Which era of planes is your favorite?

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AgBQ-00
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10:46a, 10/24/24
AG
Early Aviation/Bi-Planes


WWII / Golden era Prop Planes


1st gen jets


2nd gen jets


3rd gen


4th gen


5th gen
God loves you so much He'll meet you where you are. He also loves you too much to allow to stay where you are.

We sing Hallelujah! The Lamb has overcome!
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Sapper Redux
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11:13a, 10/24/24
3rd and 4th gen are the ones that fascinate me. The technology and the soul in the planes is amazing. 5th gen feels sterile to me.
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AgBQ-00
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12:08p, 10/24/24
AG
For me it comes down to golden era prop planes and 3rd or 4th gen jets.

The prop planes because those guys had to be so in tune with their plane and the feats of navigation they had to pull off to accomplish their missions.

3rd and 4th gen jets because they are such good looking planes and the things they could do while also being designed by guys with slide rules and a drawing board. I don't know that I could pick.

5th gen planes are great but much of the capability is outside the pilot's control. I suspect if they were unmanned they'd be doing stuff no one ever imagined a plane could accomplish.
God loves you so much He'll meet you where you are. He also loves you too much to allow to stay where you are.

We sing Hallelujah! The Lamb has overcome!
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ABATTBQ87
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1:13p, 10/24/24
AG
Give me the spitfire, hurricane and mustang
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DrEvazanPhD
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2:11p, 10/24/24
Golden era prop. There's just something inherently graceful about those planes, while still remaining incredibly primitive machines.
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jwoodmd
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4:10p, 10/24/24
Easy - ALL of them
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one safe place
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5:31p, 10/24/24
WWII without a doubt. None of my family or friends of my parents who served in that war flew planes, but all of them fought where those planes played a part in their landings/fighting.
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Jugstore Cowboy
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11:46p, 10/24/24
AG
Not an aviation guy, but transitional technology is always fascinating. The leap from wind power to jet power will never not be interesting.
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USAFAg
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9:50a, 10/25/24
AG
WWII / Golden era Prop Planes

12thFan/Websider Since 2003
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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3:19p, 10/25/24
AG
Well, I have to say all of them. So long as they drop bombs on people or shoot down other planes (i.e., not a freaking bus with wings) then I like them.

But, one of my earliest memories is going into a store (K-Mart, I think) with my parents and finding a Monogram P-40B Flying Tiger model on the toy shelf. I was 3, and that was the first model airplane I ever built.

So WWII aviation tops my list. Flying Tiger, Hellcat, Corsair, P-38, P-51, P-61, Spitfire, Hurricane, Typhoon, Bf-109, Fw190, A6M Zero. B-17, B-24, B-25, B-26, B-29, Lancaster, Ju88, Do17, Do217, G3M Nell, G4M Betty.

A close second would be the early jet age, particularly with the F-86. That airplane looks fast just sitting on the tarmac.

For Kyle Field flyovers, give me anything with multiple loud engines and afterburners.
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Gunny456
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11:31a, 10/27/24
AG
WWII/Golden Era Props.
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Flying Crowbar
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8:16p, 10/27/24
AG
The Golden Era prop planes and 3rd/4th generation jets are probably my favorite, however the X-planes from the X-1 through the XB-70 (late 1940s to late 1960s) really fascinate me.
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Rabid Cougar
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In reply to Cinco Ranch Aggie • 10:46a, 10/28/24
AG

nm
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nortex97
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In reply to AgBQ-00 • 12:54p, 10/28/24
AG
Century series, hands down.


Crude electronics (basically WW2 era), supersonic, afterburners, all the fun stuff. B-47, B-52, B-58 at the same time. These programs are often over-simplified/dismissed historically but really were engineering marvels of their era, regardless of production volumes/combat stats. I don't think many military aviation nerds would ever deny the penultimate 'cool factor' of the XB-70, though.

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Rabid Cougar
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1:09p, 10/28/24
AG
The baddest of the bad....

F-22; F-22 1000 FPS. Demo.

The full speed video doesn't do it justice...
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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In reply to nortex97 • 2:02p, 10/28/24
AG
nortex97 said:
Century series, hands down.


Crude electronics (basically WW2 era), supersonic, afterburners, all the fun stuff. B-47, B-52, B-58 at the same time. These programs are often over-simplified/dismissed historically but really were engineering marvels of their era, regardless of production volumes/combat stats. I don't think many military aviation nerds would ever deny the penultimate 'cool factor' of the XB-70, though.


