Aviation History

Anna Leska

Anna Leska

John M. White | Feb 2, 2024
One of the things I find most interesting is that from the time the Wright Brothers first flew the Wright Flyer through the end of World War II many women pursued learning to fly.From when I first learned to fly in February 1961 through my flight instructing and professional flying years... View Article
Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran, Aviatrix Extraordinaire pilot and entreprenuer

Jacqueline Cochran, Aviatrix Extraordinaire! - Part Two

John M. White | Jan 26, 2024
This is the story of an amazing aviatrix who over her aviation career accomplished more than most pilots do in a lifetime. Follow Jackie as she goes from learning to fly in 1932 to starting her own cosmetics company to setting world records in many different aircraft. View Article
A photograph of Jackie Cochran in 1932 at Roosevelt Field, Long Island, NY from a glass negative

Jacqueline Cochran, Aviatrix Extraordinaire!

John M. White | Jan 19, 2024
Bessie Mae Pittman a/k/a Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran, hairdresser extraordinaire in Saks Fifth Avenue Stores.Meet one of the most interesting female pilots with a career lasting over four decades flying airplanes and being involved in aviation.Early LifeBessie Mae Pittman was born on May 11, 1906, and grew up in DeFuniak Springs, Florida,... View Article
Buffalo Airways Lockheed L188 Electra aircraft in flight

The Sole Surviver

John M. White | Jan 17, 2024
This is an interesting story about an aircraft accident that occurred over the Amazon jungle and the sole survivor of that accident.The aircraft involved was a Peruvian airline Lockheed Electra L188 aircraft that was operated from 1963 to 1971 and is notably known for three fatal crashes during its existence.This resulted in the... View Article
F-8 Crusader aircraft in flight over the ocean off the coast of California

Jud, you're on fire!

John M. White | Jan 5, 2024
Sometimes the truth really is stranger than fiction!It's June 21, 1963, and a routine ferry flight of a US Navy F-8 Crusader from California to Hawaii meets up with a KC-97 aerial refueler out over the Pacific to receive some additional fuel. US Air Force KC-97 4-engine refueling aircraft in flight.This was... View Article
An image of one of the three X-15 hypersonic aircraft hanging in the Milestone of Flight gallery of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.

The X-15 Test Program

John M. White | Dec 15, 2023
Read about the test program completed by the North American Aviation X-15 hypersonic rocket airplane, and it's many achievements in advancing high-speed aircraft and spacecraft. View Article
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