May 2, 2023 Flashback: Boeing B-52G Nuclear Engine Testbed In 1946, The Department of Defense (DoD) initiated a joint project between the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the Air Force known as the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion (ANP) Program. Based on requirements established by the DoD, the ANP program, known also as the Manned Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion
Jan. 18, 2023 Flashback: F-15 Global Strike Eagle Paths The concept of air launching vehicles from carrier aircraft is a concept that has been around for decades.
May 21, 2021 Flashback: Air Force Logistics Command’s early support to Southeast Asia A historical look at the Air Force Logistics Command's early support to Southeast Asia.
Jan. 22, 2021 FLASHBACK: 30th Anniversary of Wright-Patterson’s Support to Operation DESERT STORM Desert Storm marked a beginning rather than an end to military operations in the 1990s. Contingency operations continued throughout the decade as the United States responded to a continuing Iraqi threat, as well as new dangers in the Balkans and other areas of the world. Wright-Patterson Air Force
May 18, 2020 Flashback: The Navaho Missile: Part 2 Note: This is part two of a series on the Navaho Missile. Part one can be viewed at The Navaho Missile: Part 1.As Phase 1 testing of the X-10 Program came to an end, the flight test portion for Phase 2 began to ramp up at the Air Force Missile Test Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. From the
April 6, 2020 Flashback: The Navaho Missile: Part 1 During the 1950’s and 60’s the United States pushed the limits of aerospace vehicle evolution attempting to go faster and higher while exploring the edge of the unknown. As contractors hoped to clutch a big production contract, new designs jumped off the drawing boards at a rapid pace with many
Jan. 16, 2020 FLASHBACK: Triplesonic Interceptors: The F-103, F-108 & YF-12A "Speed is life," is a phrase used by fighter pilots and it was never more prevalent than in the late 1950’s when post-war technology was advancing at a rapid pace. The technological advancements in aviation allowed aircraft to go from piston driven fighters to rocket-powered vehicles capable of
Dec. 17, 2019 FLASHBACK: Back to the Future: The Resurgence of the Flying Wing in the 21st Century The highly anticipated B-21 Raider—named in honor of the legendary “Doolittle Raiders” who bombed Tokyo, Japan in April 1942—under development by Northrop Grumman, will be the first Air Force bomber manufactured in the twenty-first century. The concept of the “flying wing,” however, is over 100
Sept. 16, 2019 FLASHBACK: Gliders...from Wright Field to the Netherlands “I’ll tell you straight out. If you’ve got to go into combat, don’t go by glider. Walk, crawl, parachute, swim, float – anything! But don’t go by glider.”[1]Walter Cronkite, American war correspondentGlider training had become a requisite for Luftwaffe flight training post-World War I and by 1935,
Aug. 13, 2019 Flashback: Hypersonic Flight to the Edge of Space While most of the country was focused on the race to space, a unique test program was just getting underway at Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of California. This vehicle was like no other, built to withstand the temperatures of hypersonic flight as well as flight to the edge of space, the