The Aviation Thread [Contains Lots of Awesome Pictures]

Bombardier C-Series in another test flight:

http://planefinder.net/flight/BBD501
I hope more airlines get their eyes up for this one. I think it's fantastic that someone has the guts to try to break the Boeing/Airbus duopoly. I also welcome the return of the 2+3 seating layout. The CS100 may be a little too small for most airlines, but it would be great replacement for aging B737-500/600, MD-87, B717, A318. The CS300 which is scheduled to make first flight next year will be more interesting, as that's more like a B737-700/800, A319/320...
 

From the article (emphasis mine):

The SR-71 was also famous for holding a raft of records. It was the world's fastest and highest-flying operational manned aircraft, reaching 85,069 feet (25,929 m) in sustained flight, and it still holds the speed record.

Sorry, but no manned = no care from me. With nobody physically at the controls you just won't get the entertaining stories of snide comments by pilots telling air traffic controllers that "Yes, I can descend to 65,000 feet" or whatever it may be.
 
Linky

In another famous SR-71 story, Los Angeles Center reported receiving a
request for clearance to FL 60 (flight level 60,000 ft). The incredulous controller,
with some disdain in his voice, asked, "How exactly do you plan to get up to
60,000 feet?"

The pilot (obviously a sled driver) responded, "Center, we were hoping to descend to it."

He was cleared immediately....

It's apparently paraphrashed from the book Sled Driver (the PDF has been posted here somewhere), which brings me to another good point; would you rather read stories from real SR-71 pilots or stories from SR-72 sensor operators sitting in a room thousands of miles from where the plane is actually flying?
 
Well I recently ready another story where an SR-71 had to get vectored to make way for Concorde once. They were less than pleased with that, but also points out the awesomeness of that slender white beauty. Its pretty damn cool in the Udvar-Hazy center in Dulles, VA where they have both aircraft under one roof...
 
Linky



It's apparently paraphrashed from the book Sled Driver (the PDF has been posted here somewhere), which brings me to another good point; would you rather read stories from real SR-71 pilots or stories from SR-72 sensor operators sitting in a room thousands of miles from where the plane is actually flying?

I don't think that story is from Sled Driver, just searched through it and could not find it.

And Viper, just ask Stig's arabic cousin, he's the one who shared a link.
 
RAF 2013 photographic competition :bow:

Edit: I believe 3 of those are from Nocturnal, including one he posted here in smaller resolution, unable to provide a higher res at the time :)

Thanks for sharing those and you're right, the top three are mine so glad you like them :)
 
What's wrong with this picture:

theballybomber_2013_0345.jpg
 
Is that the downscaled B-17 replica that's supposed to be man-rated? I remember reading about some crazy dude building one, I think it was a single-seater inside...

Bingo. http://theballybomber.com/

The craftsmanship is astonishing, not sure whether I'd want a ride in it though...
 
http://missoulian.com/news/local/mi...cle_eb4ad42e-4943-11e3-a564-001a4bcf887a.html


Last meeting of the surviving members of Doolittle's raid on Tokyo is today.


Three of the four surviving members are going. The last one from TN is 93 and too sick to travel.

Raiders expected to attend were Richard Cole, Doolittle's co-pilot, of Comfort, Texas; David Thatcher of Missoula, Mont., and Edward Saylor of Puyallup, Wash.

Fourth surviving Raider, Robert Hite, 93, won't make it but his son and other family members from Nashville, Tenn., planned to be there. Hite is the last alive of eight Raiders who were captured by Japanese soldiers. Three were executed; another died in captivity.
 
Frequent Business Traveller - Great Moments in Travel History ? November 2013

Frequent Business Traveller said:
Great Moments in Travel History ? November 2013


By Jesse Sokolow on 1 November 2013

Finnair, the flag carrier of Finland, was founded on November 1, 1923, by Bruno Lucander, who previously had been in charge of Finnish operations for Aeronaut, an Estonian airline. It is the country?s largest airline and the fifth oldest airline in the world that is still operating.

