Historical Aircraft Cockpits

Pilots in vintage aircraft cockpits from various eras, showcasing aviation history and advancements in military aviation.

Aviates Hanna Reisch 1st Woman to gain an appt. on Captain of the German Air Force. July 21, 1937. (Photo by ORBS Photo).

British Plane Sets Up New Height Record:Wing Commander Walter Gibb, the 34- year-old test pilot, in the cockpit of the Canberra jet bomber in which he has set up a new altitude record (to be confirmed) of 63,668 feet (over 12 miles). The plane was powered by two Bristol Olympus turbo-jet engines. May 8, 1953.

Lt. K.J. Sorack Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group Poses On His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy.

Capt. Robert S. Johnson, 1201 "C" Street, Lawton, Oklahoma, top-scoring fighter pilot.

Royal Air Force 1939-1945- Fighter Command No 1 Squadron's CO, Squadron Leader James MacLachlan, in the cockpit of his Hurricane IIC at Tangmere, 20 November 1941.

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, Sits In The Cockpit Of His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

Detachment 101, an enigmatic Allied intelligence and special operations unit during World War II, played a pivotal role in the Burmese theater. Operating deep in the jungles of Burma, their mission was multi-faceted, encompassing guerrilla warfare, espionage, and sabotage against Japanese forces. Comprising a diverse group of individuals, from OSS agents to indigenous fighters, they effectively disrupted Japanese supply lines, gathered critical intelligence, and supported resistance movements.

Detachment 101, an enigmatic Allied intelligence and special operations unit during World War II, played a pivotal role in the Burmese theater. Operating deep in the jungles of Burma, their mission was multi-faceted, encompassing guerrilla warfare, espionage, and sabotage against Japanese forces. Comprising a diverse group of individuals, from OSS agents to indigenous fighters, they effectively disrupted Japanese supply lines, gathered critical intelligence, and supported resistance movements.

Joe King of the 49th Fighter Group beside his plane at an air base somewhere in New Guinea.

The Unusual Device In The Left Hand Of S/Sgt. James J. Vokoun Of Prentice, Wisconsin, Is A Specially Made Propeller Wrench Which He Designed Out Of Salvage Materials For Use In Securing Four-Bladed Props To The Propeller Shafts Of P-51S During Maintenance

Aviates Hanna Reisch 1st Woman to gain an appt. on Captain of the German Air Force. July 21, 1937. (Photo by ORBS Photo).

Royal Air Force, the Rhodesian Air Training Group in Southern Rhodesia, 1941-1945. A flying instructor shows a student pilot, Leading Aircraftmen E W L Brice, where he must and must not put his feet when climbing into the cockpit of a De Havilland Tiger Moth for his first flying lesson.

Royal Air Force 1939-1945- Coastal Command The second pilot of a No 502 Squadron Whitley VII gives his skipper a helpful push as they climb aboard their aircraft, at the start of an anti-submarine patrol, August 1942. The camera just visible poking out of the hole in the fuselage was used to record the effectiveness of U-boat attacks - a standard F24 camera was mounted vertically and fitted with a mirror to give it a rear-facing view.

Typical Pilot of 8th Air force, England.

Group Captain the Hon. J W 'Max' Aitken, leader of the Banff Strike Wing, standing by the tail of his de Havilland Mosquito FB Mk VI, 23 October 1944. Group Captain the Hon. J W 'Max' Aitken, Station Commander at Banff, Caithness, and leader of the Banff Strike Wing, standing by the tail of his De Havilland Mosquito FB Mark VI. The son of Lord Beaverbrook, Aitken joined No. 601 Squadron RAuxAF in 1935 as a fighter pilot, and scored his first victories with them in France and England in 1940. He gained further successes on night fighters with No. 68 Squadron RAF, which he formed and commanded in August 1940. In February 1943 he was posted to the Eastern Mediterranean, but returned late in 1944 to command at Banff. His final victory tally was about 16.

Photo collection Service for army contacts Indonesia. DLC Recordings military aviation. An airplane mechanic stands on the propeller of a Mitchell B-25 bomber. January 1947. Indonesia, Dutch East Indies

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, On His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

Major James H. Howard Of St. Louis, Mo., Commanding Officer Of 9Th Air Force Squadron Based At Boxted, England, Is Shown Getting Into His Fighter Plane Just Before Take-Off On A Mission. 20 January 1944.

Major Sam J. Brown, Tulsa, Ok, Commanding Officer Of The 307Th Fs, 31St Fg, Gives The Thumbs Up Sign Before He Left On A Mission Over Vienna, Austria, 13 June 1944, During Which He Shot Down Four Enemy Fighters. To Date Major Brown Has Flown 32 Combat Mi

Capt. Walter C. Beckham, De Funiak Springs, Fla., Poses By The Tail Of A Republic P-47 At An Air Base Somewhere In England.

