Warbird Aviation Art is proud to offer this most unique limited edition of just 25 pieces of aircraft aluminum each signed by retired Air Force Brigadier General Paul Tibbets and featuring ‘the RED GREMLIN’ nose-art of his B-17E hand-painted by artist Ron Kaplan. Gen. Tibbets’ personally approved the accuracy of Kaplan’s replication. Each piece arrives individually numbered and ready-to-hang in a 16 x 15-inch Peruvian Walnut shadow box, and comes with a reprint of photos taken at the 1997 signing by Gen. Tibbets. #3 of 25 from this edition is available for immediate shipment, and commissions a ..read more

Ed Storo of Netarts, Oregon, spent 20 years building an as-close-to-original replica of a Bristol Bulldog. Storo’s replica wears the colors of Royal Air Force (RAF) No. 19 Squadron. Storo lifted the British fighter into the air for the first time on June 28, 2022, from Tillamook Municipal Airport near his home. “The first flight was kind of interesting. It actually flew fine, and it flies like a normal airplane. Although it is sort of heavy on the ailerons,” Storo said. “If you view the video of the first flight, you’ll see the airplane does some wiggling around, but most of that was done on p ..read more

Not even the most aggressive aerial bombing in history was winning the Korean War, until one heroic Air Force mission did the impossible—ended the war—and violated every rule command leadership had created. Author Thomas McKelvey Cleaver reveals the secrets behind this daring mission. Between June 27, 1950, when the first U.S. interdiction bombing mission of the Korean War was flown, and July 27, 1953, the last day of the war, the United States Air Force dropped more bombs on North Korea than were dropped in the entire Pacific theater in World War II. If the totals from the U.S. Navy’s bombing ..read more

As the sun had touched the horizon, the four-man crew of the huge flying-boat started their four J-75 turbojets. Engines whining at idle, they cast off from the buoy and water-taxied out of the lagoon. Turning into the ocean breeze, the throttles were pushed forward into full afterburner and the 80-ton behemoth accelerated with a high, white rooster tail whipped up by the exhausts. The carefully shaped vee-hull rode higher and higher until the P6M was airborne. In its watertight, rotary, bomb bay was a nuclear weapon transferred from a submarine only hours before. Flying just below the speed o ..read more

Marine Fighting Squadron 323 (VMF-323) was com­missioned on August 1, 1943, and was quickly brought up to combat-ready status under the leadership of young Maj. George Axtell Jr. Instilling great discipline and aggressive fighter tactics, the men of VMF-323 certainly earned their squadron’s nickname as the “Death Rattlers.” At the controls of the F4U and FG-1 Corsairs, the men of VMF-323 not only provided ground support for the island-hopping Marines below but also shot down more than 124 Japanese planes. Here is the story of three such men who, by their own accounts, were each “just doing my ..read more

On this Memorial Day, we are honored to share these poignant words from our friends at Stallion 51, explaining why they do what they do.   Memories and remembering tie us to the past and often together. As Memorial Day approaches, it is important to remember those who gave so much for the good of us all. A time when the world came together in the hopes that good would win over evil. We realize that to many warbirds are a touch-stone to a time when right would win out over wrong. That as a nation, all gave some, some gave all whether on the frontlines or on the home front.   At Stall ..read more

After 60 years of thrilling pylon racing, the Reno Air Racing Association has announced that 2023 will be the final year they will host the iconic National Championship Air Races. Scheduled this year from September 13-17, the races have wowed crowds and introduced racing icons like the P-51s “Voodoo” and “Strega” and F8F “Rare Bear” to a global audience. The decision not to renew the event contract was based on concerns including rapid area development, public safety and the impact on the airport and its surrounding areas. There is an initiative underway to find a new location, so stay tuned f ..read more

At 12:46 pm CT on the afternoon of June 4, 2021 pilot Lt. William “Krieger” Peabody and naval flight officer Lt. David “Poon” Babka did something no one else had done. They plugged their VX-23 F/A-18F’s refueling probe into a basket trailing from a prototype version of the U.S. Navy’s ground-breaking uncrewed tanker, the Boeing MQ-25 Stingray. Three hundred twenty pounds of JP-5 flowed from an Aerial Refueling Store (ARS) pod mounted under the prototype, known as “T1” to the Super Hornet, marking the first ever aerial refueling between a crewed aircraft and an uncrewed tanker. MQ-25 is the Nav ..read more

As reported by CNET, artificial intelligence recently flew a jet similar to an F-16 for 17 total hours over 12 flights. The series of flights happened in December at Edwards Air Force Base in California, using an experimental plane called the X-62A Vista. The X-62A is an experimental jet based on the F-16. The jet was under the control of one of four different AI algorithms at any given time during the tests (safety pilots were on board at all times). This included real world flights and takeoffs, landings and dogfighting in simulated combat missions. The research is part of a joint project be ..read more

The Flying Heritage and Combat Armor Museum’s Bf 109E-3 Wk. Nr. 1342 , piloted by Ross Granley, flies in its original wartime markings as an aircraft of JG 51 during the Battle of Britain in 1940, except for having no individual code number as there is some uncertainty over exactly which number it wore. (Photo by John Dibbs/ Facebook.com/theplanepicturecompany) One of only two Bf 109Es currently airworthy in the world, this German fighter participated in the Battle of Britain until it was shot down on July 29, 1940. Clive Rowley reveals the dramatic story of the 109’s last combat and of the pi ..read more