SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Nikolay Zhukovsky

Nikolay Yegorovich Zhukovsky (Николай Егорович Жуковский, sometimes transliterated as Joukovsky) was born on 17 January 1847 in the village of Orekhovo, near Vladimir, Russia. The future scientist, mathematician and engineer, was born into a family […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Lavochkin La-15

The Lavochkin construction bureau, also known as OKB-301, is best-known for its propeller-driven fighters, such as the LaGG-1, the LaGG-3, the La-5 and its derivatives, widely used during the Second World War, as well as […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Saab JAS-39 Gripen

On 9 December 1988, the light multirole fighter JAS 39, developed by the Swedish aerospace company Saab AB, performed its maiden flight. The aeroplane was flown by Stig Holmström, a company test pilot. Yet in […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Heinkel He 162 A-2 Volksjäger

On 6 December 1944, the new German single-engine jet fighter, the Heinkel He 162, made its maiden flight. The aircraft was developed under Jägernotprogramm (Emergency Fighter Programme), issued by Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Ministry of Aviation) on 3 […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Handley Page Halifax

The Handley Page Halifax was a heavy bomber with twin vertical stabilisers, developed in response to Specification P.13/36 issued by the British Air Ministry in 1936. This document outlined the need for a medium-sized, high-performance […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Convair B-58 Hustler

Convair B-58 Hustler was the first operational bomber in the world capable of Mach 2 maximum speed. Development and construction of two prototypes was performed in accordance with the highest security standards. Neither the shape […]

SHORT AVIATION STORIES

Tupolev Tu-114

Tupolev Tu-114 was the Soviet long-haul passenger airliner, developed in the late 1950s. In August of 1955, in response to market demand, Совет министров СССР (the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union) issued a […]

DREAMERS AND DOERS

The Farman Brothers

The Farman brothers were British–French aviation pioneers and aircraft manufacturers. Richard Farman (né Tom Dickie Mudford Farman) was the eldest son of a British newspaper correspondent based in Paris, France, and was born in 1872. […]