Aeroplane Archive
The Key.Aero team have delved for treasure in the archive of Aeroplane Magazine dating back to 1911. Aviation history brought to life by the editors of the period.
First ever colour photos of the Comet
‘The Aeroplane’ scored a world exclusive when it published the first colour photos of the Comet in its July 29, 1949 issue. The piece also explored the design of this revolutionary aircraft
BOAC Comet Captain insights
CAPT. M. R. ALDERSON, who was in charge of B.O.A.C.’s Comet unit, spoke to H. A. TAYLOR for the January 11, 1952 issue of ‘The Aeroplane’ and gave an outline of some of the more interesting features in jet transport operation after six months of preliminary route-proving trials
First Westerner to fly in a Russian helicopter
On a visit to the Soviet Union in 1956 ‘The Aeroplane’s’ John Fricker was privileged to be the first Westerner to be invited to fly in a Russian helicopter. His report on the flight appeared in the August 17, 1956 issue
The RAF’s first Javelin squadron
In its July 13, 1956 issue ‘The Aeroplane’ reported on No. 46 Squadron at RAF Odiham which was putting the Javelin through its paces in terms of trials and tactics development
‘Monty’s’ personal Dakota
The Dakota KN628 was used for much of its career in uniform by the famous British military leader Bernard Montgomery. In its August 17, 1956 issue ‘The Aeroplane’ looked back over its service after it sold by the Air Ministry
Developing France’s Mirage IV nuclear bomber
The Dassault Mirage IV was designed solely as a nuclear bomber and ‘The Aeroplane and Astronautics’ reviewed the aircraft’s progress to entering service in its February 3, 1961 issue
Vampires and Venoms of the Iraqi Air Force
In its September 30, 1955 issue ‘The Aeroplane’ had a fascinating article based on a visit to Iraq to see the latest jet equipment used by the country’s air force
Caribbean Canberras
In 1955 the RAF despatched Canberras and Hastings to the Carribbean and Canada on a goodwill and training visit, while the former also participated in an exercise. ‘The Aeroplane’ reported on this deployment in its December 30 issue that year
Birth of a legendary bizjet family
Arguably the most famous name in the bizjet world is ‘Lear Jet’, with the latest variant Learjet (as it is now called) still in production by Bombardier almost 60 years after the original’s first flight. We take a look back at the very early days of the programme with this article from ‘The Aeroplane and Commercial Aviation News ‘, published on May 21, 1964
‘The Aeroplane’ air tests the Viscount
The Viscount was the world’s first turboprop airliner and an impressive total of 448 examples were manufactured. ‘The Aeroplane’ published this air test report on the new propliner in its November 4, 1949 issue