MetaFilter posts tagged with airplanes

Cleared to Land

jontyjago — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 09:46:06 -0800

Heathrow Approach Planes lining up on approach to London Heathrow at 17x speed. Strangely hypnotic slyt.

What the fuck has NASA done to make your life awesome?

Brandon Blatcher — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 09:33:01 -0800

What the fuck has NASA done to make your life awesome?

Flying Low

gman — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:29:25 -0800

Josef Hoflehner took a series of black & white wide-angle shots of planes that appear to be flying very close to the beach. [Previously]

Fight and Flight. And Cars, too.

zarq — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 14:06:28 -0800

AIRBOYD.tv has three Youtube channels: The eponymous AIRBOYD features 2000+ videos for "aviation and aerospace enthusiasts. Then there's the Nuclear Vault: Vintage Military, War and News Videos, with 1200+ full-length documentaries, news reels and other assorted footage, including 200 episodes of "The Big Picture (Army Signal Corps)" and a variety of Atomic and Nuclear energy films. Last but not least is US Auto Industry, an archive of over 450 vintage automobile films, including commercials from Buick, Pontiac, Chevy and Ford. Surprisingly, the extensive Nuclear Vault archive does not include SAC Command Post, one of several attempts by the US Air Force (and the Pentagon) to counter Hollywood stereotypes about the military during the 1960's Airboyd, previously on MeFi..

Flying High

gman — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 12:39:27 -0800

GE has posted a searchable bird's-eye view of the 6,000 most popular airports in the world.

Stewardess Uniform Collection

Trurl — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 16:51:55 -0800

In the seven years since its last^* appearance in the blue, Cliff Muskiet's Stewardess Uniform Collection has grown to more than 1,000 different uniforms from more than 400 different airlines. Strangely missing: the saris of Air India

It's a Small World After All

gman — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 16:46:22 -0800

A 24 hour observation of all of the large aircraft flights in the world, condensed down to just over a minute. Similar videos are created by NASA's Future ATM Concepts Evaluation Tool (or FACET), like this one of a day in the life of air traffic over the United States.

Electric powered airplanes

stbalbach — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:54:54 -0800

Electric airplanes are not a new idea, but there have been recent developments in building affordable production electric sport aircraft. They are super quiet, low vibration, highly reliable, simple and gas-free. The Chinese made Yuneec e430 (videos) is probably farthest along, along with the eSpyder. The ElectraFlyer (videos) is also in development. The first commercial electric aircraft was the Silent Club (video) in 1997, a self launching glider. Another electric self launching glider is the Antares 20E and Arcus E. (Previously).

Curved couches of the autocrats

WPW — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 15:03:30 -0800

Inside the private jets of African dictators and other heads of state. (Slideshow of photographs by Nick Gleis.)

"In some situations...pilots can pretty much name their price."

allkindsoftime — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 04:46:33 -0800

How airplanes are repossessed. The rule is ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell—just get our airplane back.

Paging sharksmatter...?

Decimask — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:53:25 -0800

You are a shark. You swim off the coast of Florida. You dive in and out of the water to smash boats, and you can pull jumbo jets out of the sky WITH YOUR TEETH. You are Miami Shark. Via Rockpapershotgun. Yes, it is as awesome as it sounds.

The C-17 Globemaster III

Joe Beese — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:44:21 -0800

January: Newly sworn-in President Obama says, "We need greater investment in... essential systems like the C-17 cargo... aircraft, which provide the backbone of our ability to extend global power." April: Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says, "Our analysis concludes that we have enough C-17s, with the 205 already in the force and currently in production." May: The Office of Management and Budget proposes the termination of the C-17 program with a savings of $17 billion. July: The 2010 Defense Appropriations Bill includes funding for the program. September 29: Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) proposes an amendment to strip that funding - "You can't walk through these hallways without bumping into a lobbyist from Boeing." September 30: By a vote of 64 to 34, the Senate defeats the amendment.

It's not too early in history to be exterminated by a Dalek

XMLicious — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:00:35 -0800

The ring wing or annular airfoil is an aircraft design which has been experimented with throughout the history of aviation with some interesting variations. It has served as the inspiration for several paper airplane designs, model airplanes of course, and a variety of children's toys. The capabilities imagined by the French coléoptère engineers of the 1950's and 1960's and the U.S. "flying tank" designers are available today at least in the form of unmanned vehicles (large PDF brochure, 6 minute video download, 1½ minute YT news clip). The technology has also been adapted to become the surfboard tunnel fin and there are underwater UAVs as well.