The Douglas DC-7 began service with American Airlines on November 4, 1953, allowing the company to offer coast-to-coast, nonstop service. The DC-7 was the last piston-engine powered transport made by Douglas.

The Boeing 777-200LR Worldliner established a new world record on November 10, 2005, for nonstop distance traveled by a commercial airplane, flying 11,664 nautical miles (18,771 kilometers) in 22 hours and 42 minutes. The flight was from Hong Kong to London.

The world?s deadliest mid-air collision occurred on November 12, 1996, over the village of Charkhi Dadri, just west of New Delhi, India. A Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747-100B collided with a Kazakhstan Airlines Ilyushin II-76, killing all 349 people onboard both flights.

On November 12, 2001, American Airlines Flight 587 crashed in Queens, New York, shortly after taking off from John F. Kennedy International Airport. With all 260 people onboard, as well as five people on the ground losing their lives, it is the second deadliest aviation disaster on American soil.

On November 14, 2005, the Boeing 747-8 program was launched with an order from Cargolux, based in Luxembourg, for 10 747-8 Freighters with purchase rights for 10 additional aircraft. The aircraft is the fourth-generation Boeing 747.

The U.S. Postal Service unveiled the new 33-cent ?Jumbo Jet? postage stamp on November 15, 1999. The stamp was issued to commemorate the Boeing 747.

On November 15, 1956, a Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) Douglas DC-7C set a new distance record for commercial airliners when it flew 6,005 miles (9,664 kilometers) nonstop from Los Angeles to Stockholm, Sweden. The aircraft followed the Arctic great circle route on its flight.

Delag, which stands for Deutsche Luftschiffahrts Aktiengesellschaft (German for Airship Travel Corporation), the world?s first airline, was founded on November 16, 1909. Headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, the airline operated airships manufactured by the Zeppelin Corporation.

The first municipal airport in the U.S. opened in Tucson, Arizona, on November 20, 1919. Today, it is called Tucson International Airport.

The Boeing B-29 Pacusan Dreamboat set a world nonstop distance record of 8,198 miles (13,193 kilometers) on a flight from Guam to Washington, D.C. on November 20, 1945.

On November 20, 1974, Lufthansa Flight 540, a Boeing 747-100, crashed after departing Nairobi, Kenya, killing 59 of the 157 people onboard.

On November 20, 2009, Boeing held a ceremony to mark the beginning of construction for the second final assembly site for the 787 Dreamliner program at its Boeing Charleston facility. The first Dreamliner built there was completed and rolled out in April of 2011.


On November 21, 1783, the first free flight with human passengers was launched. Jean-Fran?ois Pil?tre de Rozier and Fran?ois Laurent le Vieux d?Arlandes drifted approximately five miles (eight kilometers) in France in a balloon powered by a wood fire. In attendance was U.S. envoy Benjamin Franklin.

The first production Boeing 727-100 rolled out on November 27, 1962. It made its first flight on February 9, 1963, and on November 3, of that year, a Boeing 727 completed a 76,000-mile (122,310-kilometer) world tour, visiting 26 countries. The aircraft is a mid-size, narrow-body three-engine jet.

On November 28, 1945, Pan American World Airways ordered 20 Boeing Stratocruisers (Model 377). The aircraft was a commercial version of the C-97 military transport.

On November 28-29, 1929, Commander Richard E. Byrd made the first flight over the South Pole in a Ford Trimotor piloted by Bernt Balchen and two American pilots. During this first expedition to Antarctica, Byrd established a base located on the Bay of Whales that he named Little America.

:smile:
 
Great throwback to the 80s! I used to watch this on VHS endlessly when I was a kid. It really helped shape my love for aviation (and distaste for most 80s music!).

http://youtu.be/WGh9uZDYVEk
 
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73NG and 777. Very nice

I might be getting a new job in the next month or so. More details shortly
 
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