Historic

Key.Aero leads the way in the field of aviation history and heritage. Enjoy an outstanding mix of restoration and warbird features, fascinating articles on aviation history produced by some of the best writers in the business and in-depth and entertaining reports on all historic aircraft. Broad coverage spans the earliest years of flight through to the Cold War, encompassing countless aircraft types and their aerial achievements, plus Key.Aero offers the very latest historical aviation news.

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Celebrating two legendary brothers

With December 17, 2023 marking the 120th anniversary of Orville and Wilbur Wright’s first controlled and sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft across the dunes of Kitty Hawk in North Carolina, we share images of the two brothers from Ohio that changed the world...

From the cockpit: the inside story of an SR-71 record-breaking flight

Key.Aero’s Dino Carrara interviewed pilot Ed Yeilding to hear about his time assigned to the SR-71 Blackbird. In this video he describes setting the US coast-to-coast speed record and the problems in-flight that almost thwarted the attempt

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FlyPast February 2024

The full issue in page-turning format

RAF Museum boost for Halifax project

Outer wing section from Hastings donated to Canadian rebuild effort

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Saluting a Bomber Command hero: Rusty Waughman 1923-2023

Bomber Command veteran Rusty Waughman has died, aged 100. In a memorable Aeroplane feature from 2018, Graham Finch interviewed him about his tour flying Lancasters on No 101 Squadron

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The Vickers Viscount that became an air racer

For the crew of the third Vickers Viscount, named Endeavour, the long-distance air race from London to Christchurch 70 years ago took them — and their aircraft — into new territory

A walk around tour of the iconic Bell UH-1 ‘Huey’

In the second of our Huey Flight Experience videos, chief pilot Neil Airey takes us on a tour of Huey 509 ‘Miss Joe’…

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Support the restoration of France's last flying Rapide

The Amicale Jean-Baptiste Salis is making excellent progress with its de Havilland Dragon Rapide restoration, but needs funding to see it through

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What is it like to fly Europe’s sole Me 262?

A privilege to fly! Tom Allett spoke to Airbus test pilot Geri Krähenbühl who has the pleasure of displaying the Manching-based Messerschmitt 262 replica...

Concorde – First To Last: A new film tribute

A new DVD and HD stream documents the history of a genuinely iconic airliner

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The Latest Historic Aviation News All in One Place

This is your one stop shop for everything you could possibly want to know about historic aviation. Historic aircraft flights, displays and renovations can all be found among the categories and articles linked to from this page.

Readers can find categories for Warbirds, restoration projects by individuals and organisations such as museums, and in-depth resources on iconic aircraft from all the corners of the globe. Whether it is the Hughes H-4 Hercules Spruce Goose, Boeing C-137 Stratoliner, Aerospatiale / British Aircraft Corporation Concorde, Tupolev Tu-144, Hawker Harrier jump-jet or any other historic commercial and military aircraft, the information is here at your fingertips.

Warbird News & Projects

Warbird enthusiasts spend their time bringing iconic military aircraft back to life and in some cases even back to a state of airworthiness. The name Warbird originally referred only to World War 2 era aircraft but has since been widened to include all historical military aircraft.

Popular Warbird types include the North American P-51 Mustang, Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane and the Messerschmitt Bf109. While one or two-seat fighters are affordable for the individual enthusiast to restore, aviation museums and groups of people take on much larger aircraft. Examples of these, include, the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and the Avro Lancaster. The most famous of recent years must be the Avro Vulcan supersonic bomber, which is now on a static display in the UK but flew for several years at airshows.

See all the latest Warbird projects here

Spitfire Fighter Aircraft

The Supermarine Spitfire is arguably the most iconic World War II era European aircraft. Credited with a significant role in the Battle of Britain victory against the Luftwaffe’s assault on Great Britain in the summer of 1940, the propeller driven fighter was designed by Reginald J Mitchell at Supermarine Aviation. Mitchell designed the Spitfire with the Rolls-Royce Merlin and Griffon engines in mind because he saw their potential when combined with the aircraft’s unique aerodynamics.

The Spitfire first flew on 5th March 1936 from Eastleigh Aerodrome. However, due to production issues and limitations in Supermarine’s manufacturing process, the first production Spitfire did not take to the skies for a further 2 years. The Spitfire was born four months after the maiden flight of its partner aircraft, the Hawker Hurricane. Together they would deny Nazi Germany air superiority over England and the English channel.

Find out more about the legendary Spitfire

Aircraft Restorations

The restoration of historical aircraft is a challenge full of difficult obstacles with missing engines, control system parts, and the need for significant fuselage, wing or tail repair. The long, slow process of restoring an aircraft to a flight worthy condition or simply for static display is taken up by many individuals, but also museums and groups of enthusiasts.

The restorations undertaken can be as small as a one-seat civilian bi-plane or the always popular Warbirds, or as large as a Lockheed C-121C Constellation. Museums that tackle large scale restorations include the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum in Missouri and the Museum of Flight in Everett, Washington. These museums have restored early propeller driven passenger aircraft and the early airliners built in the USA and Europe, like the de Havilland Comet.    

Read more aircraft restoration articles

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