A pal of mine passed this on to me. I thought some of you who remember boiler gauges would enjoy the tour. B-36 Cockpit Gauge Maze The B-36 was a state of the art airplane in its day. The Flight Engineer was responsible for starting, maintaining and shutting down the 6 Radial Engines and the 4 Jet Engines required to make it fly and complete its mission. No modern technology, such as "Fly by Wire" or "Computer controlled Aircraft" systems, were involved here. Just straight… (www.nmusafvirtualtour.com) More...

One airline figured out how to make sure its airplanes never disappear

First Air, a Canadian airliner, flies across some of the most remote and sparsely populated areas on the continent, with routes going as far north as Resolute Bay, in the Arctic Circle. Its planes are often beyond the reach of conventional radar. They are also nearly disappearance-proof. (www.washingtonpost.com) More...

Southwest Pilot Tensions Flare Anew Over Arrival of 737 Max Jets

Southwest Airlines Co. pilots, frustrated after four years of unsuccessful contract talks, asked the carrier to guarantee it won’t force them to fly Boeing Co.’s newest 737 before the plane is negotiated into a new agreement for the 8,000 workers. (www.bloomberg.com) More...

The Disturbing Truth About How Airplanes Are Maintained Today

In the last decade, most of the big U.S. airlines have shifted major maintenance work to places like El Salvador, Mexico, and China, where few mechanics are F.A.A. certified and inspections have no teeth. (www.vanityfair.com) More...

Keeping the SR-71 Blackbird (the World's First Stealth Plane) Secret Was Near Impossible

There are few secret projects like U.S. Air Force black projects, and that was certainly the case for the famed SR-71 Blackbird. (nationalinterest.org) More...

Inside Farnborough: Incredible aircraft that'll shake up world's largest airshow

From July 11 to 17 the small town of Farnborough (some 40 miles southwest of London) will be transformed into the world's aviation capital. One of the biggest airshows on the planet, Farnborough will showcase 99 different kinds of aircraft this year. The future of some of the biggest names in aviation, the dramatic rise of drones, the emergence of new plane makers and barnstorming displays of military and civilian hardware. If there is a must-go global aviation event, this is it. (www.cnn.com) More...