Aerospace Milestones

Historic aerospace moments captured in flight, featuring shuttles, military aircraft, and unmanned vehicles soaring above landscapes.

A Royal Australian Air Force E-7 Wedgetail airborne early warning aircraft.
A Royal Australian Air Force E-7 Wedgetail airborne early warning aircraft.
137 assets in this story
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Aerial view of Pink Lake with heavy duty truck, Walvis Bay, Namibia.
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Air-to-air, front view of a 60th Airlift Wing C-5B Galaxy airlifter, flying over coastline with San Francisco Bay, the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco in the background. Exact Date Shot Unknown. Base: Travis Air Force Base State: California (CA) Country: United States Of America (USA)
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The Soyuz rocket is rolled out by train to the launch pad, Monday, June 4, 2018 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Expedition 56 Soyuz Commander Sergey Prokopyev of Roscosmos, flight engineer Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA, and flight engineer Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency) are scheduled to launch aboard their Soyuz MS-09 spacecraft at 7:12 a.m. Eastern time (5:12 p.m. Baikonur time), on Wednesday, June 6.
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2007 Unicat Amerigo International Family Expedition Vehicle
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Italian Air Force Twin Astir gliders at Guidonia Airport, Italy.
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Kangerlussuaq airport, Greenland
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Aircraft is taking off, idyllic mountain range in the background
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A retiring F-16 Fighting Falcon takes off for the last time in its tenure Sept. 6, 2022, at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. After decades of service, this aircraft retires with the rest of the Block 25 aircraft to make room for more advanced jets for Luke AFB pilots and student pilots. The divestment marks history for the aged aircraft, retired after many faithful years of duty to our nation.
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Suitcases with aircraft taking off
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A Sikorsky UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter prepares to land at a high altitude landing zone in Colorado's Rocky Mountains.
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USA, New Mexico, Alamogordo, International Space Hall of Fame Museum, and John P Stapp Air and Space Park
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Tanks on freight train USA
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An air-to-air right side view of an air-launched cruise missile in flight. Base: Eglin Air Force Base State: Florida (FL) Country: United States Of America (USA)
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Aviat hot air balloons space shuttle
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Aircraft flying low over lake Magadi in southern Kenya
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Space Shuttle Orbiter Enterprise - night lighting test
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Plane Storage
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S77-28209 (13 Sept 1977) --- The shuttle orbiter 101 "Enterprise" lands on the desert at Edwards Air Force Base to conclude a five-minute, 31-second unpowered flight during the second free-flight of the Shuttle Approach and Landing Test (ALT) series, on September 13, 1977. Two T-38 chase planes remain with the "Enterprise" for the landing. Asstronauts Joe H. Engle, commander, and Richard H. Truly, pilot, were the crewmen for the flight.
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Cuzco, Peru - February 2, 2019: LAN Airbus airplane at Cuzco Airport (CUZ) in Peru. Airbus is a European aircraft manufacturer based in Toulouse, France.
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Dromedar-Karawane transportiert Steinsalzplatten über den Assale Salzsee, Afar Region, Äthiopien Dromedar-Karawane transportiert Steinsalzplatten über den Assale Salzsee in der Abenddämmerung, Danakil Depression, Afar Region, Äthiopien / Dromedary caravan carrying at dusk salt slabs over Lake Assale, Danakil depression, Afar region, Ethiopia Copyright: xZoonar.com/mikex 16252145
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A medium-range, head-on view of a C-27A Spartan on the flightline. Base: Howard Air Force Base Country: Panama (PAN)
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USA, Colorado, Colorado Springs. Permanent exhibit of a Thunderbird jet fighter on the grounds of the United States Air Force Academy.
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After a successful flight and landing, the ground crew push the last of the air out of a hot air balloon.
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Racing at the Red Bull event of the Reno Air Races at Reno Stead Airport, Reno, Nevada. The Red Bull Air Race World Series, established in 2003 and created by Red Bull, is an international series of air races with the participation of the world's most skilled pilots, in which competitors have to navigate a challenging obstacle course in the sky, in the fastest possible time. Pilots fly individually against the clock and have to complete tight turns through a slalom course consisting of specially
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Kent Pietsch pilots the Jelly Belly demonstration plane during Wings Over Solano at Travis Air Force Base, California, May 14, 2022. The Wings Over Solano open house and air show provided an opportunity for the local community to interact directly with the base and its Airmen and see capabilities on full display at Travis AFB.
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NASAs X-57 Maxwell, the agencys first all-electric X-plane and first crewed X-planed in two decades, is delivered to NASAs Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California in its Mod II configuration. The first of three primary modifications for the project, Mod II involves testing of the aircrafts cruise electric propulsion system. Delivery to NASA from prime contractor Empirical Systems Aerospace of San Luis Obispo, California, marks a major milestone for the project, at which point the vehicle is reintegrated for ground tests, to be followed by taxi tests, and eventually, flight tests. X-57s goal is to further advance the design and airworthiness process for distributed electric propulsion technology for general aviation aircraft, which can provide multiple benefits to efficiency, emissions, and noise.
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Falkland Islands, Carcass Island. Falkland Islands Government Air Service (FIGAS) Islander on grass airstrip with Land Rover (towing fire-fighting equipment).
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Biker on the road holding bike up
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The 300+ employees of Scaled Composites gather for a group photo in front of White Knight One on the ramp at Mojave Airport in Mojave, California. The great aircraft designer and builder Burt Rutan stands in front of White Knight One along with some of his test pilots.
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111008-N-IR859-028SAN FRANCISCO (Oct. 8, 2011) Lt. Cmdr. Ben Walborn, lead solo pilot for the U.S. Navy flight demonstration squadron, the Blue Angels, performs the Sneak Pass over San Francisco Bay during San Francisco Fleet Week. San Francisco Fleet Week is a five-day event that highlights the equipment, technology and operational capabilities of the military's sea services and their history in the San Francisco area.
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AVION MONOPLAZA. Location: EXPOSICION. Cologne. GERMANY.