A hilarious countdown of the black sheep of aviation, aircraft that have embarrassed their builders, enraged the owners and terrified their pilots. These are stories of aircraft that should have never been built, including highly imaginative concepts to “fly” tanks and jeeps directly onto the battlefield, a real flying saucer and starkly bizarre efforts to design and build a submarine that flies. We come to understand why these ideas were doomed from the start…
Narrator
A hilarious countdown of the black sheep of aviation, aircraft that have embarrassed their builders, enraged the owners and terrified their pilots. These are stories of aircraft that should have never been built, including highly imaginative concepts to “fly” tanks and jeeps directly onto the battlefield, a real flying saucer and starkly bizarre efforts to design and build a submarine that flies. We come to understand why these ideas were doomed from the start…
2007-12-01
0
The X-15 was the last in a line of manned rocket-powered research airplanes built during the 1950s to explore ever-faster and higher flight regimes. Nineteen years before Space Shuttle, the X-15 showed it was possible to fly into, and out of, space. Launched from the wing of a modified B-52 bomber, the ship rocketed higher and faster than any manned aircraft of the time. There had never been anything like the X-15; it had a million-horsepower engine and could fly twice as fast as a rifle bullet. In the joint X-15 hypersonic research program that NASA conducted with the Air Force, the Navy, and North American Aviation the aircraft flew over a period of nearly 10 years and set unofficial speed and altitude records, in a program to investigate all aspects of piloted hypersonic flight. Information gained from the highly successful X-15 program contributed to the development of the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo piloted spaceflight programs as well as the Space Shuttle program.
An exhilarating documentary film that celebrates the unsung hero of aviation - the local airport - by tracing the life, history, and struggles of an airport icon: Southern California's Van Nuys Airport. Featuring thrilling aerial photography and a sweeping original score, the film dispels common misconceptions and opposes criticism of General Aviation airports.
The iconic design of the Boeing 747 has endured for over 5 decades, but the end of production is looming. In this documentary special we follow the build of this last aircraft, whilst exploring how the 747 truly changed the world and influenced our lives in ways we never even realised.
The story of the rivalry between Boeing and Airbus is no doubt one of the greatest human and technological adventures of the 20th century. A modern-day western, with the protagonists trying out every underhand trick and bluff possible to achieve their aims. But it is also a story of power and influence, driven by geopolitical ambitions and struggles, where deals and contracts define a country.
Reg Sherren revisits the players and the places that were critical in the Gimli Glider incident of July 1983.
Two modern Red Arrows pilots take on the challenges faced by World War I pilots by performing photo reconnaissance, artillery ranging, and bombing missions in period aircraft - culminating in a classic dogfight.
This 2-DVD set focused on the development and combat history of the Grumman F4F Wildcat and was created from holdings at the National Archives, the National Museum of Naval Aviation, the Naval Historical Center, and the Marine Corps Historical Center. The F4F Wildcat was the front-line carrier fighter in the first days of the Pacific war - flying off legendary ships like the Lexington, Saratoga, Hornet, Yorktown, and Enterprise - the Wildcat held the line as America built for victory.
During the Vietnam War, the main threat to the strike packages was the V-750 (S-75) Dvina, the first effective Soviet surface-to-air missile (SAM). Better known by the NATO designation SA-2 Guideline To suppress and destroy this threat, the U.S. Air Force countered with the courage and skill of the Wild Weasels, who not only flew some of the most dangerous missions in Southeast Asia but also became pioneers in Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) operations. This documentary tells the story of the Wild Weasel program.
At any given moment hundreds of people are soaring above us in a 747. From the moment the very first jumbo jet took off in 1969, it has been the aircraft against which all others are judged. But its 45-year journey has been anything but smooth. This is the definitive story of the Boeing 747, from its milestones and triumphs to its turning points and disasters. Witness its history through rare archival footage and tales from pilots, engineers, designers, and passengers who were there when it all began.
Host Jack Perkins (of the A&E "Biography" series) takes to the skies to show us an aerial view of the state of Maine. From rocky coastlines to northern forests and everything in between, this breathtaking documentary presents a truly unique picture of one of the most wild and beautiful regions of the United States.
Engineer Dr Hugh Hunt revisits the little-known story of the First World War's Blitz, when the Zeppelin waged an 18-month terror campaign on the people of London.
Investigators reveal how Boeing’s alleged priority of profit over safety could have contributed to two catastrophic crashes within months of each other.
Follows the development of Canadair's super-executive jet. A totally new type of aircraft, it is faster, cheaper to fly, and more comfortable than any other business jet. Would it make it off the drawing board and into the air? The film captures the spirit of the Canadian air transport industry and its attempt to compete with its American counterparts...
The De Havilland Comet was the world's first passenger jet airliner. But less than two years into service, two aircraft blew up in mid-air, killing all aboard. PM Winston Churchill ordered an assemblage of experts to discover what went wrong - in the process, inventing many of the air crash investigation techniques still used today.
Fred Davis introduces us to Canadian Air Force operations in Zweibrucken, West Germany. Follow Green Section as they perform drills and explain what it takes to be a fighter pilot.
Panair do Brasil revives the story of the most important commercial aviation company in Brazil, between 1930 and 1965, with its commercial daring in establishing routes to the four corners of a continental country, taking the adventure of air transport to never-before imagined places, as well as the first international routes. Four decades after it closed its doors, it still retains a marked presence in the country's collective imagination for its pioneering spirit and stories of heroic deeds and for the bewilderment which was aroused by the facts surrounding its closure during the military regime.
An exceptional documentary which presents, for the first time colorized archives, on Charles Lindbergh's life, the hero of the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean on May 21, 1927.
The film tells of the beginnings of the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania. At the end of the 1950s, the Tanzanian National Park Administration wanted to fence in the protected area around the Ngorongoro Crater. Bernhard and Michael Grzimek were invited by the national park administration in 1957 to get a precise picture of the animal migrations and to provide the national park administration with the values they needed for their project. Using a new counting method with two airplanes, the Grzimeks found out that the migration of the herds was different than assumed.
Cold War Peacemaker is the amazing and unique story of the development of the B-36 very-long-long-range nuclear bomber. From its beginnings during WWII, through construction in a former wild-west cattle town and deployment into the Cold War, the story of the Convair B-36 and how it intimidated the Soviet Union is a fascinating study in politics and technology. In Cold War Peacemaker, experience life during the Cold War as your parents and grandparents lived it and discover and understand how the Convair B-36 played a vital role in saving the free world from communist domination.