They're models, not toys!

gamera — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 19:37:28 -0800

Building and flying free flight model airplanes is a pastime so obscure it doesn't even register on the geek heirarchy. But in the period between Lindberg's flight across the Atlantic until the start of the Second World War, thousands of boys (and some girls) around the world succumbed to the allure of rubber, lube, and dope. Free flight was eclipsed in popularity by control-line models and later radio control, but a hard core of enthusiasts are still at work making wonderful flying things. It's now pretty much a pastime for old men, many of whom have returned to the hobby after retirement. It's likely that some of the kids in the newsreels linked above are still making models. Like many obscure enthusiasms, it has found a home on the web. Here are some highlights for your browsing pleasure: A gallery of rather small photos, and another. An extensive British site dedicated to free flight scale models, including lots of rocket-powered models. A gallery of antique gas-powered model planes. Twin pushers and other free flight oddities (previously on Metafilter). Unbelievably delicate and graceful indoor duration models. Actual flight starts at about 1:52. More Indoor Planes, including an ornithopter. Some of these planes are actually radio controled - Free flight designs and techniques are often well-suited for small radio control models. "The sport of kings" - 2005, Middle Wallop. An introduction (with music, alas) to the modern Wakefield class of high-tech rubber powered planes. A jewel-like V-12 CO2 Engine (more music, Steppenwolf this time). The Long Flight, a short 1968 amateur film about model aviation. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4. The story offers a clue why the sport/hobby isn't more popular. There's a long sequence where the young protagonist painstakingly builds his model, only to have it crash and break on it's maiden flight. For most kids this would end their fling with model planes. Luckily, this is a movie and 1939 Wakefield Champion Dick Korda is on hand to initiate him into the mysteries of the model plane. The Plan Page has free plans and construction articles for classic models scanned from old model magazines. Finally, a bit about a personal favorite, Bob Copeland's streamlined Wakefield from 1939. Pictured here and in this forum thread.

Room 747

Rumple — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 22:32:52 -0800

A narrated slideshow tour of Stockholm's Jumbo Hostel, which is inside a remodelled Boeing 747. The engine pods will be each become a room for two. Opens January 15th.

Bits of aviation goodness

Burhanistan — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 21:52:01 -0800

Point Niner - "Satisfying an unnatural infatuation with airplanes and rockets." A regularly updated blog with nice bits of aviation goodness.

Personal photos from the Pacific (WWII)

zzazazz — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 14:05:47 -0800

According to the photographer's daughter, "All photos in this collection were taken by then Lt. and later Capt. George S. White, my Father, while he was serving in the Pacific as a pilot. They are generally between 1945 and 1948 from what is documented." My favorites? The barmaid or postwar Tokyo or wrecked planes and airplane graveyards.

15 Vintage Warplanes in Flying Condition

maxwelton — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:27:25 -0800

As the Seattle PI notes "Paul Allen's 'Flying Heritage Collection' of 15 planes, mostly dating from the 1930s and '40s, is noteworthy both because of its rarity -- several are the only models of their kind remaining -- and its condition -- almost all of them have been refurbished so that they can be flown." The collection includes: Curtis JN-4D Jenny Curtis P40C Tomahawk Fieseler FI 156-C2 Storch Focke Wulf FW 190D-13 Dora Grumman F6F Hellcat Hawker Hurricane Mk.XIIB Messerschmitt 163B Komet Messerschmitt BF 109E-3 Emil Mitsubishi A6M3-22 Zero-Sen Nakajima KI-43 Hayabusa Oscar North American P-51D Mustang Polikarpov I-16 Type 24 Rata Polikarpov U-2/PO-2 Republic P-47D Thunderbolt Supermarine Spitfire Mk VC The PI also has a photo gallery accompanying its story. The collection is housed at Paine Field in Everett, Washington (satellite view). Paine Field is also the home of Boeing's 747, 767, 777 And 787 assembly plant, as well as the Legend Flyers, a pair of reproduction ME-262 jet fighters from the same era.

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a flying puppet!

MrMoonPie — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 05:19:08 -0800

Carl Rankin builds awesome RC planes out of straws, plastic wrap, tape, and foam take-out boxes. (via)

Vintage Flight Attendant Photos

brain_drain — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 09:07:58 -0800

Remember when air travel was viewed as glamorous and exciting? Of course you don't. So check out this collection of vintage flight attendant photos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Airline Branding Weblog

riffola — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 22:09:01 -0800

Airline Branding Weblog. Can you say "Awesome"?

Biplanes and triplanes and Zeppelins-- Oh My!

dersins — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 08:16:14 -0800

WWI-era aviation photos (page 2): Biplanes and triplanes and Zeppelins-- oh my!

great white wrecks

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 20:03:39 -0800

Abandoned plane wrecks of the north. The Arctic North is a cruel environment for men and machine; for planes it is no different. The weather creates all sorts of hazards, the terrain offers its own variety of opportunities for disaster. (Warning: extreme comic sans.)

just plane furniture

madamjujujive — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 05:56:38 -0800

Ever had a yen for a table made from jet engine turbine blades or a desk fashioned from a wing or a cowling? Giancarlo de Astis and Moto Art are two high-end design firms that are creating eye catching furniture and functional art from scavenged airplane parts. You can see their work and the work of others in the aviation art community at InterFlight Studio. Or do-it-yourself-ers in the crowd might just prefer a Field Guide to Aircraft Boneyards.

Airsafe.com: Airline accident and airline safety and security information

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 18:18:46 -0800

Airsafe.com: more air crash information than you'll ever hope you need. Celebrity Air Crashes Cases. Airlines without Fatal Events. Fatal Events by Airline. How hard is it to fly a 757 or a 767? How to File a Complaint About Your Airline Service.