Some of my favorites as well. Your photo is missing one of the deltas, I'm guessing the F-106 Delta Dart.
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BQ78
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In reply to Cinco Ranch Aggie • 2:25p, 10/28/24
AG
I've got a sweet spot for the F-106. My parents told me they knew I could hear as a new born baby because when the F-106s hit the afterburners taking off from Lindbergh Field I would jump.

My dad was an engineer at Convair his whole working life and next to his work in Kearny Mesa in San Diego was Missile Park. It was a park for Convair/GD families to enjoy, very nice and fun place. When they first opened Missile Park the centerpiece was a fully intact F-106 with only the engine removed. I spend hours climbing all over that thing, sitting in the cockpit twisting the joy stick and squeezing through the space left by the engine removal.

One day I was out there alone sitting in the cockpit playing fighter pilot and I punched the radio button and asked for clearance to take off and got an answer "What do you need?" Freaked me out and I ran back to the family car where my mom was waiting and told her someone talked to me over the radio. I really thought that. My guess it was someone on the loudspeaker at the nearby Atlas Factory.

Those were the days. Could you imagine letting kids climb all over a jet aircraft today? I'm guessing even in the 60s there were enough injuries on it, because shortly after the 70s began it was removed from the park. Was I ever bummed.
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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In reply to BQ78 • 3:46p, 10/28/24
AG
BQ78 said:
I've got a sweet spot for the F-106. My parents told me they knew I could hear as a new born baby because when the F-106s hit the afterburners taking off from Lindbergh Field I would jump.

My dad was an engineer at Convair his whole working life and next to his work in Kearny Mesa in San Diego was Missile Park. It was a park for Convair/GD families to enjoy, very nice and fun place. When they first opened Missile Park the centerpiece was a fully intact F-106 with only the engine removed. I spend hours climbing all over that thing, sitting in the cockpit twisting the joy stick and squeezing through the space left by the engine removal.

One day I was out there alone sitting in the cockpit playing fighter pilot and I punched the radio button and asked for clearance to take off and got an answer "What do you need?" Freaked me out and I ran back to the family car where my mom was waiting and told her someone talked to me over the radio. I really thought that. My guess it was someone on the loudspeaker at the nearby Atlas Factory.

Those were the days. Could you imagine letting kids climb all over a jet aircraft today? I'm guessing even in the 60s there were enough injuries on it, because shortly after the 70s began it was removed from the park. Was I ever bummed.
That's a great story.

I grew up in Lake Jackson, but this was a few years before my time. In Jasmine Park, there was a city building where kids could go see movies for free in the summer time. Parked next to that building was a F-84 Thunderjet. It was much as you described the -106, with only the engine removed. It was apparently a big deal for kids to play all over that plane as well. Wish I had been old enough to have been able to hop into that thing.

A few years after the F-84 disappeared from the park, I remember driving through town with my dad when I spied a metal object sitting in a field where Dixie Drive dead ends (it's now a huge neighborhood). It was a drop tank of the same style that the F-84 would have carried.
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JABQ04
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4:08p, 10/28/24
AG
WWII era. Those planes were/are sexy. I live close enough to Ellington I can see a lot of the Wings over Houston air show, and when a flight of those planes go over, man that sound is something. I couldn't imagine looking up to see 1000+ B-17/B-24 and several hundred fighter escorts.
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BigJim49 AustinNowDallas
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12:41p, 11/15/24
AG
P38
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Rabid Cougar
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1:16p, 11/15/24
AG
The era of the plane that is currently over head.
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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In reply to Rabid Cougar • 12:30p, 11/16/24
AG
Rabid Cougar said:
The era of the plane that is currently over head.
And what plane would that be?
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Rabid Cougar
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In reply to Cinco Ranch Aggie • 10:56a, 11/18/24
AG
Cinco Ranch Aggie said:
Rabid Cougar said:
The era of the plane that is currently over head.
And what plane would that be?
As I break out my Trusty Flightradar 24 App... At my office in Bosque County there is currently an A319 going from Love to Austin and a 737 from Los Vegas circling in the southwest approach to DFW waiting its turn to land... DFW is pretty stacked up right now due to weather.

Very cool to see where the airlines have come from. I live on the northern approach to Austin. They make a left turn over Waxahachie and follow I-35 all the way to Austin. Very neat to see the big Triple 7s and and Airbuses coming in from Europe. Even cooler are the A380's going into Houston.. They make the same turn at Waxahachie and approach Bush from the northwest.

