The Aviationist Blog

Leeuwarden Air Base in The Netherlands is currently hosting the large-scale international exercise Frisian Flag 2019. Freelance photographer and reporter Edwin Schimmel visited Leeuwarden and here’s his report for The Aviationist. Frisian Flag is a [...]

What an incredible footage of the 302nd Squadron Phantoms! On Mar. 19, 2019, the 302nd Squadron of the Japan Air Self Defense Force made its last flight with the F-4EJ “Kai” Phantom. The 302nd was [...]

The AMX A-11 “Ghibli” aircraft have been replaced by the Eurofighter Typhoons. As already reported, four Italian Air Force F-2000A jets have replaced the AMX ACOL jets in the air war against Daesh in Iraq [...]

Looks like a Portuguese Maritime Patrol Aircraft operating out of Poland violated the airspace of Finland. A Portuguese P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft, belonging to the 601st Squadron violated the Finnish airspace, claims the Finnish [...]

ItAF aircrews with the 62nd FS were literally enthusiastic about their first Red Flag with the new 5th generation aircraft. Red Flag 19-2 has come to an end at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, on [...]

AH-1Z Viper Was Participating in USMC Weapons and Tactics Instructor’s Course. Two U.S. Marines, Maj. Matthew M. Wiegand, 34, of Ambler, Pennsylvania, and Capt. Travis W. Brannon, 30, of Nashville, Tennessee, have been identified as [...]

Secret Two-Seat Variant Uses Additional Crewmember to Counter Anti-F-35 Social Media Posts. Israel has unveiled their previously classified F-35F Nebekh Joint Social Media Fighter (JSMF). The new rear seat position in the two-seat F-35F Nebekh [...]

Amazing Shot by Photographer Liyu Wu Shows Unbelievable Pass (And Telephoto Compression). Ace aviation photographer Mr. Liyu Wu shot this remarkable photo of no less than three Airbus Defense A400M Atlas aircraft and three (or [...]

A contingent made of fighters, helicopters and CAEW (Conformal Airborne Early Warning) aircraft is enforcing an ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone) around Rome, during Xi Jinping visit to Italy. Preceded by another identical Air China [...]

It’s not clear whether the ejection was triggered voluntarily, by accident or because of a malfunction. A 64-year old civilian passenger was accidentally ejected from a French Air Force twin-seat Rafale B fighter jet as [...]

Two Russian Navy Tu-142 Bear-F long-range maritime patrol reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare aircraft were intercepted by the Italian Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. On Mar. 18, 2019, the Italian Air Force Typhoons deployed to Iceland to support [...]

The Italian Air Force F-35 Lightning II aircraft are pretty busy these days. From Mar. 11 to 15, six F-35A stealth aircraft of the 13° Gruppo (Squadron) belonging to the 32° Stormo (Wing) based at [...]

Stratofortress bombers are part of a Task Force of 6 “Buffs”: the largest American bomber deployment to RAF Fairford since the Iraq war in 2003. On Mar. 18, 2019, a U.S. Air Force B-52 bomber, [...]

Combat Aircraft Magazine Editor Tracks Down Men Who Shot Now-Famous F-117 Videos. Noted aviation journalist Jamie Hunter recently traveled to the western United States to track down two of the witnesses to last month’s sensational [...]

EA-6B 162230/CY-02 will be on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC. Last week, the last U.S. Marine Corps Prowler squadron, Marine Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 2 (VMAQ-2), was formally deactivated. [...]

We went to Decimomannu airbase to observe the Italian F-35s at work. Last month, six Italian Air Force F-35As deployed to Decimomannu airbase, in Sardinia, for a 3-week deployment at the local-based RSSTA (Reparto Sperimentale [...]

One person, involved in the accident, is in stable condition. A weird mishap occurred in Worthington, Massachusetts, where a snowmobile and a U.S. Army Black Hawk MEDEVAC helicopter were involved in an accident in a [...]

Arizona’s Remote Titan Missile Museum is a Rare Gem of Cold War History. Miss Christel Widera may be the sweetest grandmother you’ve ever met. A great sense of humor, wears a neatly turned out cardigan. [...]

An interesting audio let’s you listen to a Spirit Bomber as it dropped a dummy B61-12 last year. Last year, the U.S. Air Force and the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) carried [...]

Jumpers Execute Dangerous Exits, Ramp Strikes and Falls in One Jump Exercise. Military static line parachuting is safe when practiced correctly, but minor mistakes can quickly turn a jump into a disaster. Take a look [...]