The Blohm & Voss BV 238.

 The Blohm & Voss BV 238 was a German flying boat built during World War II. It was the heaviest aircraft ever built when it first flew in 1944, and was the largest aircraft produced by any of the Axis powers during World War II.

The German Blohm & Voss BV 222 Wiking (German for “Viking”) was the largest seaplane to achieve operational status during the Second World War. During its time in combat, it was notable as the largest aircraft in the war to get a kill against an enemy plane, but it also was the largest aircraft to be gunned down during the war.

Laser Bombs.

Charles de Gaulle Rafale Launches GBU-16 laser guided bombs.

https://seawaves.com/?p=11977

https://seawaves.com/?p=11977

Finland WWII.

 Morane Saulnier MS-406s, Finnish AF Latva Finland.

Singapore Flying Boat.

 

RAF Burnaston, Derby, during the 1940's, (WWII).

https://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=1393632&resourceID=19191

Douglas C-47 on floats.

The EDO corporation was developed amphibious floats for the C-47 cargo plane in the 1940s.  These floats were gigantic.  Reportedly, 32 sets of floats were developed for the C47.  However, only two sets of floats appears to have been installed on C47.

RNZAF.

 

Avenger-RNZAF-Bougainville-1944.

'Spruce Goose'.

The Hughes H-4 Hercules was a flying boat designed and built by the Hughes Aircraft Company. The Hercules is the largest flying boat ever built with the largest wingspan of any aircraft that had ever flown until the Scaled Composites Stratolaunch first flew on April 13, 2019.

The Gulf War. A B-52G Stratofortress aircraft refuels from a KC-135A Stratotanker aircraft over the Red Sea during Operation Desert Storm. 1991.

 

Dutch DC 3.

 

The cockpit of a B-29.

 

Fleet Air Arm (RN) Fairey Swordfish.

 

Junkers W.34's in Finnish service.

 

An OS2U Kingfisher making a landing on the water (1944).

 

The Dornier Do 24 is a 1930s German three-engine flying boat designed by the Dornier Flugzeugwerke for maritime patrol and search and rescue. According to Dornier records, some 12,000 people were rescued by Do 24s during its flying career. A total of 279 were built among several factories from 1937 to 1945.

 

Fleetwing Sea Bird extremely rare and unusual aircraft. Built in the 1930's.

 

The story of 2nd Lt Alphonsus J Thornton, and his Walrus

2 nd Lt Alphonsus J Thornton: Army Air Corps. On Jan 9th 1942, he flew an Air Corps aeroplane (Walrus No 18) from Rineanna Aerodrome (Shannon Airport today) to Cornwall without permission. He along with three others were trying to fly to Cherbourg and defect to the German Luftwaffe. They were Republicans and wished to fight the British. Their navigation skills were poor, and they landed in Cornwall. They were arrested and returned to Ireland. Thornton was tried by courtmartial and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment without hard labour.

‘… a few hardliners remained and wanted to fight against the British on the side of the Germans. One such man was Irish Air Corps pilot Alan Thornton who by late 1941 had become increasingly frustrated with his country’s position and he convinced three of his fellow servicemen to join him in defecting to the German Luftwaffe. With the promise of adventure fuelling the spirit of resistance against the British the three men agreed to follow him. On the 9th of January 1942 the four men made their move; secretly fuelling Supermarine Walrus No.18 and then quickly taking off. There was much confusion at Baldonnel (Rhynanna in the newspaper reports)as to what was happening but when it was realized that the aircraft didn’t have permission to take-off an Irish Air Corps Westland Lysander was quickly scrambled to go after them. However the defectors had got too much of a head start and the Lysander was unable to locate the lumbering Walrus as it flew south east. Thornton and his followers were aiming for Cherbourg where they intended to display their aircraft’s neutral colours to any intercepting Luftwaffe fighters in the hope this would be enough to avoid getting shot down on sight. This was an extremely dangerous thing to do as Luftwaffe pilots were well aware of the shape of the British-designed and built Supermarine Walrus aircraft that regularly operated in the channel. Knowing they couldn’t fly directly over the extremely heavily defended UK they planned to fly around the tip of Cornwall and then make a dash for the French coast. While they had passion and enthusiasm by the bucket-load it soon became apparent that they were somewhat lacking in their skills as navigators particularly over the Irish Sea where there are few landmarks to plot. They began wasting valuable fuel trying to get their bearings but with a large landmass in sight they decided to risk flying over it to try and identify just where they were. To their horror they soon found they were heading straight for Cornwall itself and no sooner had this realization come to them that they truly experienced what a country at war is like when four high speed monoplanes swooped down on them. They were another Supermarine product – Spitfires.

The high speed fighters contrasted sharply to the lumbering biplane amphibian that solemnly lowered its landing gear and touched down, its crew knowing they had failed in their attempt to join the Luftwaffe. As the aircraft was taxied off the runway it garnered a lot of fascination by the RAF personnel many of whom were unfamiliar with the orange, white and green Irish markings which led to some believing they were looking at a Dutch aircraft despite Holland having been overrun by Germany almost two years earlier.Thornton and his men gave no resistance as they were arrested by the RAF Police.

