Airmen and 80s movie buffs are likely to be familiar with the 1986 cult classic Iron Eagle. Sometimes called the “Top Gun of the Air Force,” Iron Eagle did not have the big budget, box office success or star power that its Naval-…
Requirements officers at the Pentagon and defense companies like to tout the “beyond visual range” capabilities of modern aircraft. On paper, these days a pilot could earn ace status and never see his or her opponents.
However, air wars…
In March 1967, U.S. Air Force Capt. Merlyn Dethlefsen and three other F-105 Thunderchief pilots were tasked to fly 50 miles north of Hanoi, the capital of North Vietnam. Once there, they were to destroy the Thai Nguyen Steel Works.
The wo…
In March 1999, NATO announced that coalition forces would begin a massive air war and bombing campaign against Serbia. Within hours after the first round of strikes, an A-10 squadron received an urgent call that one of America’s stealthiest aircraf…
Jalil Zandi’s Air Force legend almost never made it off the ground. He joined the Iranian Air Force when it was still the Imperial Iranian Air Force, under Shah Reza Pahlavi. After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Zandi stayed blue – a ri…
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Congratulations! You’ve decided to soar above the earth in your new career as an airline pilot! Being a pilot is a challenging yet rewarding vocation. If you love the thrill of flight, travel and working as a team it’s a great job to pursue. There’s only one thing stopping you. Money. Let’s first look at … Continued
Yesterday, we revealed that the new movie “Top Gun: Maverick” will feature what appears to be a Russian Su-57, but that’s not the only fictional-fighter shown in the movie’s trailers. Another scene seems to show Maverick flying a next-generation fighter dubbed “Darkstar,” according to the movie’s Matchbox toy line. The Darkstar aircraft shown only briefly … Continued
Looking back, sports prepared me for flying fighters more than anything else. You develop thick skin playing sports—you learn how to lose, how to accept criticism, how to prepare, how to handle pressure; you grow you in a way that’s difficult to find outside of sports. Different sports teach different attributes, particularly team versus individual … Continued
Retired Air Force Colonel Nicole Malachowski didn’t set out to make history as a female fighter pilot but… she did. As for making waves with her passionate advocacy on behalf of veterans? Absolutely on purpose. “It goes back to 1979; I was five years old and went to a local air show,” Malachowski shared. “There … Continued