Cher Ami: The One-eyed, One-legged Pigeon Who Won the Croix de Guerre
Battlefield communications between frontline units and headquarters during World War I were a study in contrasts. Co-existing with the new …
Military History
From Davits to Docks: The Evolution of U.S. Navy Amphibious Ships
USS Arlington (LPD 24) is the culmination of a century of attempts to answer one question: how do you move …
The XF-85 Goblin
The McDonnell XF-85 Goblin was the only American aircraft designed on the drawing board as a “parasite” fighter – meant …
Hunting the Insurgent Leader: The U.S. Army’s Search for Pancho Villa
Details differed, but the basic facts were the same. Shortly after the turn of the century, towns and American troops …
Nuclear Power for Surface Combatants
As the price of oil skyrocketed in 2008, some in Congress argued that it was pointless to keep building oil-powered …
What Might Have Been: F-20 Tigershark
When test pilot Russ Scott took off from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. on Aug. 30, 1982, he was making …
World War II German Helicopters – Doblhoff WNF 342
In 1941, Friedrich von Doblhoff (1916-2000) a junior engineer at Wiener Neustädter Flugzeugwerke (Vienna-Neustadt Aircraft Factory, which assembled Bf 109 …
When Americans Fought the Russians
American soldiers fought in Russia from 1918 to 1920 in two separate operations, both mishandled and too late to be …
Murphy’s Law Comes from a Real Murphy
“If anything can go wrong, it will.”
That’s one of the most familiar quotes in engineering, science and military affairs. …
Classic Wings: P-47 Thunderbolt
Quick: can you name the American fighter plane built in the largest numbers?
With a wingspan of just under 41 …