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The Aviation Portal

A Boeing 747 in 1978 operated by Pan Am

Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. Aircraft includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as hot air balloons and airships.

Aviation began in the 18th century with the development of the hot air balloon, an apparatus capable of atmospheric displacement through buoyancy. Clément Ader built the "Ader Éole" in France and made an uncontrolled, powered hop in 1890. This is the first powered aircraft, although it did not achieve controlled flight. Some of the most significant advancements in aviation technology came with the controlled gliding flying of Otto Lilienthal in 1896; then a large step in significance came with the construction of the first powered airplane by the Wright brothers in the early 1900s. Since that time, aviation has been technologically revolutionized by the introduction of the jet which permitted a major form of transport throughout the world. (Full article...)

Selected article

Rear view of CFM56-5
Rear view of CFM56-5
The CFM International CFM56 series is a family of high-bypass turbofan aircraft engines made by CFM International with a thrust range of 18,500 to 34,000 pound-force (lbf) (80 to 150 kilonewtons (kN)). CFMI is a 50–50 joint-owned company of SNECMA and GE Aviation. Both companies are responsible for producing components and each has its own final assembly line. The CFM56 first ran in 1974 and, despite initial political problems, is now one of the most prolific jet engine types in the world: more than 20,000 have been built in four major variants. It is most widely used on the Boeing 737 airliner and under military designation F108 replaced the Pratt & Whitney JT3D engines on many KC-135 Stratotankers in the 1980s, creating the KC-135R variant of this aircraft. It is also one of two engines used to power the Airbus A340, the other being the Rolls-Royce Trent. The engine is also fitted to Airbus A320 series aircraft. Several fan blade failure incidents were experienced during the CFM56's early service, including one failure that was noted as a cause of the Kegworth air disaster, and some variants of the engine experienced problems caused by flight through rain and hail. However, both these issues were resolved with engine modifications. (Full article...)

Selected image

Refueling a fire fighting helicopter Southern River, Western Australia.
Refueling a fire fighting helicopter Southern River, Western Australia.
Refueling a fire fighting helicopter Southern River, Western Australia.

Did you know

...that in 1943 British Overseas Airways Corporation Flight 777 was shot down by German Junkers Ju 88s, killing actor Leslie Howard and leading to speculation that it was an attempt to assassinate Winston Churchill?

...that the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight contains the world's oldest airworthy survivor of the Battle of Britain, alongside ten other historic aircraft - two of which fought over Normandy on D-Day? ...that Royal Brunei Catering, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Royal Brunei Airlines, was named as Best Regional Caterer 1995/1996 by Singapore Airlines?

More Did you know facts

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The following are images from various aviation-related articles on Wikipedia.

In the news

Wikinews Aviation portal
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Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

Selected biography

Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan (born June 17, 1943 in Estacada, Oregon) is an American aerospace engineer noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, energy-efficient aircraft. He is most famous for his design of the record-breaking Voyager, which was the first plane to fly around the world without stopping or refueling, and the suborbital rocket plane SpaceShipOne, which won the Ansari X-Prize in 2004.

Selected Aircraft

Airbus A380
Airbus A380

The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, four-engined airliner manufactured by Airbus S.A.S. It first flew on 27 April 2005 from Toulouse–Blagnac Airport. Commercial flights began in late 2007 after months of testing, with the delivery of the first aircraft to launch customer Singapore Airlines. During much of its development phase, the aircraft was known as the Airbus A3XX, and the nickname Superjumbo has also become associated with the A380.

The A380 is double decked, with the upper deck extending along the entire length of the fuselage. This allows for a spacious cabin, with the A380 in standard three-class configuration to seat 555 people, up to maximum of 853 in full economy class configuration. Only one model of the A380 was available: The A380-800, the passenger model. It is the largest passenger airliner in the world superseding the Boeing 747. The other launch model, the A380-800F freighter, was canceled and did not join the ranks of the largest freight aircraft such as the Antonov An-225, An-124, and the C-5 Galaxy.

