First Flight
USAF's third F-15EX Eagle II takes flight ahead of delivery
Boeing completed the first flight of the third F-15EX Eagle II for the USAF on October 27, some ten weeks after the new fighter was rolled off the assembly line. That day, two sorties were flown from the firm’s facility at St Louis Lambert International Airport in St Louis, Missouri
Turkey's Baykar kicks off Bayraktar TB3 UCAV flight testing
The new Bayraktar TB3 UCAV successfully completed its maiden flight at the Akinci Flight Training and Test Center in the Çorlu district of Tekirdağ, Turkey, on October 27, neatly presaging the nation’s 100th annual Republic Day celebrations
USMC’s first XQ-58A Valkyrie takes flight at Eglin AFB
The first of two XQ-58A Valkyrie UCAVs for the USMC successfully completed its first test flight at Eglin AFB, Florida, on October 2, closely followed by an F-16CM Fighting Falcon (88-0441/ET) from the 40th Flight Test Squadron – a component of the USAF’s 96th Test Wing – that was flying as the ‘chase’ aircraft
USAF’s new B-21 Raider stealth bomber soars into American skies
The USAF and Northrop Grumman marked a major key milestone in the development and testing of the B-21 Raider on November 10, when the new sixth-generation stealth bomber – which is intended to be the successor to both the B-1B Lancer and B-2A Spirit – graced American skies for the first time
Boeing flies upgraded AH-64E Apache gunship for the first time
Boeing completed the first flight of its enhanced AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopter from its facility in Mesa, Arizona, on October 11
USAF U-2S completes first flight after avionics upgrade
In partnership with Lockheed Martin’s coveted Skunk Works division, the USAF has completed the first flight of an upgraded U-2S Dragon Lady as part of the high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft’s ongoing Avionics Tech Refresh programme
Slovakia’s first F-16 Block 70 completes maiden flight
The first of 14 F-16C/D Block 70 Fighting Falcon multi-role fighters for Slovakia completed its maiden flight from Lockheed Martin’s production facility in Greenville, South Carolina, at approximately 0930hrs (local time) on September 29
Concorde – the story behind starting airline operations
Concorde's path to its service entry was not an easy one. In 1976, it reached its conclusion. In the February 2016 issue of Aeroplane, Bruce Hales-Dutton talked to the last surviving flight crew member from British Airways’ inaugural flight
US Coast Guard flies first missionized HC-27J Spartan
The US Coast Guard (USCG) conducted the initial flight of its first missionized HC-27J Spartan at NAS Patuxent River in Maryland on September 6
B-21 set to make first flight this year after ‘power on’ success
Northrop Grumman’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Dave Keffer, recently confirmed that the firm “remains on track” for completing the maiden flight of the USAF’s new sixth-generation B-21 Raider stealth bomber this year, though he cautioned that this would “depend on events and data”