Cal Rodgers and the Vin Fiz, the first man to fly across America in nineteen eleven
In 1911, Cal Rodgers became the first person to fly across America in the Vin Fiz, surviving 49 days and 16 crashes.
The Hangar
Aviation history and storytelling with Taildragger. Warbird restorations, legendary pilots, famous flights, and the stories that shaped aviation from the Wright Brothers to the Space Shuttle.
Valery Chkalov and the ANT-25, the transpolar flight from Moscow to Vancouver, Washington that began June eighteenth, nineteen thirty-seven
How Valery Chkalov and the ANT-25 flew nonstop over the North Pole from Moscow to Washington State in June 1937.
Charles Blair, Excalibur Three, and the lone Mustang that flew across the top of the world
How Charles Blair flew a red P-51 Mustang solo across the North Pole in 1951 using sun-compass navigation.
The Spruce Goose and the twenty-six seconds Howard Hughes flew the biggest airplane ever built
The Spruce Goose flew just 26 seconds on November 2, 1947 - here's the story of Howard Hughes' birch-built H-4 Hercules.
The Vulcan howl and XH558, the last Avro Vulcan to fly the airshow circuit
Radio Hangar explores The Vulcan howl and XH558, the last Avro Vulcan to fly the airshow circuit.
Eddie Rickenbacker, the race-driver ace of aces, and the twenty-four days adrift in the Pacific that nearly finished him
How WWI ace Eddie Rickenbacker survived 24 days adrift in the Pacific - and why he believed willpower, not equipment, decided who lived.
Amelia Earhart and the Friendship, the gold trimotor that crossed the Atlantic on June seventeenth, nineteen twenty-eight
Radio Hangar explores Amelia Earhart and the Friendship, the gold trimotor that crossed the Atlantic on June seventeenth, nineteen twenty-eight.
The Cleveland National Air Races and Jimmy Doolittle winning the first Thompson Trophy in the Travel Air Mystery Ship, nineteen twenty-nine
Radio Hangar explores The Cleveland National Air Races and Jimmy Doolittle winning the first Thompson Trophy in the Travel Air Mystery Ship, nineteen twenty-nine.
That's All, Brother and the C-forty-seven that led the D-Day invasion, rescued from a Wisconsin boneyard the week before the scrappers came
Radio Hangar explores That's All, Brother and the C-forty-seven that led the D-Day invasion, rescued from a Wisconsin boneyard the week before the scrappers came.
Ye Olde Pub, Franz Stigler, and the enemy who refused to fire over Germany in December nineteen forty-three
The true story of Franz Stigler, the German ace who escorted a crippled B-17 to safety instead of shooting it down in December 1943.
Old Six Sixty-Six and Jay Zeamer's crew, the most decorated bomber crew in American history
The crew of B-17 'Old 666' earned two Medals of Honor and a DSC for every man - the most decorated flight in U.S. history.
The Boeing B and W Seaplane and the first airplane Bill Boeing ever built, June fifteenth, nineteen sixteen
On June 15, 1916, Bill Boeing test-flew the B&W seaplane himself - the first airplane Boeing ever built.
Bob Hoover and the glass of iced tea he poured while rolling a Shrike Commander
How Bob Hoover poured iced tea while barrel-rolling a Shrike Commander - and why that trick proved he was aviation's smoothest hand.
The V-one buzz bomb and the night the first cruise missile fell on London, June thirteenth, nineteen forty-four
On June 13, 1944, the V-1 buzz bomb struck London, becoming the first cruise missile used in combat and changing air warfare forever.
The Dixie Clipper and the first scheduled transatlantic passenger flight on June seventh, nineteen thirty-nine
On June 7, 1939, the Dixie Clipper made history as the first scheduled transatlantic passenger flight from New York to Europe.
Spitfire ML four oh seven and the Grace family who kept a D-Day veteran flying for forty years
Spitfire ML407 survived D-Day, decades of neglect, and personal tragedy to become one of the world's most storied warbirds.
Hughes Airwest Flight seven oh six and the midair collision over the San Gabriel Mountains on June sixth, nineteen seventy-one
The 1971 midair collision between Hughes Airwest Flight 706 and a Marine F-4 Phantom killed 49 people and helped drive the development of TCAS.
Butch Voris and the four Hellcats that became the Blue Angels in nineteen forty-six
How Butch Voris and four combat-veteran Hellcat pilots created the Blue Angels in 1946 to save naval aviation.
Flak Bait the B-twenty-six Marauder and the Smithsonian restoration of the most battle-damaged American bomber to survive the war
Flak Bait, the most battle-damaged American bomber to survive WWII, flew 207 missions and took over 1,000 flak holes before its painstaking Smithsonian restoration.
The C-forty-seven armada that launched into the dark on June fifth, nineteen forty-four, carrying the airborne to Normandy
On June 5, 1944, over 800 C-47 crews flew paratroopers into Normandy through flak and cloud, launching the D-Day invasion.