The B-25 Comes Home

The National WWII Museum shuts down traffic in New Orleans to receive its latest addition: a historic B-25 most recently housed in the Mojave Desert and before that an amusement park. The plane's progress is viewable on Flickr.

"Deadly Queen of the Skies"

We had such a good time with the "To B or not to Be" poll we're posting this poster from the War of a B-17 Flying Fortress. Did you know: Boeing lost the initial contract for the B-17 when the prototype crashed. Despite the initial failure, the Army eventually ponied up and ordered 12,731 of the four-engine heavy bombers.

To B or Not to B? Take the Poll.

Boeing Aircraft manufactured plenty of different planes in WWII. The ones they were most famous for included the B-17 AKA the "Flying Fortress"; the B-24, which had the biggest production run but traded quality for quantity; and the B-29 (pictured), the "Superfortress" which incorporated many advances from the previous planes. Which Boeing would you have preferred to fly? Take the poll at left and tell us.

C-47: The Work Horse in the House

The hero of Guadalcanal and Burma, the C-47 was the work horse of many a WWII military campaign. The planes were also nicknamed "Gooney Birds," and became instrumental in the post-war Berlin Airlift. In New Orleans, The National World War II Museum has a complete aircraft in its exhibition pavilion - a testament to the vital role the C-47 played in the War That Changed the World. More video about the museum's plane below.

The Mighty Corsairs

These stubby, yet beautiful carrier-based planes were deadly. Some Japanese pilots considered them the best planes the USA produced. Like Germany's Stuka dive bombers they sported an inverted gull wing and their aerodynamics were more advanced than other planes. The Corsair enjoyed such success, they served through the Korean War - making their run, the longest for piston-engined fighter in US military history. The clip is from a documentary on the Blue Devils, a Corsair pilot squadron.

Yak-itty Yak

This plucky little craft is the Soviet Union's Yak-9, the airplane that became legend for scrubbing Russian skies clear of the Luftwaffe. Germany decimated the Soviet Union's air force at the start of its invasion of that country in 1941, but these little planes managed to claw back mastery of the skies for the USSR. More about the Yaks here.

Belle of the Ball

Rare color footage of the War's most famous B-17 bomber the Memphis Belle.

Wild Horses: A Mustang Lives

Could anything be sweeter than the revving of an airplane engine coming to life? The P-51 Mustang, shown here in a modern video still sounds as good as it did when it was serving as a fighter escort to bombing runs over Germany.