Firepower Breakdown - AC-130U Spectre

The AC-130U model Spectre. This particular aircraft is in operation with the 4th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Florida.

The primary mission of the AC-130U Spectre is to deliver precision firepower in support of Close Air Support (CAS) for special operations and conventional ground forces. CAS is defined as air action against hostile targets that are in close proximity to friendly forces and that require detailed integration of each air mission with the fire and movement of those forces. The Spectre can provide accurate fire support with limited collateral damage and can remain on station for extended periods of time. These activities are normally carried out under cover of darkness.

Bomber Breakdown - Petlyakov Pe-8

The Petlyakov Pe-8 was a Soviet heavy bomber designed before World War II, and the only four-engine bomber the USSR built during the war. Originally designated the TB-7, the aircraft was renamed the Pe-8 after its primary designer, Vladimir Petlyakov, died in a plane crash in 1942. Supply problems, inexperienced pilots and crews (compared to the pilots of the Luftwaffe), and persistent engine problems heavily hindered the bomber's effectiveness throughout the war. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Bombers 1939-1945 by Chris Chant. 

Bomber Breakdown - Douglas A-20G Havoc

The Douglas A-20G Havoc served as a widely used medium bomber in the U.S. Ninth Army Air Force from 1943-45. The Havoc played a significant role in support of U.S. ground forces during and after the Overlord invasion of Normandy. The bomber would also play a role on the Eastern Front (as many A-20Gs were delivered to the Soviet Union through Lend-Lease) and the Pacific Theater of Operations (used on low-level sorties in the New Guinea campaign). Image and specs excerpted from Allied Bombers 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

From the Pages - The German Aces Speak

Generalleutnant Walter Krupinski was one of those men destined to always tempt fate. His fatherly approach and genuine concern for the welfare of his pilots, as well as his respect for captured enemy pilots, illustrated his humanity in a world where savagery was the order of the day. He became a teacher to many pilots, the most notable being the future “Ace of Aces” Erich Hartmann, who learned well from “Krupi” and other experts in JG.52.

By the time Krupinski was awarded the Ritterkreuz (Knight’s Cross) on October 29, 1942, he had been credited with shooting down 53 Allied aircraft. His final score of 197 could have been much higher, but he never claimed a probable victory or argued over a disputed claim, always giving the victory to the other man. Krupinski probably gave away more than 30 potential victories in that manner.

In the following excerpt from The German Aces Speak, Krupinski recalls meeting, and eventually taking to the skies with, Hartmann.

Warbird Breakdown - Bell P-39L Airacobra

The Bell P-39 Airacobra was one of the principal American fighter aircraft in service when the United States entered World War II. It was the first fighter in history with a tricycle undercarriage and the first to have the engine installed in the center fuselage, behind the pilot. As a key fighter aircraft in the US Twelfth Air Force, the P-39 played an instrumental role in the skies above North Africa in 1942-43. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Fighter 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Bomber Breakdown - Fairey Barracuda Mk II

The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo- and dive bomber used during World War II, the first of its type used by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm to be fabricated entirely from metal. It was introduced as a replacement for the Fairey Swordfish, although the Swordfish remained largely preferred by many pilots. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Bombers 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Beyond the Book - Q & A with Colin D. Heaton, author of "The German Aces Speak"

During World War II, the Third Reich’s fighter pilots destroyed some 70,000 enemy aircraft during the war, with approximately 45,000 destroyed on the Eastern Front.

In his riveting new book The German Aces Speak, author and historian Colin D. Heaton sheds a fascinating, long-overdue light on four of Germany’s most honorable and skilled fighter pilots from World War II. It is a refreshingly in-depth look at the oft-misunderstood German legends who took to the skies, not for their Führer, but for their country.

Heaton recently took a moment to sit down with Zenith Press to discuss his new book, the larger-than-life German aces he was able to interview, and the wealth of first-hand stories that fill his new book's pages.

Bomber Breakdown - Short Sunderland GR. Mk III

The Short Sunderland GR. Mk III was a British flying boat patrol bomber developed for the Royal Air Force (RAF) by Short Brothers. It was one of the most powerful and widely used flying boats throughout World War II, and was involved in countering the threat posed by German U-boats in the Battle of the Atlantic. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Bombers 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Warbird Breakdown - Blackburn Skua Mk II

The Blackburn Skua Mk II was a carrier-based low-wing, two-seater, single-radial engine aircraft operated by the British Fleet Air Arm which combined the functions of a dive bomber and fighter. It was designed in the mid-1930s, and saw service in the early part of World War II. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Fighters 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Aviation Snapshot - Avengers Over Bairoko Harbor

During World War II, Japan used Bairoko Harbor to resupply its forces at Munda Point, an airstrip situated along the south coast of New Georgia. Allied forces deemed Munda critical for control of this section of the Solomon Islands and necessary for the continued progress northward toward Japan. In this photo, Marine TBF Avengers, stacked through the clouds in defensive formation, carry bombs to soften the Bairoko defenses on July 9, 1943. Official USMC photo, from New Georgia, Bougainville, and Cape Gloucester: The U.S. Marines in World War II by Eric Hammel.

