The Aviation Show

The Hawker Typhoon and the 3" Rocket Projectile, the RP-3, have a special place in the annals of the Second World War. In this first part of a series looking at the Hawker Typhoon, we take a deep dive into the RP-3 and some of the realities of this legendary, if wonderfully inaccurate, weapon. Check out The Aviation Historian website and get your copy of the new annual edition here: https://www.th...

I was recently given two prints by the renowned aviation artist, the late Robert Taylor. One is going on the wall, the other... Well, that is the focus of this video, as why would I want the signature of a man like Günther Rall, an ardent servant of fascism, hanging on my wall? You can listen to both parts of our Birds of Prey discussion with Dr. Philip Blood via The Aviation Show website here: ht...

The B-1B Lancer has been in service for 40-years and her later life has been incredibly busy. With the Lancer's replacement, the B-21 Raider, taking to the skies, you would think the B-1B could look forward to a well earned rest. But, as Kenneth P. Katz brings up to date on the B-1's story, we see that the Lancer's story is far from done. Buy The Supersonic BONE: A Development and Operational Hist...

A new president brings a new future to the B-1 Lancer program as the Reagan rearmament program sees development of the B-1 accelerated. The concurrent development and production brings its own headaches as the Lancer matures in time for a twenty year period of constant operations over Afghanistan and Iraq. Buy The Supersonic BONE: A Development and Operational History of the B-1 Bomber by Kenneth...

The B-1 Lancer was a highly innovative design, capable of high-speed, low-altitude flight and potentially could have been a vital buttress to the United States Nuclear Triad. But as we discuss in this second part of the B-1 story, post the Vietnam War, military spending was very much at the forefront of turbulent economic times. New President Jimmy Carter had to make a crucial decision about the f...

In this Bonus Episode, we've re-editted our conversation with Ken Katz about the B-1 from 2022 as the aircraft returns to the forefront of operations. The B-1 bomber is an aircraft that captivates all aviation buffs, a true creature of politics and engineering. The B-1's journey to nearly 40 years on the front line of the US Air Force has not been straightforward. Join us as Kenneth P. Katz, autho...

On Wednesday 25th March 2026, a collection of Sir Barnes Wallis', the inventor of the Bouncing Bomb and many other things, will do up for auction at Denhams in West Sussex, England. Leo Denham kindly invited us down to explore this incredible collection and get a closer look at some of the increibly important historical artifacts that Wallis kept in his personal collection. To find out more about...

The North American Aviation A-36 was a dive-bombing development of the Mustang I that had been specified by the British during the Second World War. The dive-bomber was ordered by the US Army Air Force to supplement their attack aircraft and saw service in the Mediterranean and the China-Burma-India theatres. But the A-36's story is overshadowed by its fighter sister, and matters get even more com...

In 1919, four British teams arrived in Newfoundland to attempt to be the first to fly across the Atlantic non-stop, the Big Hop, and claim the Daily Mail's £10,000 prize. Author David Rooney joins us at the Science Museum in London to discuss John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown's incredible flight with the aircraft they did it in, the Vickers Vimy, which is on display at the museum. Buy The Big H...

The Science Museum in South Kensington, London hold a bit of a hidden gem of an aircraft collection. On the top floor of the museum, some of the great aircraft of Britain's aviation heritage are displayed, like the Vickers Vimy that completed the first crossing of the Atlantic, Britain's first jet aircraft, the Gloster E38/29 and Amy Johnson's Jason, to name but a few. Doug Millard, the Deputy Kee...

For forty years, NATO and Soviet Naval forces patrolled the world's oceans. Retired Tornado driver and author Michael Napier joins us to discuss his latest book, Over Cold War Seas: NATO and Soviet Naval Aviation, 1949-1989 , which looks at the four-decade duel for control of the world's sea lanes and the aircraft that flew above them looking for what lurked above and beneath the waves. Buy Over C...

Best-selling author and imaging specialist Andy Saunders follows up his remarkable Apollo Remastered with Gemini and Mercury Remastered. Gemini was NASA's highly ambitious 20-month sprint to prove that they could get to the moon in time to meet President John F. Kennedy's challenge. Andy's remastering of the first space photography allows us to see our world the way NASA's Mount Rushmore of astron...

