The Stunning Search for the Remains of Fallen WWII Airmen
After three crewmen were swallowed up by the Pacific at the end of World War II, a modern-day rescue effort went to find them
Pioneering Teenage Parachuter Georgia ‘Tiny’ Broadwick Showed That Courage Isn’t Counted in Pounds
The first woman to parachute from an airplane, she will be recognized in an exhibit when part of the newly renovated National Air and Space Museum reopens this year
Amaze Yourself With the Unbelievable Story of Bessie Coleman, the Black Aviator Who Wowed the Nation With Her High-Flying Achievements
Long before the Tuskegee Airmen, Coleman inspired a generation of pilots to take to the skies
Synthetic Voices Shed Light on the Deep-Rooted Gender Biases Embedded in our Tech
An expert on the impacts of information technologies on society considers how talking machines got their male- and female-sounding voices
Carrots Can’t Help You See in the Dark. Here’s How a World War II Propaganda Campaign Popularized the Myth
The British government claimed that eating carrots helped its fighter pilots shoot down German planes at night. In truth, the Royal Air Force relied on top-secret radar
Remains of Bomber Pilot Identified 80 Years After His Plane Went Down During World War II
Herbert G. Tennyson was a U.S. Army pilot on a B-24 nicknamed “Heaven Can Wait,” which crashed into the ocean in early 1944
A 785-Foot Airship Crashed on This Day in 1935. The Location of the Wreck Site Remained a Mystery for More Than 70 Years
The USS Macon crash brought a quick end to the U.S. Navy’s vision of “flying aircraft carriers” powered by helium gas
The Enduring Mystery of a Plane That Vanished in the Icy Canadian Wilderness With 44 People On Board
Seventy-five years ago, a Douglas C-54D Skymaster disappeared en route from Alaska to Montana. No trace of its crew and passengers, including a pregnant mother and her young son, has ever been found
The Trial of Bruno Richard Hauptmann—Accused Murderer of the Lindbergh Baby—Began in New Jersey on This Day in 1935
The German-born man was convicted of kidnapping and killing the son of pilot Charles Lindbergh
NASA Radar Detects Abandoned Site of Secret Cold War Project in Greenland—a ‘City Under the Ice’
Camp Century was built in 1959 and advertised as a U.S. research site—but it also hosted a clandestine missile facility
Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries
Take Flight With These 15 Awe-Inspiring Aviation Images
See airplanes of all sizes, shapes and colors from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest
An American Bomb Left Over From World War II Explodes at an Airport Taxiway in Japan
No one was injured in the blast, and authorities are investigating why the ordnance detonated after so many years underground
Scientists Use Cold War-Era Spy Plane to Find Unexpected Gamma Rays in Thunderstorms
The new findings bring storm researchers one step closer to solving the mystery of how lightning forms
Scientists Have Found Bacteria and Fungi 10,000 Feet Up in the Air
The discovery has implications for human health, since the microbes included some that were still viable, some that could be infectious to humans and others that carried drug-resistant genes
The Odd Arctic Military Projects Spawned by the Cold War
Many offbeat research efforts were doomed to fail, from atomic subways to a city under the ice.
Tired of Diplomacy as Usual, This Congressman Flew Solo to Promote World Peace
Representative Peter F. Mack’s soaring diplomatic ambitions made aviation history as he traveled through Europe, South Asia, Japan and then across the vast Pacific Ocean
Untold Stories of American History
Twenty-Five Years Before the Wright Brothers Took to the Skies, This Flying Machine Captivated America
First exhibited in 1878, Charles F. Ritchel’s dirigible was about as wacky, dangerous and impractical as any airship ever launched
Climate Change Is Making Airplane Turbulence More Common and Severe, Scientists Say
Following turbulence on a flight last week that led to one death and dozens of injuries, researchers, flight attendants and transportation officials alike are warning about links between warmer air and turbulence
Bette Nash, Longest-Serving Flight Attendant in the World, Dies at 88
Nash became a flight attendant in 1957 and never stopped working
A New Airline for Dogs Takes Flight
Bark Air made its inaugural flight from New York and Los Angeles this week. But seats are pricey, costing up to $8,000
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