Category Contemporary Aircraft

The AirVenture 2020 aviation celebration in Oshkosh, Wisconsin was forced to be cancelled over health concerns associated with the Covid 19 crisis. There were a number of milestones which would have been celebrated during last year’s gathering.

There will be a 2021 AirVenture, and many of the 2020 milestones will be brought forward and celebrated this year. In fact, many news releases for this year’s AirVenture include anniversaries with a “(Plus One)” distinction!

Here’s a quick look at some of the celebrations and anniversary themes that will be presented during the 2021 EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh. The (Plus One) indicates that 2020 is the real anniversary… either from the EAA’s media releases or by this editor.

Please note that these are planed events and performers, and n...

Believe it or not, the Royal Air Force’s Nimrod anti-submarine design has Comet jetliner lineage. 

Many times in aviation history, a civilian design has been successfully operated by military air forces. Cases in point: the civilian Douglas DC-9 airliner became a military air evacuation jet for casualties and a freighter too. The Boing 707 was modified for many roles… VIP transport, electronic snooper, command and control aircraft, and the list goes on and on.

The Rockwell T-39 Saberliner is both a military trainer and civil executive transport.

Conversely, there are aircraft originally designed for the military market that have become well-established civilian-operated designs too...

Alton Bay, New Hampshire is a finger of water off of the southeastern end of Lake Winnipesaukee, in the center of the state. It boasts of a summer seaplane base, which becomes the FAA’s only certified ice runway in the “Lower 48” during wintertime. The New Hampshire Department of Transportation carefully grooms and operates the airport, which becomes available to the public once a foot of ice forms in the bay. “Ice in” never occurred in 2020, but in 2021, the ice formed sufficiently for the runway to open for President’s Day weekend. I spent a few hours on the ice that sunny Saturday, watching an impromptu aviation festival proceed.

The runway began this year as a 2600 foot by 150 foot ice surface...