Aircraft Questions
Questions addressed in this section are predominantly focused on a particular airplane or type of aircraft. Since
the majority of the questions we receive fall into this category, we have divided the material into separate
categories of Military and Civilian aircraft for ease.
Military:
Why did the PB2Y-5 have 4-bladed propellers inboard and 3-bladed props
outboard?
Why do C-130s fly so low over Tullahoma, TN?
Who designed the Mirage fighter?
On a recent holiday in Portugal, I came across this aircraft in a children's
playground, of all places. At first, I thought it was the Me 262. After checking your site, though, I am
wrong. Could you please identify it for me?
What is the static thrust of the SR-71 Blackbird?
What do you know about the Convair Kingfish? Got any pics or design info?
How does the Harrier hover with its jet engine?
How does a Harrier fly? Does it hover like a helicopter or by pushing off
the ground?
What is the maximum altitude at which an AV-8 Harrier can hover? How long is
its maximum hover time?
Will the F-35B variant of the JSF be able to take off vertically? It is
called the STOVL model for Short Take Off and Vertical Landing, which leads me to believe otherwise. If
not, then how will the F-35B be able to truly replace the Harrier? Will it still be able to operate from
amphibious assault ships like the Harrier does?
Do you know what the relationship is between the Yak-36 and Yak-38?
Could you please send me any armament info you have for the F-4F used by
Germany? Can it carry the AIM-120 AMRAAM?
How much does an F-14 Tomcat cost? Is there a dual control trainer
version? What is the aircraft's absolute altitude? What is the maximum radar range of the F-14 in
air-to-air combat? Did the F-14 serve in Vietnam?
I want to know more about the F-14 replacement. I saw a picture of a swing
wing F-22.
I would like to know about the F-14A Tomcat used by Iran.
Do you know how many Iraqi aircraft were shot down by Iranian F-14 Tomcats
in the war between the two countries?
Do you have any information about the different proposals for the LWF
competition that resulted in the F-16?
I've noticed that some versions of the F-16 have a strip of four raised
bumps just forward of the canopy glass on the nose and some do not. What are these bumps for?
I know that Navy carrier-based aircraft are equipped with tailhooks. Why do
the F-15 and F-16 both have one? Is it possible for these planes to land on an aircraft carrier?
In the article dealing with the aircraft numbering system in use by the
military, the information about the F-18 should be changed. The original design of the aircraft was the
F-17. It was changed after the McDonnell company took the original project over from Northrop.
When you look at the F-18A/B/C/D airplanes, it is evident that their wing tips
have a large twist. But the F-18E/F, I have learned, has no twist at all. Why are the wing twists so
different between A/B/C/D and E/F models? They look so similar.
I was wondering what the small vertical fins on the leading-edge extensions
of the F/A-18 are. They are just aft of the cockpit on both sides of the plane. I have noticed that there
are photos of NASA Hornets that do not have them.
What is the U.S. Navy's unofficial name for the F-18E/F Super Hornet? And
why is it used?
I am 12 years old and hope to become a fighter pilot in the Navy. My
favorite plane is the F-18 Super Hornet. How long will this plane stay in service?
Why are the stabilizers on planes like the F-18 and F-22 slanted?
What is the basic aircraft configuration (no. of aircraft of each type of plane
carried) on the U.S.S. Nimitz and U.S.S. Constellation?
Why did the Luftwaffe take such a harsh attitude with the East German
aircraft it absorbed in 1991...?
What makes the B-2 bomber so expensive?
The C-17 can't carry M1s. At 85,000 kg capacity, the best it can do is a
couple of light armored vehicles.
...I am trying to find out if the Su-33 has twelve or ten hardpoints. If the
answer is twelve hardpoints are these viable loads: eight R-27 Alamo and four R-73 Archer missiles, or six
R-27 and six R-73.
What can you tell me about the history of the F-22?
How many missiles can the F-22 hold?
Does the Joint Strike Fighter have an internal gun? What are the weapon
loads? It does not seem to have as much internal space as the F-22.
What fighter will serve the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps? What is the
difference between the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter? ... Which aircraft is for which
service?
Your site describes the results of the X-43A 2001 flight accident
investigation, and plans for a resumption of testing by mid-2003. It is now mid-2003. What is the status
of the X-43 program?
