20th Century
Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Part 2
I’m back again with the second part of this series about the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 – the Luftwaffe’s forgotten fighter. In the first part we covered the genesis of the Fw 190 and how the [more…]
Aviation
20th Century
Aspiring Anorak Aversion Therapy
The subject heading may read as though it is an introduction to an accountancy exam, but no, it is aversion therapy applied to an obsession, by licensed operators of machines such as the Dehavilland Chipmunk [more…]
20th Century
The Spitfire, of course
Ask anyone from the general public to name a great aeroplane or a great British fighter of WWII, and chances are they will say, without hesitation, “The Spitfire of course.” If you ask why you [more…]
Animals
20th Century
The Baby Boeing
I think most of us here don’t get terribly excited at the thought of the Boeing 737. It’s quite mundane, unremarkable, pedestrian even. I suspect more than a few of us here have been herded [more…]
Engineering
I Learned About Flying From That Part Two
It was another hot morning in Fremantle, Western Australia in early January. Forecast for 36 degrees Celsius, 97 in old money. “Gonna be a scorcher, Geek-o!”, said my benevolent host and long-time friend Mike, whom [more…]
Engineering
I Learned About Flying From That
When I was a young boy, I hated flying. I mean, really hated it. I think it was due to a traumatic flying experience on a transatlantic flight to Florida in a 747, back in [more…]
Engineering
Concorde – End of an era
Initial thoughts of such transport were started in the 1950’s, focusing around the required wing shape necessary for both supersonic flight and low speed manoeuvrability, but it wasn’t until the Anglo-French accord of 1960 that [more…]