As we reported earlier, Boeing delivered its final 747 jumbo jet amidst much pomp and circumstance, and rightly so. The 747 was an aircraft that changed aviation for the better, ushering in an era of previously unattainable travel opportunities for air voyagers worldwide. It was just what the 747 was, though that was a lot. …

First AW119T Helicopter For The Turkish Land Forces Command Breaks Cover
One of the first two AW119T for the Turkish Land Forces Command (Image credit: Oscar Bernardi) Here’s our first look at the AW119T destined to the TLFC (Turkish Land Forces Command). The photo in this article was taken by our contributor Oscar Bernardi recently. It shows a Leonardo AW119T Koala, during a test flight from …

Remembering The Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster, On This Day 20 Years Ago
The lift off of Space Shuttle Columbia from Launch Pad 39A at the beginning of mission STS-107. (Photo: NASA) The orbiter broke apart while reentering the atmosphere at the end of the STS-107 mission. February 1, 2003 will live up as one of the saddest days in the history of space exploration. Just 22 minutes …

Boeing Delivering Final 747 Today
Boeing will make the final 747 delivery today, the end of a 50-plus-year span of building the revolutionary jet, which brought to the aviation lexicon the term “jumbo jet.” The final 747, a cargo version, will go to Atlas Air in Seattle. It’s hard to discuss the 747 without buying into the marketing hype that …

An All-Electric Zenith CH-750 Takes to the Air
A UK non-profit is developing an all-electric version of the popular Zenith CH-750 for use as medical transport for personnel to use in hard-to-reach places. The organization, which goes by the unlikely acronym of NUNCATS and even less likely name of “No Unnecessary Novelty Community Air Transport,” says that the goal is to provide clean …

Greek F-4E Phantom II Crashed In The Sea Near Andravida
File photo of two F-4E AUP Phantom II of the Hellenic Air Force. (Photo: HAF) The Weapon Systems Officer was found dead, the pilot is still missing. A F-4E AUP Phantom II of the Hellenic Air Force crashed at 10:30 am local time on January 30, 2023, 25 nautical miles south of Andravida Air Base. …

Pre-Loaded Bombs Installed On B-1B Lancer Bomber For First Time In 30 Years
The Launcher Load Frame sits outside of a B-1 B Lancer prior to loading at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, Jan. 9, 2023. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Josiah Brown) (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Josiah Brown) Weapons Loaders at Dyess Air Force Base revived a capability unused for three decades. …

Ukraine Requests Two Squadrons Of F-16s But Giving ‘Vipers’ to Kyiv Is Easier Said Than Done
File photo of an F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft pilot assigned to the 77th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron, conducting pre-flight checks prior from a sortie Jan. 12, 2023, at King Fahad Air Base, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, during an off-station agile combat employment exercise. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Shannon Bowman) Soon after the recent …

U.S. Navy Completed First-Of-Its-Kind Repairs At Sea On Heavily Damaged Super Hornet
An F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft, attached to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 136, lands on the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), Jan. 15, 2023. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Chandler Ludke) The F/A-18E Super Hornet was heavily damaged after an in-flight engine fire at …

First Solo Disaster: Piper PA-28 Loses Wings In Flight
First solo flights for student pilots are typically a nerve-wracking affair. For one ill-fated student, that first flight became the last earlier this week, as the small trainer they were flying in crashed after, according to reports, both wings came off in flight. The Piper PA-28-161 crashed in Madagascar. While details are sketchy, at least …