An OL-2 showing the aircraft’s two open cockpits; it could be flown with a control wheel in the forward cockpit or a control stick in the rear cockpit.

A Plane for All Seasons

The Loening OL-series amphibians were among the most popular aircraft used by the U.S. military services between the world wars, being flown by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast ...

Norman Polmar
October 2023
XC-142A taking off

The Largest V/STOL Aircraft

One of the more unusual vertical/short-takeoff-and-landing (V/STOL) aircraft flown by the U.S. military services was the Ling-Temco-Vought XC-142.

August 2023
AD-3W Skyraider

The Electronic Skyraiders

One of the most versatile and durable naval aircraft was the Douglas AD/A-1 Skyraider.

Norman Polmar
June 2023
A PB-1W Flying Fortress

A Bomber Without Bombs

The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress—the most famous Allied bomber of World War II—was not the fastest bomber, nor did it have the largest bomb capacity, nor the longest range, nor ...

April 2023
The Shenandoah moored to the fleet oiler Patoka (AO-9)

Flying with Grace

During the 1920s and 1930s several large, graceful, rigid airships flew across the Atlantic and within the United States. Four of them were emblazoned “U.S. Navy.”

Norman Polmar
January 2023
VCS-7 pilots

A British Connection . . . Part 2

The second major U.S. Navy encounter with the Spitfire occurred during preparations for D-Day—the invasion of the Normandy coast of German-held France on 6 June 1944.

November 2022
Royal Air Force Spitfire V

A British Connection (Part I)

The U.S. Navy had a close and unusual relationship with the Supermarine Spitfire, one of the outstanding fighter aircraft of World War II.

Norman Polmar
September 2022
Hanriot biplane fighter

A French Connection

The first U.S. Navy fighter to go to sea was a variant of the French-built Hanriot HD-2 floatplane.

Norman Polmar
August 2022
JN-4H

Trainer, Barnstormer, and Icon

The Curtiss JN biplane—invariably known as the Jenny—was the most widely flown U.S. Army training aircraft in World War I.

Norman Polmar
May 2022
PV-1 Ventura

A Land-Based Patrol Bomber

While not as popular or well known as other maritime patrol aircraft of the World War II era, the Lockheed Venturas and Harpoons made a significant contribution.

Norman Polmar, Author, Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet
March 2022