Afterburner - The Aviation Magazine

27 October 2026

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Tipsy Trainer 1

Tipsy Trainer 1 (c/n 10, G-AFRV), exhibited at the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History, Brussels, September 2023. Ernest Oscar Tips, born on 2 October 1893 in Tielrode, was a Belgian aircraft designer and aviation pioneer. In [...]
CIVIL AVIATION

Lufthansa bids farewell to its Airbus A340-600 fleet after nearly 23 years of service

On 19 October 2026, Lufthansa operated its final scheduled Airbus A340-600 passenger flight, LH419, from Washington Dulles International Airport to Frankfurt Airport. The landing marked the end of nearly 23 years of the type’s service with the German flag carrier. [...]
AVIATION HISTORY

23 October 1911 – first use of the aeroplane in combat

On 23 October 1911, the Italian aviator Captain Carlo Piazza performed a reconnaissance flight over Libya. This marked the first use of a heavier-than-air aircraft in combat, as well as the first reconnaissance flight conducted using this type of aircraft. [...]
MILITARY AVIATION

Airbus U740 Valkyrie completes first European flight

Airbus and the American company Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. have announced the successful completion of the first European test flight of the U740 Valkyrie Uncrewed Collaborative Combat Aircraft (UCCA). The flight marked another milestone in the partnership between [...]
PHOTO OF THE WEEK

Ilyushin Il-102

Ilyushin Il-102 / Ил-102 (c/n 102010303010), stored at the Музей Техники Вадима Задорожного / Technical Museum of Vadim Zadorozhny, Arkhangelskoye, Krasnogorsky District, August 2019. The story of Ilyushin-designed ground-attack aircraft began in 1939, with the first flight of the legendary [...]

Macron’s vision for European space autonomy — how close is it to reality?

FEATURED

7 October 2026

At this year’s International Space Summit in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron presented an ambitious vision for Europe’s future in space. As we reported in one of our previous articles, within two years, he wants [...]

Europe sets out new ambitions for human spaceflight and lunar exploration

FEATURED

23 September 2026

On 9 and 10 September 2026, the International Space Summit took place in Paris, bringing together world leaders, government ministers, representatives of the space industry and astronauts to discuss the future of global space activities. [...]

DREAMERS AND DOERS