This is the actual plane that flew to Cornwall.The Supermarine Walrus L2301 is now located at Yeovilton FAA Museum in Somerset. .

The main fighter available to the Norwegian Air Force at the time of the German invasion in 1940 was the Gloster Gladiator. In small numbers and outdated compared to the German machines they could do little. In the pic an example adapted to winter conditions.

 

Martin P5M Marlin. The Martin P5M Marlin (P-5 Marlin after 1962), built by the Glenn L. Martin Company of Middle River, Maryland, was a twin piston-engined flying boat that entered service in 1951, and served into the late 1960s with the United States Navy performing naval patrols. It also served with the United States Coast Guard and the French Navy. 285 were produced.

 

Two seat Japanese Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka manned bombs used for Kamikaze mission training. 1945.

 

English Electric Canberra B.6s, WH948, WH958 and WT201, of No 12 Squadron based at RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire, are seen in flight in 1958.

 

The Commemorative Air Force's FM-2 Wildcat in Royal Navy markings, flying in formation with an SBD Dauntless.

 

 Captured German aircraft being shipped from Cherbourg, France to Newark, New Jersey aboard the American-built British escort carrier HMS Reaper as part of Operation Seahorse. Other aircraft and equipment were shipped aboard the Liberty-class merchant ship SS Richard J. Gatling.

Here are all the aircraft carried aboard the Reaper from July 19-August 1, 1945: Ten Me 262s, Five Focke-Wulf 190 Fs, Four Focke-Wulf 190 Ds, One Focke-Wulf Ta, 152 Four Arado Ar 234s, Three Heinkel He 219s, Three Messerschmitt Bf 109s, Two Dornier Do 335s, Two Bücker Bü 181s, One Doblhoff WNF 342, Two Flettner Fl 282s, One Junkers Ju 88 G, One Junkers Ju 388, One Messerschmitt Bf 108, One North American P-51 Mustang.  

Martin Mauler showing 3 2000lb bombs, twelve 5" rockets, and a full load of 20mm cannon shells. Could carry more than the Skyraider.

 

Mirage III RS, Swiss Air Force buzzing the Santis Hotel and cable car station, Säntis in Switzerland.

 

P-51 Mustangs seen through a window of a B-29 Superfortress bomber, during a Very Long Range (VLR) bomber escort mission over Japan - 1945.

 

Short Sunderland Mk 1 being launched in Gibraltar during WW2.

 

Mistel S2 Ju 88 and Fw 190, Merseburg Germany 1945.

 

The Sikorsky R-4 is a two-seat helicopter designed by Igor Sikorsky with a single, three-bladed main rotor and powered by a radial engine. The R-4 was the world's first large-scale mass-produced helicopter and the first helicopter used by the United States Army Air Forces, the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard and the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. In U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard service, the helicopter was known as the Sikorsky HNS-1. In British service it was known as the Hoverfly.

 

The first P-8A Poseidon fuselage for Norway has arrived at Boeing marking a major milestone in the production of the first of five Poseidons for the Royal Norwegian Air Force. A derivative of the Boeing 737 Next-Generation commercial aircraft, the P-8 is first assembled at Boeing Commercial Airplanes’ 737 production line, where the fuselage receives additional wiring and systems needed to support military components, equipment and operation. The aircraft is then delivered to Boeing’s Defense, Space & Security unit for the installation of military systems, testing and delivery to military customers.

 

Consolidated PB2Y-5H Coronado, JATO Take Off.

 

Navy F18 Super Hornet. Sonic boom on the sea.

 

The Sukhoi Su-57 (NATO (reporting name: Felon) is a stealth, single-seat, twin-engine multirole fifth-generation jet fighter being developed since 2002 for air superiority and attack operations.

 

The Bristol M.1 Monoplane Scout was a British monoplane fighter of the First World War. It holds the distinction of being the only British monoplane fighter to reach production during the conflict.

 

AH-64 Apache.

 

Assortment of British naval aircraft in the Pacific, early 1945: Seafire, Corsair, Hellcat, Barracuda, Hurricane (head on). Often the central red of the roundel was replaced by white in this theatre to avoid confusion with Japanese markings, but this was not universal as can be seen here.

 

RAF Bristol Blenheim Bomber L6739 G-BPIV, the only airworthy Blenheim in the world.

 

The most advanced air wing of today getting ready to deploy aboard USS Carl Vinson.

 

Chinese SH-5 Maritime Patrol Aircraft / Amphibious Aircraft / Wing-In-Ground aircraft (WIG).

 

German scientists testing a Messerschmitt Bf 109, 1940. The motto on the eagle behind the plane says, “The German people will, though conquest of the sky, force its duly place in the world."

 

The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, shoulder-winged multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or "Mossie".

 Extremely versatile plane: pathfinder, nightfighter, bomber, fighter bomber. Fast, good range with heavy armament.

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer strategic bomber landed for a brief refueling stop at the Bodø Air Base just north of the Arctic Circle on Monday, the first visit to the Arctic by such a plane