Warbird Breakdown - Lockheed P-38L-5-LO Lightning

The Americans initially believed that the Boeing B-17 heavy bomber's high performance and defensive armament would permit daylight precision bombing with the need for fighter escort. Events proved them wrong. The Lockheed P-38L-5-LO Lightning was one of a number of U.S. fighter aircraft tasked with protecting the all-too-valuable Flying Fortresses as they attempted to destroy German industrial facilities between 1943-45. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Fighter 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Behind the Gates at Nellis Air Force Base

Home of the fighter pilot, Nellis AFB is one of the busiest bases in the world. Tyson Rininger

Nellis Range Complex
What makes Nellis AFB so valuable and the Red Flag exercise so successful is the Nellis Air Force Range (NAFR) or Nellis Range Complex (NRC). The range contains the largest area of land and controlled military airspace in the continental United States with weather that is reasonably predictable and suitable for year-round flying.

This enormous amount of land encompassed nearly 3,560,000 acres when established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940. Originally referred to as the Las Vegas Bombing and Gunnery Range, Executive Order 9019 returned approximately 937,730 acres to the authority of the Department of the Interior (DOI) in 1942. Five years later, the Tonopah Bombing and Gunnery Range turned over an additional 154,584 acres to the DOI. After a few more instances of trading back and forth with the DOI and the Bureau of Land Management, the Nellis Air Force Range, more formally known as the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR), currently consists of approximately 2.9 million acres of land. The airspace over an additional five million acres is shared with commercial aircraft encompassing the Nellis Range Complex.

Warbird Breakdown - Dewoitine D.510C.1

The Dewoitine D.510C.1 served as part of the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) that was numerically large and appeared formidable, but was in fact dependent largely on obsolescent aircraft, and was still suffering from the effects of political antipathies and the nationalization of the French aero industry in the mid-1930s. Until replaced by the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 in 1939, the Dewoitine D510 served as the primary fighter deployed in the defense of France in the earliest days of World War II. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Fighter 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Aviation Snapshot - F7F Tigercat

The beautiful-looking F7F Tigercat was Grumman's next major project, during and after F6F Hellcat production. The big fighter was build around two Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engines, which had worked so well in F6F fighter planes. Although delivered to United States Marine Corps combat units before the end of World War II, the Tigercat did not see combat service in that war, instead seeing service during the Korean War. Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy via Stan Piet, from F6F Hellcat at War by Cory Graff.

Warbird Breakdown - Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-3P

The Mikoyan Gurevich MiG-3P played a key role in the defense of Moscow in late 1941/early 1942. With the Germans closing in and Soviet armor and troop numbers perilously thin, the MiG-3, MiG-3P, and Lavochkin LaGG-3 were leaned on heavily in both air-to-air and air-to-ground combat operations during the wicked winter months. Image and specs excerpted from Allied Fighter 1939-1945 by Chris Chant.

Aviation X-Ray - The F-107 and the J75 Engine

The North American F-107 was North American Aviation's  entry in a U.S. Air Force tactical fighter-bomber design competition of the 1950s. The F-107 incorporated many innovations and radical design features, and was based on the F-100 Super Sabre. The competition was eventually won by the F-105 Thunderchief, and the F-107 prototypes ended their lives as test aircraft. 

The powerplant used in the prototype F-107A was the YJ75-P-11. The J75 engine was intended to meet the requirements for the next generation of supersonic aircraft. This photo shows the interior components responsible for the proper functioning of the J-75. Diagram courtesy of Pratt & Witney via Jack Connors, from F-100 Super Sabre at War by Thomas E. Gardner.

Aviation Snapshot - In the Driver's Seat of an F-16 Simulator

The F-16 Viper Driver's simulated office. Simulators have improved greatly over the years, and it is not uncommon for a pilot to walk away from the simulator drenched in sweat. Fighter simulators don't move, as human factors specialists determined years ago that a sim could not accurately replicate the violence of a real fighter. However, the brain believes what it sees, and if the sim freezes in a bank like this, the pilot will soon feel disoriented as his eyes and his butt argue about what attitude he is in. Photo courtesy of John M. Dibbs, from Viper Force: 56th Fighter Wing: To Fly and Fight the F-16.