I am a lot of fun to ride with in the car. Get up around Wichita Falls, I am dangerous driving on the highway. Rubber necking the T-6's and T-38's that are zooming overhead as track them on the phone and driving 80 miles an hour.

PLANE NERD in general !

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Rex Racer
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In reply to USAFAg • 1:30p, 11/18/24
AG
USA*** said:
WWII / Golden era Prop Planes
This is my favorite era, as well.

There were some beautiful planes during those years.

My favorites:

  • Lockheed P-38 Lightning
  • Vought F4U Corsair
  • Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
  • Junkers Ju 87 Stuka
  • North American Aviation P-51 Mustang
  • North American Aviation B-25 Mitchell
  • Supermarine Spitfire





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nortex97
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2:40p, 11/18/24
AG
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AgBQ-00
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6:29p, 11/18/24
AG
On topic. Watching mystery science theater and they are watching Starfighters. About the f104
God loves you so much He'll meet you where you are. He also loves you too much to allow to stay where you are.

We sing Hallelujah! The Lamb has overcome!
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agfan2013
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8:52a, 11/19/24
AG
4th gen


My mom worked for General Dynamics up in Fort Worth for a few years in the 1980s, so I had plenty of F-16 toy models, a picture or two hung up in my room, and more. I still have a GD branded change holder in my truck I use.

Went to the Houston airshow a couple of weeks ago and got to see the F-16 Demo team and Blue Angels. Took this pic while we were there, thought the throwback livery since it's the 50 year anniversary of the Viper was really cool.
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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In reply to agfan2013 • 10:04a, 11/19/24
AG
agfan2013 said:
4th gen


My mom worked for General Dynamics up in Fort Worth for a few years in the 1980s, so I had plenty of F-16 toy models, a picture or two hung up in my room, and more. I still have a GD branded change holder in my truck I use.

Went to the Houston airshow a couple of weeks ago and got to see the F-16 Demo team and Blue Angels. Took this pic while we were there, thought the throwback livery since it's the 50 year anniversary of the Viper was really cool.
Oh, that's beautiful. The F-16 is a nice airframe, but when painted in that livery, wow.
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UTExan
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11:40a, 11/19/24
The DeHavilland Mosquito


Used for everything: precision bombing, anti-ship strike with a 57 mm gun. The thing was largely made of wood and took a lot of punishment and could fly low and fast.
“If you’re going to have crime it should at least be organized crime”
-Havelock Vetinari
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KingofHazor
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In reply to UTExan • 1:18p, 11/19/24
UTExan said:
The DeHavilland Mosquito


Used for everything: precision bombing, anti-ship strike with a 57 mm gun. The thing was largely made of wood and took a lot of punishment and could fly low and fast.
Also, if memory serves, it had an surprisingly large payload capacity.
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Cinco Ranch Aggie
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In reply to KingofHazor • 2:23p, 11/19/24
AG
Jabin said:
UTExan said:
The DeHavilland Mosquito


Used for everything: precision bombing, anti-ship strike with a 57 mm gun. The thing was largely made of wood and took a lot of punishment and could fly low and fast.
Also, if memory serves, it had an surprisingly large payload capacity.
The Mossie could carry up to 4000 lbs of bombs. It was also an airframe that could serve in multiple roles - fighter, bomber, fighter/bomber, torpedo bomber, night fighter, and trainer.

Oh, and the Mosquito was featured in this great WWII movie:


Lots of similarity to Star Wars from many years later.
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nortex97
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1:51p, 12/5/24
AG
The B-54 cancellation (B-29 on steroids) is what really led to the B-47, and later B-52/Dash80 that beget the 707/modern jetliner era.



The B-52 design team basically laid it out over a weekend in Ohio called the "Dayton Weekend:"

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nortex97
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9:17a, 1/1/25
AG
Slightly later but not much vs. the century series:


Ryan XV-5A
Quote:
The Key West Agreement forbad the Army from arming their organic fixed-wing aircraft, so it was left to the Marines to get the Harrier, and the Army had to fight tooth and nail to get the Air Farce to come out with the A-10, which they've since tried to kill off every year since it was first proposed, right up to now.

To the Air Farce, CAS stands for Can't Accommodate you, Suckers.
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TRD-Ferguson
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In reply to Cinco Ranch Aggie • 9:21a, 1/1/25
AG
Saw that movie at the Winkler Drive-In in Houston when I was a kid. Immediately hooked on the Mossie! Love that movie.
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chick79
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9:55a, 1/1/25
AG
B24 Liberator. My Dad was a pilot during WW2.
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