Aviation History

America was the only nation to deploy airships during World War II. It used their long range and stable platforms to patrol over three million square miles of Pacific, Atlantic, and Mediterranean waters. The US deployed its airships for minesweeping, search and rescue, photographic reconnaissance, scouting, escorting convoys, and anti-submarine patrols. They also escorted military and civilian ships, of which only one was lost to military action. However, America, the United Kingdom, and Japan all used blimp barrage balloons which dangled...

The First World War to-end-all-wars continued to fail to live up to its name in 1923. The old animosities continued. The United States and Britain kept replenishing their reserves, while Germany built military aircraft in surrogate countries, and Japan stretched its naval aircraft wings. But there were lighter moments too, as air passenger travel literally began to take off, mainly in small airplanes but with a few larger, luxurious aircraft. The dream to fly high in the sky with the...

The move from wooden to metal construction quickened pace in 1930. High wing monoplanes became increasingly common with smaller aircraft, although very large bombers and airliners were still mainly biplanes. The new contender, cantilever, low wing monoplanes kept knocking at the door and there was some success. Meanwhile, the Great Depression stifled good ideas among commercial airliners that might otherwise have done well. By contrast, sales of smaller utility aircraft and personal transport continued to grow, as affordable airplanes found...

The American Nuclear Powered Airship Program President Dwight Eisenhower addressed the United Nations on December 8, 1953, when he argued the need to stop nuclear weapon proliferation. He hoped to see atoms used for peace, although his dream went largely unfulfilled. Nuclear power for flight had intrigued the U.S. throughout the Cold War. It would help maintain a round-the-clock defensive presence, armed with powerful nuclear weapons in case the Soviet Union threatened imminent attack. F.W. Locke Jr investigated the feasibility of using...

The major fighting powers, with the exception of the United States had largely abandoned the idea of airships as weapons by the time the conflict ended. However, the part they played in observation flowed naturally into civilian life, for example advertising, sightseeing, surveillance, research and promotion. Russia had completed its second airship in later 1944. This was a Probeda (Victory) Class used for clearing wrecks and mines in the Black Sea. It also commissioned the W-12bis Patriot in 1947, and...

Large passenger aircraft continued to make inroads into production schedules, after Deutscher Aero Lloyd merged with Junkers Luftverkehr to create Luft Hansa. New generation airliners boasted more spacious seats, in-flight meals, and even night beds. But others were more utilitarian, with passenger budgets in mind. The U.S. Air Force learned to entertain the public with higher speeds, and barnstorming events. Junkers continued to take the lead with metal air frames and cladding, although other nations gradually began following the example...

The tempo of the drums increased, warning of a ‘war-to-end-all-wars’ that would fail to do so. The role of fixed wing aircraft in military operations was still evolving, but every wing of every army wanted a squadron. Being able to take off from the deep blue ocean seemed to offer a distinct advantage 1911 Eugene Ely Proves It Is Possible to Return to a Ship (January 1911) Eugene Ely had taken off from a U.S. Navy ship in 1910, but only just...

Kites were the beginning of the history of flight. However, they could not compare with birds, because they were tethered by a piece of string, or lost forever in a gust of wind. They also had severe limitations in terms of bulk and weight. There had to be a better way, and humankind’s ingenuity would find it in balloons. However, these were also subjects of the wind when flying free. Brave pioneers imagined using oars and sails, and even flocks...

The aviation industry moved into a more relaxed phase in 1924. The main manufacturers seemed comfortable supplying their military or commercial niches, or both. There was a definite uptick in interest in passenger travel, especially in larger more luxurious aircraft. The main protagonists from World War 1, Germany, France, United Kingdom and United States continued to hold the technical lead. However, other players were knocking on doors, as the focus finally began to shift from cumbersome, wooden biplanes to sleeker, increasingly...

Our ancestors dreamed of flying as free as birds, from at least as far back as writing began. Renaissance genius Leonardo da Vinci wrote “I have always felt it is my destiny to build a machine that would allow man to fly”. After he flew nonstop from New York to Paris arriving May 21 1927, Charles Lindbergh wrote “It is the greatest shot of adrenaline to be doing what you have wanted to do so badly. You almost feel like...