What is your favorite aircraft of all time?

[aswatland]

P51 Mustang and B17 Flying Fortress.

 

[locobuster]

Hands down, the P-38 Lightning & the B-17 Flying Fortress, to me both symbolize American airpower in the era.

 

[Jerekson]

I'm extremely happy to be hearing so many Flying-Fort-related comments. Before this forum I was sure that I was the only one who had a love for that plane

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Kellett K-2

First flight of the first Air Corps helicopter.

Second prototype of the above machine

 

[Teekay44]

How do I pick?

There are soooo many I really like. Heres the short list

B-25 What my grandfather flew in and was crew chief on.

B-17 Queen of the Skys!

Hurricane The workhorse fighter of the BoB.

C-47 A war winning plane if there ever was one.

ME 109 The clasic German fighter.

 

[Diamondback]

For sheer prestige, the Boeing 314 Clipper.

If I gotta go fight in WWII, and can't bring my own bird, a Northrop P-61 Black Widow.

What's not to love about 4 20mm cannons and a quad-.50's worth of "make my day"?

Modern, make mine the A-10 for sheer maneuverability, the Tomcat for two-seater "going Mach two with my hair on fire", or the B-52 for long-range work. Travel with company, the Gulfstream 550 family, or a 747-400 stripped and rebuilt into a long-range luxury cruiser.

And for sheer fun-factor, a BD-5J Microjet. Yeah, I know they have a pattern of being pilot-killers under some conditions and I'm too big to bail-out--it took my traveling companion and a museum staffer BOTH to extract my carcass from the one I sat in--but they're still a lot of fun to fly.

Oh, and an SR-71 Blackbird. There's something about just looking at a Habu that gets the adrenaline pumping... like maybe how it looks like Mach 3, even when it's standing still.

 

[Vladimir Berkov]

Two of my favorites

Heinkel 51

MiG 15

 

[Dixon Cannon]

This has become the one over the years....

http://thundermustang.blogspot.com/

I am obsessed with this Thunder Mustang. Now that doesn't mean I don't still love the B-17, the P-51, the P-38 and the DC-4E. It just means that this airplane is something I could get my arms around! I could wear that cockpit like a well tailored suit!

-dixon cannon

 

[Zemke Fan]

Oh, man, Dixon...

That is one swell plane. Several questions... What does this puppy run? How long does it take to assemble? How many have been built? Any lost to accidents? Finally, is that your first-person narrative in the blog article? Were you the test pilot?

 

[Dixon Cannon]

That is one swell plane. Several questions... What does this puppy run? How long does it take to assemble? How many have been built? Any lost to accidents? Finally, is that your first-person narrative in the blog article? Were you the test pilot?

Well, at the moment I'm just an admirer from afar - but I have my dream! The manufacturer shut down it's operation in Nampa, ID a few years ago, but the assets of the company are held by The Thunder Builders Group (TBG) and they are not yet building new kits. They are looking for an investor though! The original kit sold for $195,000; built for you for about $250,000. I think there are about nine actually flying, one of which sets records at Reno. The original aircraft, the green bird, was lost in a crash near Nampa. NTSB called pilot error - too low for the maneuvers. The articles all have been gleaned from the web - I don't know the authors - some were articles in various flying magazines.

The test flight article was written by Dale Clarke, whose bio in included in the blog. He was the unfortunate pilot at the contols at the time of the crash.

There are kits still available in various degrees of completion and TBG maintains the original Papa51 website at: http://www.thundermustang.com/ . They have a great sales DVD available of the aircraft's developement, testing and flight. It is exhilerating!

Glad you like this bird ZF! I am obsessed with it - I fly it in my dreams!!

-dixon cannon

 

[jake431]

The P-47 Thunderbolt:
http://www.web-birds.com/9th/48/red & white checkered plane.jpg
The B-26 Marauder:

The B-24 gets an honorary mention for keeping my Grandfather alive. But it wasn't going to win a beauty contest, that's for sure!

