Portal:Aviation/Selected picture

edit  

Selected articles

Week 1

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 jet fighter aircraft built in the United States. Designed as a lightweight fighter, it evolved into a successful multi-role aircraft, and is serving 24 countries.

Photo credit: Tech. Sgt. Sean Mateo White, USAF

Week 2

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.

Photo credit: NASA Langley Research Center

Week 3

A cutaway digram of an aircraft hangar.

Photo credit: NASA

Week 4

Wingtip vortices are visible trailing from an F-15E Strike Eagle as it desengages from midair refueling with a KC-10 Extender during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Source: Taken from [1], original upload 28 December 2004 by User:Lommer

Week 5

An overlay diagram showing four of the largest wide-body aircraft ever built, the Hughes H-4 Hercules (the "Spruce Goose", aircraft with the greatest wingspan), the Antonov An-225 Mriya (the largest freight aircraft), the Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental (soon to be the largest version of the Jumbojet), and the Airbus A380-800 (the largest passenger aircraft).

Diagram credit: Clem Tillier

Week 6

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.

Photo credit: Master Sgt. Michael Ammons, USAF

Week 7

Seventeen C-17 Globemaster III aircraft fly over the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia during low level tactical training Dec. 20, 2005. The C-17s, assigned to the 437th and 315th Airlift Wings at Charleston Air Force Base, S.C., demonstrated the strategic airdrop capability of the U.S. Air Force. DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Jacob N. Bailey, U.S. Air Force. (Released)

Photo source: [2]

Week 8

The airship USS Akron (ZRS-4) 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.

Photo credit: U.S. Naval Historical Center

Week 9

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 jet fighter 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.

Photo credit: U.S. Air Force

Week 10

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 V2 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 transfered to the newly established NASA program, developing the Saturn V rocket that successfuly delivered a man to the moon in 1969.

Photo credit: NASA

Week 11

A C-141 Starlifter leaves vapour trails over Antarctica

Week 12

Week 13

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.

Photo credit: Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Allen, USAF

Week 14

A French Gendarmerie rescue helicopter taking off on the Massif du Sancy mountains, France.

Photo credit:User:Fabien1309

Week 15

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.

Photo credit: John Gay

Week 16

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.

Photo credit: Andrew Choy

Week 17

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 ?.

Photo credit: United States Air Force

Week 18

C-17 Globemaster III releasing a flare

Week 19

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.

Photo credit: www.whiteplanes.com

Week 20

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.

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III

Week 21

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.

Photo credit: NASA

Week 22

A pushback tractor attached to the front wheel of a Boeing 777. The vehicle is used to push the airplane out from the gate, before it starts taxiing on its own power. See Image:Denver International Airport, United Airlines Boeing 777 being serviced.jpg for a wider-view photo taken at the same time, from nearly the same angle.

David Benbennick took this photograph Friday, April 22, 2005 at 9:49 AM (local time).

Week 23

Photo credit:

Week 24

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.

Illustration credit: Ericg

Week 25

The Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-engine jet aircraft designed to provide close air support of ground forces by attacking tanks, armored vehicles, and other ground targets. It is the first US Air Force aircraft designed exclusively for close air support.

The A-10 was developed in response to the increasing vulnerability of ground attack-planes to ground air defenses. This indicated the need for a specialized, heavily armored aircraft with long loiter time and large ordnance load, much like the Ilyushin Il-2 or A-1 Skyraider.

Week 26

Hot air balloons are the oldest successful human flight technology, dating back to the Montgolfier brothers' invention in Annonay, France in 1783. The first manned flight was made in Paris by Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes. Unmanned hot air balloons are mentioned in Chinese history. Chu-ko Kung-ming (諸葛 孔明) in the three kingdoms era used airborne lanterns for military signalling.

Week 27

Photo source:

Week 28

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.

Photo credit: NASA, Marshall Space Flight Center

Week 29

Photo credit:

Week 30

Photo credit:

Week 31

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 carrier USS 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.

Photo credit: Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Jonathan Chandler

Week 32

Photo credit:

Week 33

PLUMBBOB/STOKES/BLIMP - 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.

Week 34

Week 35

Week 36

Week 37

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 missles were fired at the aircraft, yet no SR-71 was ever shot down.

Photo credit: NASA

Week 38

Week 39

Assembling B-25 bombers at North American Aviation -- Kansas City, Kansas; Reproduction from color slide

Source: Alfred T. Palmer

Week 40

Week 41

Week 42

Week 43

A SR-71 Blackbird three way view.

Week 44

Week 45

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.

Photo credit: Chowells

Week 46

Week 47

Week 48

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.

Photo credit: John T. Daniels (1903)

Week 49

A collection of aircraft at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

Source: User:Cybjorg

Week 50

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.

Photo credit:U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Mark J. Rebilas

Week 51

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.

Photo source:[3]

Week 52

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 NASA Langley 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.

From http://www1.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/Schlieren/HTML/EC94-42528-1.html

Week 53

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.

Photo credit: Fir0002