RapidFireWeb X-planes (NACA Photo) Bell X-1 being released from Boeing B-29 Superfortress. The X-planes are a series of experimental United States aircraft and rockets, used to test and evaluate new technologies and aerodynamic concepts. They have an X designator within the US system of aircraft designations, which denotes the experimental research mission.Not all US experimental aircraft have … Read more
Curtiss Mohawk Mk. IV (IWM Photo, E(MOS) 274) Curtiss Mohawk Mk. IV (Serial No. BK585), running up its engine prior to giving a flying demonstration at the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment, Boscombe Down, Wiltshire. BK585 joined No. 5 Squadron RAF in the Far East later in 1941. The Curtiss P-36 Hawk, also known as … Read more
Miles M.398 Libellula (RAF Photo) The brainchild of British aviation engineer and designer Frederick George Miles, the Libellula was conceived as a carrier-based fighter and bomber, capable of assisting the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. The Miles M.39B Libellula (from Libellulidae, a taxonomic family of dragonflies) was a Second World War tandem wing experimental aircraft built … Read more
Hawker Typhoon and Hawker Tempest (RAF Photo) Hawker Typhoon (Serial No. EK497), early rocket armed version. (RAF Photo) Hawker Typhoons of No. 56 Squadron, RAF, 1944. (IWM Photo, CH 9289) Hawker Typhoon Mk. IB (Serial No.R8884), coded HF-L, No. 183 Squadron RAF, with Flight Lieutenant Walter Dring,commander of B Flight, in a dispersal at Gatwick, Sussex, UK, … Read more
North American Mitchell Mk. II The aim of this website is to locate, identify and document Warplanes from the Second World War preserved in the United Kingdom. Many contributors have assisted in the hunt for these aircraft to provide and update the data on this website. Photos are by the author unless otherwise credited. Any … Read more
Airspeed Horsa, GAL Hamilcar, GAL Hotspur, Slingsby and WACO Hadrian gliders The aim of this website is to locate, identify and document Warplanes from the Second World War preserved in the United Kingdom. Many contributors have assisted in the hunt for these aircraft to provide and update the data on this website. Photos are by … Read more
Hawker Tornado (SDASM Photo) Hawker Tornado (Serial No. HG641), with a Centaurus IV engine. This aircraft did not have the windows behind the pilot and used hinged doors on the landing gear to completely conceal the main wheels. This was also tried on the prototypes before switching to a separate inner door. The Hawker Tornado was … Read more
Miles Hawk Major, Magister, Martinet, and Messenger (Kevin Dickin Photo) Miles M.2H Hawk Major (Serial No. DG590), Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre, Scotland. This aircraft was in storage with the RAF Museum and is one of only two in existance. (IWM Photo CH 1250) Miles M.14A Magister, No. 28, No. 8 Elementary Flying Training School … Read more
North American Harvard (Alan Wilson Photo) North American Harvard Mk. II, RCAF (Serial No. 3091), c/n 81-4013, AF-091, Reg. No. G-CPPM, Bruntingthorpe. (Alan Wilson Photos) Noordyn Harvard Mk. IbI, USAAC (Serial No. 42-892), c/n 14-429, built by Noorduyn Aviation in Montreal, Quebec in 1942. Allocated RAF (Serial No. FE695), BCATP, Mo. 94. Harvard FE695 was … Read more
Heston JC.6 (RAF Photo) Heston JC.6 (Serial No. VL529). The Heston JC.6 was a British prototype air observation post aircraft designed and built by the Heston Aircraft Company Limited, who had previously built the Heston Phoenix, the Heston T.1/37 and the Napier-Heston Racer. The JC.6 was also known as the Heston A.2/45 or the Heston AOP.DevelopmentThe … Read more