Is there a timeline or expected service date for a Common Support Aircraft?
How far is the Navy from actually implementing such a program. Also, will pilots be transferred to this
new airframe as their older airframes are relieved? How will this work?
Do military aircraft ever break the sound barrier over residential areas? My
friends say they never do, but I disagree because if the planes fly high enough, no one on the ground would
be able to hear the sonic boom. Am I right?
Civil:
Can you show me a diagram of the seating for passengers on different
planes? I am looking for the seat layout in different plane types so I know which seat to request when I
book a flight. What is the seating configuration on the 757, 767, and A330? How do the row and seat
numbers appear?
I heard that the Lear Jet is in fact based on a Swedish fighter plane. I've
tried researching it myself but came up empty handed. So, what is this fighter?
Why has Boeing used the number seven to prefix all of its commercial
airplanes? Is there any story behind the naming of the first model the 707? What does the number signify,
if anything?
Do you know the Boeing customer number list? Each customer was assigned
a number, so the 727-200 for Braniff became a 727-227, for Pan Am it was designated a 727-221, etc.
When they say an airplane is a 767-300, what does the 300 mean?
Boeing has its customer codes, but what about Airbus? Can you explain
designations like A330-343X, A330-321, A340-313X, and A300B4-203(F)?
How many Boeing commercial aircraft were built prior to 2002? In other words,
how large is the existing fleet of Boeing commercial aircraft?
In the 1964 James Bond film "Goldfinger," a commerical airliner is shown that
has a fuselage with a profile that looks exactly like the Boeing 747. Do you folks know what kind of plane
this is? I have two screen shots of the planes in question taken from the film.
Can you tell me how much a 747-100 weighs without engines and fuel?
I own a flight simulator and one day while I was piloting a 747-400, the
plane went out of control. ... To my atonishment, the speed of the aircraft shown on the instrument panel
appeared to be Mach 1.11. Is that possible?
Here are pictures of a Volkswagen towing a 747. This 747 seems to have two
engines on the inner engine mount. It also has a registration N9747P. A search shows this registry
belongs to a light aircraft and also suggests it is a fake registration used for film work. What is the
story behind this 747?
How much did it cost to build Concordes? How many were built? When
did Concorde make its first commercial flight? What airlines operated the Concorde? Was it ever offered
to the British or French military services? How many passengers could the Concorde hold? What was the
spray guard used in the landing gear of the Concorde? What are the reasons for the failure of Concorde?
What improvements could be made to it?
How did Concorde get its name? Can you explain Concorde's fuel transfer at
transonic speeds? When will there be a replacement for Concorde?
How much did the Concorde expand in flight due to heat expansion? What
museums have Concorde on display? What kinds of supersonic passenger jets will there be in the future?
On the Concorde, what is the purpose of the nose cone that can move
horizontally? Why does the Concorde have a drooped nose?
Can an Airbus A300 release fuel in mid-air? Do most airliners have that
ability?
Did the JetBlue Airbus A320 that had to make an emergency landing because
of a landing gear problem have the ability to eject fuel in flight? If so, why did they fly around for
three hours?
When a plane dumps fuel, where does the fuel go? Does it land on my car
or in somebody's swimming pool? Does it evaporate? Or does it mess up the ozone layer even more than it
already is?
I am flying to Switzerland on a Boeing 763. I've never heard of one; can you
fill me in, and possibly provide a picture?
I've heard that the diameter of the engines on the Boeing 777 is comparable to the
fuselage diamater on a Boeing 737. Is that true? I know they're big but are they really THAT big?
...I'd like to ask about the Boeing 757's engine and fuselage diameters. When
you look at a 757 directly from the front, it seems that the engines are at least as wide as the
fuselage.
In the opening of the movie "Octopussy," James Bond escapes his foes by
flying a tiny little plane. Is it real? Or at least practical?
Why does the Guinness Book of World Records consider the BD-5J to be the
world's lightest jet aircraft? I can't imagine it weighing less than a version of the French Cri-Cri
modified to use two jet engines from radio control aircraft.
How dangerous would a bomb be to a commercial airliner? Have many
airliners been attacked before?
How fast was the second aircraft to hit World Trade Center going? My son says he
timed it watching the tape, and that it was 500 mph.
What can plane manufacturers do to prevent hijackings like those at the WTC and
Pentagon?
Fakes:
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