Lockheed P-38 Lightning

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The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was designed in 1937 as a high-altitude interceptor. The first one built, the XP-38, made its public debut on Feb. 11, 1939 by flying from California to New York in seven hours.

Because of its unorthodox design, the aircraft evolved for several years before becoming the fighter destined to see combat in all theaters of World War II. The P-38 Lightning introduced a new dimension to American fighters - a second engine. The multi-engine configuration reduced the Lightning loss-rate to anti-aircraft gunfire during ground attack missions.

Late in 1942, it went into large-scale operations during the North African campaign where the German Luftwaffe named it "Der Gabelschwanz Teufel"--"The Forked-Tail Devil."

Equipped with droppable fuel tanks under its wings, the P-38 was used extensively as a long-range escort fighter. A very versatile aircraft, the Lightning was also used for dive bombing, level bombing, ground strafing and photo reconnaissance missions.

As with any long-term production aircraft, the P-38 underwent many modifications. The fastest of the modifications was the P-38J with a top speed of 420 mph, and the version produced in the greatest quantity was the "L," of which 3,735 were built by Lockheed and 113 by Vultee. The P-38J intakes under the engines were enlarged to house core-type intercoolers. The curved windscreen was replaced by a flat panel, and the boom mounted radiators were enlarged. Some were fitted with bombardier type noses, and were used to lead formations of bomb-laden P-38s to their targets. The P-38M was a two-seat radar-equipped night fighter, a few of which had become operational before the war ended.

By the end of production in 1945, 9,923 P-38s had been built. Only 27 of the aircraft exist today.

F-86 Sabres Jets in Korea

Col. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., commander of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing, leads a three-ship F-86F Sabre formation during the Korean War in 1954.

Col. Davis, a Tuskegee Airman, was one of the first African-American wing commanders. High Resolution Image

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British Aerospace Aerospatiale Concorde SST

British Aerospace Aerospatiale Concorde SST from the Intrepid Air Space Museum after reopening Veterans Day 2008 this image from December 1, 2008. This aircraft, serial no. 100-010 (G-BOAD), first flew on August 25, 1976 and served with British Airways until November 2003. The airplane is on loan from British Airways. This very airplane on display set a world’s speed record for passenger airliners on February 7, 1996 when it flew from New York to London in 2 hours, 52 minutes and 59 seconds.

Image License: I, (sookietex) the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. This applies worldwide. In case this is not legally possible, I grant any entity the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law.

If This image is subject to copyright in your jurisdiction, i (sookietex) the copyright holder have irrevocably released all rights to it, allowing it to be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, used, modified, built upon, or otherwise exploited in any way by anyone for any purpose, commercial or non-commercial, with or without attribution of the author, as if in the public domain.

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Marine One H-3 Sea King Presidential helicopter

Marine One a H-3 Sea King the Presidential helicopter, coming in for a landing on the USS Intrepid Berthed in the Hudson River on Manhatten's westside.

Transporting the President to Veterans Day and the Re-opening of the Intrepid Air, Sea and Space Museum, Veterans Day November 11, 2008 late morning.

Marine One is the call sign of any United States Marine Corps aircraft carrying the President of the United States. It usually denotes one of 19 helicopters operated by the HMX-1 "Nighthawks" squadron, either the VH-3D (pictured) or the VH-60N Whitehawk.

RELATED: Air Force One

Image License: I, (sookietex) the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. This applies worldwide. In case this is not legally possible, I grant any entity the right to use this work for any purpose, without any conditions, unless such conditions are required by law.

If This image is subject to copyright in your jurisdiction, i (sookietex) the copyright holder have irrevocably released all rights to it, allowing it to be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, used, modified, built upon, or otherwise exploited in any way by anyone for any purpose, commercial or non-commercial, with or without attribution of the author, as if in the public domain.

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B-17 Flying Fortress

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Boeing B-17E. (U.S. Air Force photo). Information presented on www.nationalmuseum.af.mil is considered public information and may be distributed or copied. Use of appropriate byline/photo/image credits is requested.

Boeing B-17G-40-VE (S/N 42-97991) in flight. (U.S. Air Force photo).

The B-17G was the result of an almost continuous improvement program of earlier B-17 models. The G model was basically the production version of the B-17F after the modifications and improvements were incorporated into the design.

Although the Bendix chin turret is the most obvious improvement incorporated into the B-17G, it was actually first used on late model B-17Fs. More than 8,500 Gs were built by three different manufacturers: Boeing, Douglas and Lockheed-Vega. More than 12,500 B-17s of all types were built before production ended.

The Flying Fortress is one of the most famous airplanes ever built. The B-17 prototype first flew on July 28, 1935. Although few B-17s were in service on Dec. 7, 1941, production quickly accelerated after the U.S. entry into World War II. The aircraft served in every combat zone, but it is best known for the daylight strategic bombing of German industrial targets. Production ended in May 1945 and totaled 12,726.

SPECIFICATIONS: Span: 103 ft. 9 in. Length: 74 ft. 9 in. Height: 19 ft. 1 in. Weight: 65,500 lbs. gross weight (actual - normal load) Armament: 12 .50-cal. machine guns and 8,000 lbs. of bombs. Engines: Four Wright R-1820-97 turbo-supercharged radials of 1200 hp each

PERFORMANCE: Maximum speed: 302 mph at 25,000 ft. Cruising speed: 160 mph. Service ceiling: 35,600 ft. Range: 3,400 miles (maximum ferry range)

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Tupolev Tu 160 Blackjack Bomber

The Russian Tupolev Tu-160 NATO name Blackjack is a long range strategic bomber that became operational in the late 1980s. It is capable of carrying cruise missiles, short range missiles, bombs or a combination of each.

The Blackjack has variable geometry wings and a maximum level speed of Mach 2.05. It remains in service with the Russian Air Force. by Richard J. Terry, undated.

Image License: DIA artists completed this series of paintings during the Cold War when the Soviet Union posed the major threat to the security of the United States. The artists worked as visual information specialists in the Illustrations Department of DIA, located in the "B" Building of Arlington Hall Station, Virginia. Defense Intelligence Agency

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government produced by an employee of the United States government in the performance of his or her duties. under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code.

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