After World War II, commercial aviation grew rapidly, using mostly ex-military aircraft to transport people and cargo. This growth was accelerated by the glut of heavy and super-heavy bomber airframes like the B-29 and Lancaster that could be converted into commercial aircraft. The DC-3 also made for easier and longer commercial flights. The first commercial jet airliner to fly was the British de Havilland Comet. By 1952, the British state airline BOAC had introduced the Comet into scheduled service, then other jetliner designs took to the skies.
Military aircraft became faster and more complex as the jet age arrived. In October 1947 Chuck Yeager took the rocket-powered Bell X-1 through the sound barrier. Further barriers of distance fell in 1948 and 1952 with the first jet crossing of the Atlantic and the first nonstop flight to Australia.
de Havilland DH-100 Vampire (Swedish version)
The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter developed and manufactured by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the RAF, … Read more
de Havilland Canada RCAF DHC-1B Chipmunk
The de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk is a tandem, two-seat, single-engined primary trainer aircraft developed and manufactured by Canadian aircraft manufacturer de Havilland Canada. It was developed shortly after the … Read more
Grumman S-2 Tracker
The Grumman S-2 Tracker (S2F prior to 1962) was the first purpose-built, single airframe anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy. Designed and initially built … Read more
Percival Provost XF597
The Percival P.56 Provost is a British basic trainer that was developed for the Royal Air Force in the 1950s as a replacement for the Percival Prentice. It was a low-wing monoplane with a fixed, tailwheel undercarriage and like the Prentice had a side-by-side seating arrangement.
De Havilland C7-A “Caribou”
The de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (designated by the United States military as the CV-2 and later C-7 Caribou) is a Canadian-designed and produced specialized cargo aircraft with short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability. The Caribou was first flown in 1958 and although mainly retired from military operations, is still in use in small numbers as a rugged “bush” aircraft.
Lockheed EC-121D “Warning Star”
The Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star was a United States Navy and United States Air Force Airborne early warning and control radar surveillance aircraft. A military version of the Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation, it was designed to serve as an airborne early warning system to supplement the Distant Early Warning Line, using two large radomes, a vertical dome above and a horizontal one below the fuselage. EC-121s were also used for intelligence gathering (SIGINT).
North American P-82B Twin Mustang – PQ-168
The North American F-82 Twin Mustang was the last American piston-engine fighter ordered into production by the United States Air Force. Based on the P-51 Mustang, the P-82/F-82 was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter in World War II. The war ended well before the first production units were operational.
North American F-86D “Sabre”
The North American F-86D Sabre (sometimes called the “Sabre Dog”) was a transonic jet all-weather interceptor of the United States Air Force and others. Based on North American’s F-86 Sabre day fighter, the F-86D had only 25 percent commonality with other Sabre variants, with a larger fuselage, larger afterburner engine, and a distinctive nose radome.
Lockheed P-80 “Shooting Star”
The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star was the first jet fighter used operationally by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Designed and built by Lockheed in 1943 and delivered just 143 days from the start of the design process, production models were flying but not ready for service by the end of World War II.