  • Span: 79.8 m (261 ft 10 in)
  • Length: 73 m (239 ft 6 in)
  • Height: 24.1 m (79 ft 1 in)
  • Engines: 4 * Rolls-Royce Trent 900 or Engine Alliance GP7200 (311 kN or 69,916 lbf)
  • Cruising Speed: 0.85 Mach (approx 1,050 km/h or 652 mph or 567 kn)
  • First Flight: 27 April 2005
  • Number built: 254 (including 3 prototypes)
More selected aircraft Read more...

Today in Aviation

February 3

  • 2011 – Two Republic of China Air Force AT-3 trainers collide, one aircraft crashed near Fangliao and other landed safely. The two pilots of the crashed AT-3 ejected safely.
  • 2010 – A Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter of the United States Army crashed in Germany about 1800 hrs. local time northeast of Mannheim, killing three people on board.
  • 2008 – Silver State Helicopters ceases operations and enteres bankruptcy. At the time of closing Silver State operating 194 helicopters from its 34 flight schools.
  • 2005 – Kam Air Flight 904, a Boeing 737-200, crashes in a snowstorm in Afghanistan. All 96 passengers and eight crew members die.
  • 1998 – Cavalese cable car disaster: A United States Marine Corps EA-6 B Prowler cut a cable supporting a gondola, causing the death of 20 people. The two pilots, Captain Richard J. Ashby and his navigator Captain Joseph Schweitzer, were put under trial in the United States, but were found not guilty of involuntary manslaughter and negligent homicide, but later they were found guilty of obstruction of justice for having destroyed evidence. Both were discharged from the Marines.
  • 1995 – Launch: Space Shuttle Discovery STS-63 at 05:22:04 am UTC. Mission highlights: Mir rendezvous, Spacehab, IMAX, Astronaut Eileen Collins becomes the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle Discovery.
  • 1994 – Launch: Space Shuttle Discovery STS-60 at 7:10:05 am EST. Mission highlights: SPACEHAB, Wake Shield Facility.
  • 1994 – First launch: H-II, Japanese satellite launch system.
  • 1988 – Death of Kenneth Lee Porter, American WWI flying ace, Engineer who worked for Boeing during WWII and was a member of the US fighting pilots Association.
  • 1991 – Returning from a strike against Iraqi forces, a U. S. Air Force B-52G Stratofortress attempting to land at Diego Garcia crashes on final approach.
  • 1985 – First flight of the Atlas XH-1 Alpha, a South African prototype attack helicopter, used as a concept demonstrator for the then-planned Rooivalk project.
  • 1984 – Launch: Space shuttle Challenger STS-41-B at 13:00:00 UTC. Mission highlights: Comsat deployments, first untethered spacewalk by Bruce McCandless II with Manned Maneuvering Unit; first landing at KSC; dry run of equipment for Solar Max rescue.
  • 1982 – The Mil Mi-26 helicopter lifts a load weighing 57 metric tons to 2,000 m (6,500 ft) to break a world record for a helicopter.
  • 1978 – Introduction: de Havilland Canada Dash 7, popularly known as the Dash 7, turboprop-powered regional airliner with STOL capabilities, is introduced in service by Rocky Mountain Airways.
  • 1977 – Salyut 4 is back on earth.
  • 1966 – Launch of ESSA-1 (or OT-3) US spin-stabilized operational meteorological satellite.
  • 1966 – Luna 9, an unmanned Soviet spacecraft, makes the first successful landing on the Moon.
  • 1964 – The 1964 Turkish Airlines Ankara crash occurred when a Turkish Airlines Douglas C-47 A-5-DK airliner, registration TC-ETI, on a cargo flight from Istanbul Yeşilköy Airport (IST/LTBA) to Esenboğa Airport (ESB/LTAC) in Ankara, flew into terrain in Ankara Province whilst on an ILS approach. The aircraft had three crew on board and all were killed at the accident.
  • 1964 – The Federal Aviation Agency launches Operation Bongo Mark 2 to investigate the effects of supersonic flight; over the coming months, a Convair B-58 will fly through the sound barrier at low altitude over Oklahoma City.
  • 1964 – The North Vietnamese Air Force establishes its first jet fighter unit, Fighter Regiment No. 921, equipped with MiG-17 s. North Vietnamese jet fighter units will be based in the People’s Republic of China until August while their pilots undergo training.
