aviation
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The U-2 Spy Balloon Selfie and the Grand History of Pilot Self-Portraits
On February 2, as China’s high altitude balloon drifted over the continental United States, the Air Force sent two U-2 spy planes to scope it out. The planes, Cold War relics still flying fine this far into the 21st century, can operate above 21,336.00 m, making them the only crewed plane that could descend to…
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NASA’s X-57 Maxwell Could Bring Aviation Into the Electric Future
NASA’s X-57 Maxwell team is a winner of the 2023 Gizmodo Science Fair for designing a fully electric propulsion aircraft and new aeronautic technologies in the process.
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Could the Next Air Force One Be Supersonic?
Air Force One has been a symbol of America’s preeminent position as a global power in the aerospace industry for the last 60 years. The callsign, iconic blue-and-white livery and jet-powered aircraft used for the role have become as associated with the American presidency as the White House. However, a supersonic passenger aircraft has never…
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Why the U.S. Is Suddenly Shooting Down So Many Balloons
At 2:42 pm Eastern on Sunday, February 12, mere hours before the Super Bowl kickoff, a pilot flying an F-16 fighter jet shot an AIM 9X missile at an airborne object 6,096.00 m above Lake Huron. The pilot did so at the direction of President Biden and the Secretary of Defence, and the event marked…