There’s a world of aviation littered with remarkable machinery: each with its own stories of innovation, ambition, and at times tragedy. Impossibly unconventional, designed to perform a unique role in controlling the battlespace, the aircraft are anything but common. Often, they are seen in the skies for the quirkiest of moments or in a preserved, static museum. For aficionados of aviation history, historians, and/or picture enthusiasts, these handful of aircraft represent somewhat of an apex in aviation heritage. Let’s look at the tales of just a few extraordinary airplanes that still come alive in our minds.
The best epitomizing Cold War ambition is the North American XB-70 Valkyrie. Later developed in the 1950s, a strategic supersonic bomber was to fly at 70,000 feet and reach speeds up to Mach 3. The use of delta wing design with six powerful engines in its thrust gave it the feeling of an engineering marvel. Only two prototypes were made before the realization that high costs made it an unfeasible project, and the increasing number of intercontinental ballistic missiles greatly lessened its practical application. Of the two, only one survives and is now in good condition at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio.
Another of interest is the Convair NB-36H, more famously known as “The Crusader.” This experimental aircraft was designed and built during the early years of the 1950s to be a concept demonstrator for a nuclear-powered bomber. This aircraft, carrying a 1-megawatt nuclear reactor onboard that was never used to power the engines, flew 47 full test cycles before the whole program was junked because of insurmountable technical and environmental problems. The Convair NB-36H, fittingly, stands as a monument of ingenuity and ambition not unlike an artefact of the Cold War itself.
One of the most iconic rare aircraft is the Hughes H-4 Hercules, better known as the “Spruce Goose.” This monster flying boat was made mostly of wood because of material shortages during the war. Its designed purpose for the Second World War was the transportation of hundreds of men and supplies. The 320-foot wingspan still is the largest ever for a seaplane ever assembled. It was gargantuan in size but could fly for only 27 seconds in its first and last flight. Today, it is enshrined at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.
And then there was this, the AD-1 from NASA: it’s the oddest kind of plane put together, with an oblique wing that swivels through an angle of 0 to 60 degrees and is touted as having some optimized airflow characteristics across speeds. Handling issues and structural stresses stopped the development in its track since, though it flew 79 test sorties between 1979 and 1982, more was not to be had. The sole AD-1 now resides in the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, California.
The McDonnell XF-85 Goblin, more affectionately known as “parasite fighter,” is the smallest jet built to this date. It was to be carried inside the bomb bay of a Convair B-36 Peacemaker bomber—an incredibly large bomber, considering that it was a very agile machine, too; hence, it was very compact. Development was finally abandoned because of the issues of turbulence and docking procedures; only two prototypes would ever be built. One is on display in the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
Another marvel of aviation history, the Vought V-173 Flying Pancake, had its desolate structure designed with the whole body lifts toward a reduction in takeoff and landing distances, thereby allowing for phenomenal stability at low speeds. All these were coupled with problems in handling at higher velocities that killed the program with the arrival of jet engines. Today, the V173 flies at the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas.
The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow is a legend among aviation enthusiasts. This all-too-advanced, all-new interceptor, with high bypass, unreheated engines and the capability to fly at Mach 2 and 50,000 feet, was one of the best fighter planes of the Cold War. Its very promising run was brought to a close in 1959 by rising costs and political pressure. That climaxed all five prototypes having been destroyed, a grim end for Canada’s ambitious project.
One more very interesting plane from among the events of World War II was one of the Germans, the Dornier Do 335 Pfeil. That German fighter bomber was powered with a mechanical wonder in its push-pull engine mounting. Driven by such, the aircraft scored the title of the fastest piston-driven aircraft in the war. The top speed it peaked at was 474 mph. But it was put into development too late to impact the War, and only one preserved Do 335 is on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Virginia today.
The Lockheed A-12 was a high member of the ultra-secret Blackbird family, developed in the early 1960s. It could go over Mach 3 and have an altitude potential of 85,000 feet. Thirteen A-12s were built but saw service for only three years before being replaced by SR-71s. The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum situated in New York City hosts many of the A-12s.
The Bristol Brabazon is the very landmark of noble comfort in air travel. The late 1940s was the birth time of this British airliner, designed in no hurry to carry passengers except for comfort and cosiness on board with wide seats and catering, even a salon with a grand piano. Its cost and the changing market demand saw the project shelved after the construction of just one prototype. Brabazon lives on as a symbol of post-war aviation ambition.
These aircraft are so rare yet always come with a very great story and breakthrough design that can still make any aviation enthusiast be captured by their hearts. They became testimonials of the relentless search for new ideas and were part of the creation that left an endless print on history.