  • 1959 – Boeing B-47E-50-LM Stratojet, 52-3371, of the 384th Bombardment Wing, crashes during landing near Little Rock, Arkansas. Pilot, co-pilot, and navigator killed.
  • 1959 – First flight of the Agusta-Bell AB.102, Italian helicopter based on the mechanical components of a Bell 48 that Agusta incorporated into an all-new, streamlined fuselage.
  • 1959 – American Airlines Flight 320, a Lockheed L-188 Super Electra, crashes into the East River, New York City, as a result of pilot error; sixty-five passengers and crew are killed.
  • 1948 – All 145 pilots and co-pilots at National Airlines go on strike, grounding the carrier’s 22 aircraft. The dispute is mainly over air safety.
  • 1946 – Pan American inaugurates the first commercial use of Lockheed Model 049 Constellation with the aircraft’s first scheduled service between New York and Bermuda.
  • 1945 – The US Army’s Eighth Air Force launches Operation Thunderclap – 1,000 B-17 bombers raid Berlin, killing 3,000 and leaving 120,000 homeless.
  • 1945 – Bound for the Kola Inlet in the Soviet Union, Convoy JW 64 becomes the first Arctic convoy to depart from the River Clyde. Its escort, designated Operation Hotbed, includes the British escort aircraft carriers HMS Campania and HMS Nairana. Campania carries the first night fighter involved in a convoy escort operation, a Fairey Fulmar equipped with airborne intercept radar.
  • 1944 – U. S. Navy Task Force 58 completes its support of ground operations on Kwajalein Island and Roi-Namur.
  • 1943 – (Overnight) 263 British bombers attack Hamburg, Germany; 16 are shot down, mostly by Messerschmitt Bf 110 night fighters of Nachtjagdgeschwader 1.
  • 1943 – While shooting down a British Halifax bomber, German night fighter ace Reinhold Knacke is himself shot down and killed by one of the Halifax’s gunners. The first of three out of Germany’s top four night fighter aces to die during the month, his score stands at 44, all at night, when he is killed.
  • 1942 – The Canadian Women’s Auxiliary Air Force was renamed RCAF Women’s Division.
  • 1941 – Death of Enzo Omiccioli, Italian WWII pilot, killed during a dogfight Against 6 Gloster Gladiators in Ethiopia.
  • 1937 – In the Spanish Civil War, a Nationalist (rebel) attack on Málaga begins, supported by an Italian “legionary” air force of about 100 aircraft.
  • 1935 – Hugo Junkers died, German engineer and aircraft designer, who pioneered the first great changes in aviation materials and design technology.
  • 1931 – Canadian Airways flew the first international service between Winnipeg and Pembina, North Dakota.
  • 1928 – New York City decides to build its first municipal airport.
  • 1928 – First flight of the Boeing F3B (Model 77), an American biplane fighter and fighter bomber in a land version.
  • 1925 – A distance record of 3,166 km (1,967 miles) in a straight line, is established by a Breguet 19 flown by Captain Ludovic Arrachart and Captain Henri Lemaître from Paris to Villa Cisneros (Sahara).
  • 1920 – Death of Hermann Hasselmann, German Aviation Pioneer, and Hugo Schäfer, German WWI flying ace on board of their Junkers F 13.
  • 1918 – Death of Rupert Randolph Winter, British WWI flying ace, killed in action.
  • 1911 – The Blériot XIII, French experimental passenger-carrying aircraft, flown by Léon Lemartin broke a world record by flying with 8 passengers.
  • 1903 – Birth of [[|Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton|Douglas Douglas-Hamilton]], Scottish nobleman and pioneering aviator.
  • 1884 – Birth of Frank Maxwell Andrews, general officer in the United States Army and one of the founding fathers of the USAF.
  • 1873 – Birth of Hugh Montague Trenchard, British officer who was instrumental in establishing the RAF, described as the Father of the Royal Air Force.
  • 1859 – Birth of Hugo Junkers, innovative German engineer, as his many patents in varied areas (gas engines, aeroplanes) show, pioneering the first great changes in aviation materials and design technology.

References

Edit today's anniversaries – February Archive – All anniversaries...


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