May/June 2023

Flight Journal

The Aviation Adventure - Past, Present & Future

Flight Journal2 min read
Great Raids
D-DAY’S OPERATION OVERLORD is one of the most pivotal events of WW II and can be characterized as the greatest raid in modern history. The buildup to that day was staggering: as more than 150,000 Allied soldiers prepared to storm the beaches on June
Flight Journal1 min read
Flight Journal
Editorial Director Louis DeFrancesco Executive Editor Debra Cleghorn Bud Anderson, James P. Busha, Ted Carlson, Eddie J. Creek, Doug DeCaster, Robert S. DeGroat, John Dibbs, Robert F. Dorr, Jim Farmer, Paul Gillcrist, Phil Haun, Randy Jolly, Frederic
Flight Journal11 min read
Rise Of The Phantom
IT WAS MAY 10, 1972, when four Air Force F-4D Phantoms, using their AIM-7 Sparrow missiles, initiated a head-on engagement with a four-ship formation of MiG-21s. The MiGs had no weapons capable of engaging from a fontal aspect. Oyster Flight was part
Flight Journal1 min read
Phantom Variants
XF-4H-1 Original production, rollout May 8, 1958: selected by the U.S. Navy December 17, 1958. December 6, 1959, zoom climb to world record altitude 98,557 feet (30,048 meters). Armed with missiles only; no gun. F-4H-1F, (F-4A) F-4H-1, (F-4B), F-4G “
Flight Journal1 min read
Dams Raid Losses
May 16, 2257 hours. Lancaster ED934 AJ-K, captained by Pilot Officer Vernon Byers, RCAF shot down by flak coasting in over the Dutch island of Texel. Crew of seven all killed. May 16, 2350 hours. Lancaster ED927 AJ-E, captained by Flight Lieutenant “
Flight Journal12 min read
“Dams Raid”
Eighty years ago this May, Operation Chastise, more commonly known as the “Dams Raid,” took its place in military history. Flying at ultra-low-level, at night, a few RAF Lancaster crews successfully breached two major dams, the Möhne and the Eder, in
Flight Journal1 min read
The Upkeep Bouncing Bomb
This wartime photograph, still with its “Secret” marking visible, shows an Upkeep bomb or mine mounted on 617 Squadron Lancaster Type 464 ED932 AJ-G. This was the aircraft flown by 617 Squadron’s CO Wing Commander Guy Gibson, VC DSO and Bar DFC and B
Flight Journal1 min read
617 Squadron: the “Dambusters”
Having been formed specifically for the Dams Raid, 617 Squadron was retained as an elite specialist precision bombing unit for the remainder of World War Two. The unit employed several special weapons, including the 12,000-pound HC (High Capacity) “b
Flight Journal4 min read
“America” Flies Again
ALTHOUGH THE WRIGHT BROTHERS may have flown first, there are few who would argue that Glenn Curtiss was actually the driving force that developed the flying machine from a curiosity into an airplane and made it both a practical and controllable entit
Flight Journal2 min read
Building the Curtiss Seaplanes—again
Neither aircraft has any hydraulics, or even any mechanical advantage in the operation of its control surfaces, which makes them very heavy and stiff to operate. Curtiss Museum has improved on this by using an optional arrangement from the old days:
Flight Journal14 min read
MUSTANGS over Normandy
Spring 1944: Allied heavy bombers and their airborne “little friends” had been hammering away at Fortress Europe since early in the year. Around-the-clock strategic bombardment missions, in concert with low-level “Chattanooga Choo Choo” strafing miss
Flight Journal12 min read
A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing
Before America’s entry into World War II, Charles Carpenter was a U.S. History teacher at a high school in Moline, Illinois and a 2nd Lt. in the Army Reserve. That all changed on December 7, 1941. By early 1942, Carpenter entered the U.S. Army and ev
Flight Journal2 min read
War Bugs
DURING WW II, the Allies utilized a handful of different liaison aircraft in a “jack of all trades” role. By far the biggest and ugliest “Grasshopper” was the behemoth Stinson L-1 Vigilant. You do not have to look very far to see that the L-1 was hea
Flight Journal9 min read
Howard DGA GH-2
Fifteen minutes after take-off from Santa Paula Airport northwest of Los Angeles, California, Matthew Taylor heard a loud whining sound coming from the Pratt & Whitney R-985 radial mounted just beyond the firewall of his 1943 Howard DGA. It was May 2
Flight Journal1 min read
Join Our Team!
Do you have aviation in your blood? Crazy about aircraft and flying? Add your unique perspective to our content mix! We’re looking for flightline reporters and contributors to share their expertise and advice in videos and posts. (Original and unpubl
Flight Journal4 min read
America’s Last Ace
OVER 200 SPEAKING PROGRAMS A YEAR! That was part of being an Air Force recruiter as well as running my own business. Seldom do the masters of ceremonies at these functions skip over the phrases, “…the Air Force’s only Viet Nam pilot ace… only MiG-21
Flight Journal1 min read
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