(Sorry, can't get the P-47 image to work quite right, but click on it if you want to.)

Thanks,
-Jake

 

[dhermann1]

Fletch, I've always loved those big crazy Dorniers, too. But this is a toughy. Here's my list, in no partricular order: KC 130, I flew from Hawaii to California in one in 1968, and it was a hoot; Hawker Hunter, elegant early generation British jet; Gloster Gladiator, cool transitional era fighter: all metal, fixed gear, enclosed cockpit biplane; Hawker Hart/Fury/Demon, etc. elegant between the wars fighters; of course, the Mosquito; Vicker Viscount, early turboprop passenger plane (I flew on one of those in 1963); gotta love the Sopwith Camel; Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. OK, I could go on. Pick one favorite? Pretty tough! Oh, yeah! How can I forget the Lockheed Constellation! Oh, yeah! The good old Douglas Dauntless!
P.S. I think this thread just proves that just because an activity is mindlessly idiotic and unproductive doesn't mean that it ain't worthwhile and fun!

 

[Dixon Cannon]

The P-47 Thunderbolt:
http://www.web-birds.com/9th/48/red & white checkered plane.jpg
(Sorry, can't get the P-47 image to work quite right, but click on it if you want to.)

Thanks,
-Jake

I'll bet this is the jug from the 9thAF/48thFG you're talking about! -dc

 

[Prairie Shade]

Howdy Fellas!!

Holywood Factor - P-51 Mustang
Workhorse - P-47 Thunderbolt
My Favorite _ P-38 Lockheed Lighting - Top Ace Richard Bong

 

[henderson field]

There can be only one (IMHO)

I am very lucky to live near the Imperial War Museum in Cambridgeshire, UK. Apart from an extensive collection of fine aircraft on static display they have a marvellous collection of flying warbirds including: P51 Mustangs, P-47 Thunderbolt, F4 Corsair, Hellcat, Martlet ( aka Wildcat), Tigercat, Airacobra,...etc. The museum is also the home to the B-17 Flying Fortress "Sally B".

All these 'beautiful ladies' are a sight for sore eyes but if I have to choose a favourite it has to be the Supermarine Spitfire. Although not the most heavily armed or with the longest range it has, for me, the graceful lines of a thoroughbred. The sweeping fuselage and those famous elliptical wings - sheer beauty! And who can fail to be moved by the warm, throaty growl of a well-tuned Merlin engine?

I'm sorry ladies but my heart is lost!

HF

 

[jake431]

I'll bet this is the jug from the 9thAF/48thFG you're talking about! -dc

It is indeed. Interestingly enough; before my Grandfather was sent to the Pacific, his squadron was attached to the 48th BG (Dive) which became the 48th FG. So I have quite the soft spot for that group; it's a hell of a "might have been" for me. His squadron was arbitrarily detached from the group and the pilots made replacements, which is how he wound up co-piloting B-24s across the central pacific rather than attacking Germans in a P-47.

-Jake

 

[anselmo1]

JU 87 Stuka!

 

[SpitfireXIV]

I'm extremely happy to be hearing so many Flying-Fort-related comments. Before this forum I was sure that I was the only one who had a love for that plane

no, i go to see the Flying Fortress and the Liberator every summer during the "Wings of Freedom" tour see www.collingsfoundation.org/cf_schedule-wof.htm . one year, a Mitchell joined them in the midwest. it was a sight to behold *sighs*

 

[Jerekson]

Hey, thanks for the info, Spitfire.

They're coming to my area later this month - I'll be sure to check it out! I'm excited!

 

[SpitfireXIV]

Hey, thanks for the info, Spitfire.

They're coming to my area later this month - I'll be sure to check it out! I'm excited!

it's neat when you manage to see them fly about town; it's one thing to see them on the runway, another matter entirely when flying overhead!