Over the course of 20 months, NASA flew 10 vital Project Gemini missions that proved everything needed to get to the Moon in time to meet President John F. Kennedy's challenge. Apollo 13 co-author Jeffrey Kluger joins us to discuss the unprecedented sprint that was Project Gemini. Buy Gemini: Stepping Stone to the Moon - The Untold Story by Jeffrey Kluger via our US Bookshop.org or on Amazon below...

Col. Eileen Collins, USAF Rtd., had a fantastic career before joining NASA. Her dream to go to space led her to become not only the first woman to pilot the Space Shuttle but also the first woman to command a space mission. In Spacewoman, a new documentary directed by Hannah Berryman, Eileen's career and its impact on her family are brought to light through a series of very open interviews, result...

In part two of our look at "The British Century Series" (not a thing), Joe Wilding and I continue iour look at the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum in West Sussex, England's collection and move onto the backbone of the RAF jet fighter force in the 1950s, the Supermarine Swift, English Electric Lightning and the incredible, wonderful and frankly perfect Hawker Hunter. Visit the Tangmere Military A...

When Joe Wilding and I first took a look at the US Air Force's Century Series 18 months ago, we always wanted to take a look at their British equivalent, and now we have! In part one of our look at "The British Century Series" (not a thing), Joe and I convened at the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum in West Sussex, England and had a look at some of the super unique aircraft in their collection, s...

Our tour of the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum continues as we check out the progress on the restoration of the former Red Arrow support aircraft, Folland Gnat T.1 XR571, and the recently completed De Havilland Vampire T.11 XH313. Visit the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum website here: https://tangmere-museum.org.uk/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559899811674 Instagram:...

The Tangmere Military Aviation Museum is a gem of a museum located on a corner of the former RAF Tangmere, just outside Chichester, West Sussex. On a surprisingly sunny Sussex day, marketing manager Julian Bridle kindly showed us around some of the gems of the collection, including my favourite Hawker Hunter, the bright red 1953 air speed record-breaking F.3 WB188. Visit the Tangmere Military Avia...

Author Stephen Chapis, whose new book, Poor Little Lambs, The Baba Black Sheep Story, joins us to discuss the making and flying of NBC's short-lived 1976 TV Show, Black Sheep Squadron. Stephen shares his journey rediscovering the series and interviewing pilots to capture their thrilling experiences. As his book releases for the 49th anniversary of the show, he hopes to reignite interest...

After many years out of the public's view, the Rolls-Royce Aerospace Collection has a brand new home at Aerospace Bristol and thanks to the fantastic team at the museum, we got to have a quick look around this historic collection of Bristol and Rolls-Royce aero engines. Visit the Aerospace Bristol website: https://aerospacebristol.org/ https://www.facebook.com/aerospacebristol/ https://twitter.com...

Bristol has been a vibrant hub for British aviation since aircraft first took to the United Kingdom's skies. While the skies of the West Country no longer hum to the aircraft and engines produced at Filton, Aerospace Bristol houses that history in an accessible and vibrant way. The Bristol Aero Collection Trust chair, Sir Iain Gray kindly showed us around the collection and talked us through Brist...

The life and legacy of Amelia Earhart are framed by her disappearance on July 2, 1937. However, in her new book,  The Aviator and the Showman , author Laurie Gwen Shapiro examines Earhart's remarkable accomplishments beyond her mysterious disappearance in 1937, focusing on her pioneering role in aviation and the significant impact of her marriage to George Putnam. Shapiro reveals how their re...

In 1942, a group of American women arrived in Liverpool, England. This group of aviatrixes, led by the remarkable Jackie Cochran, were joining the Air Transport Auxiliary to help deliver the latest aircraft to frontline RAF Squadrons. Author Becky Aikman joins us to discuss these intrepid women and their legacy. Buy Spitfires: The American Women Who Flew in the Face of Danger During World War II v...

The Bristol Brabazon was conceived at the height of the Second World War. With the tide of the conflict turning, the British Government set up a committee to examine the nation's future civil airliner needs post-war. The Brabazon I was the first aircraft specified and the first to fly. Its legacy is complicated, and author Alan J Porter joins us to argue the case for the Brab and the legacy it lef...

As Scott Marchand and Andrew Boehly, CEO and Director of Collections of the Pima Air and Space Museum, respectively, were in town, I had to drag them to the pub to find out what the future holds for the expanding Museum. With the arrival of Philippine Mars, the opening of the Tucson Military Vehicle Museum, and a raft of projects on the go, Scott and Andrew bring us up to speed with all the latest...