Photo collection Service for army contacts Indonesia. DLC Emergency landing of a Curtiss P40 near solo. Recently a Curtiss P-40 fighter plane had to make an emergency landing on the edge of solo. Since there was no possibility to repair the device on site and it was also impossible to take off on the swimy field, the aircraft was dragged to elsewhere by soldiers to become dismantled. Many soldiers and civilians were given the opportunity to view a Spitfire from nearby. G. Preaning of 17 a.a.t. Just want to be with the M.L .. April 13, 1949. Bondowoso, Indonesia, Java, Dutch East Indies

021206-M-3031H-033. Country: United States Of America (USA)

Two Mechanics Repair An Engine Of A 401St Bomb Group Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" At An 8Th Air Force Base In England, 6 January 1944.

A pilot of the 90th Photographic Reconnaissace Wing, poses beside his Lockheed F-5 at an air base some where in North Africa.

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, Stands On His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, On The Wing Of His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

Broadcaster Edward Murror in England with American servicemen

Malta's Air Offensive- Night Take-off. Fleet Air Arm Station, Malta, Gc. Night take off.

Geiser Theodore (mons) Collection Observer adjusting a new ammunition belt.

1940s MAN AVIATOR IN LEATHER FLYING HELMET GOGGLES FLIGHT SUIT STANDING ON BIPLANE WING GRASPING PARACHUTE RIPCORD READY TO JUMP

Jimmy Doolittle (1896-1993) American Aviator

Photograph of Lieutenant Wilber C. "Chuck" Gwinn"Lt. (jg) W.C. Gwinn, United States Navy Reserve (USNR), was the pilot of the Venture patrol bomber which sighted the survivors of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) in waters of the Philippine Sea after the ill-fated warship had been sunk by enemy action just a few days before the war with Japan ended.".

Anefo photo collection. Pilot films with camera on his head. April 8, 1958

1st Lt. Ivan S. Hasek, 23 Blackstone St., Sioux City, Iowa, North American P-51 Mustang fighter pilot who destroyed four ME-109s, and shared another with his wingman, 2nd Lt. Willie K. Johnson, Guntersville, Alabama, listens while Johnson (right)

FROM A 15TH AIR FORCE HEAVY BOMBER BASE. ... 10 January 1944. .. Consolidated B-24 Liberator Navigator, 2nd Lt. Joseph P. Orley of Napoleon, N.D., examines the holes in his nose turret on return from a bombing attack on the airdrome at

Anthony Eden has first Jet Flight. -- Mr. Anthony Eden, in flying Kit, climbs into the cockpit of a Meteor jet plane at Thorney Island.Mr. Anthony Eden had his first flight in a jet planes when he visited the county of Kent (No. 500) Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary air force, of which he is Honorary air commodore, in training at Thorney Island, Hampshire.The Squadron files Meteor jets. August 29, 1949. (Photo by Pictorial Department)

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, Stands On His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

Capt. Louis E. Curdes, P-51 pilot, having shot down seven 109s and one Macchi in North Africa, one Jap and a C-47 in the Pacific, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for shooting down a C-47 Capt. Curdes shot down this Douglas C-47 at sea

1St Lt. Harold Goad, Pilot, From Portsmouth, Ohio, Gives Last Minute Instructions To The Bombardier On 7Th Bomb Group Consolidated B-24 "Destiny'S Tot". Pandaveswar Army Air Base, India, 1943.

Aircraft, Burma, India & INDIA,RESCUE War

Description: Students from the Gold Coast and Nigeria receive instruction on the hydraulic system for raising and lowering the landing wheels of aircraft. Location: Gold Coast, Southempton, Ghana, Nigeria, Britain Date: January 1957 africa

Air Ministry Second World War Official Collection

Air Ace Scores Again -- Col. Francis S.Gabreski, World war II air ace, now flying an F-86 Sabrejet for the Fifth Air Force's 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, Shot down his second MIG-15 enemy jet September 2. It was the 33rd victory of his two-war career. His comrades destroyed three other enemy jets in the northwest Korea battle.This week Gabreski retired as America's greatest living air ace with 37½ planes to his credit, including one hit he shared with a wingmate. September 3, 1951. (Photo by U.S. Air Force Photo).

American Pilot in Front of His Plane Lieut Allan F Winslow, 94th Aero Squadron, who brought down German planes on 14 April 1918, in front of his Nieuport aircraft.

Anefo photo collection. Mn Merchant Navy / Anefo London series. Caption: "on board dutch tanker" on board Dutch tanker. October 1943. Britain

Major Michael J. Jackson Of Plainfield, N.J., Has Been Awarded The Silver Star For Gallantry In Action During A Strafing Mission Over Germany. Leading 6 Republic P-47S In Daring Assaults On Two German Airdromes, The 8Th Af Pilot Destroyed 4 Parked Aircr

James R Smith, Cincinnati, OH, is shown in the cockpit of an Advanced Trainer at the Basic and Advanced Flying School for Negro Air Corps Cadets, Tuskegee, AL, 1/12/1942. (Photo by US Army Air Corps/GG Vintage Images)

US Air Force, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS & ALASKA

Anne Morrow Lindbergh rises from the seaplane Lockheed Anne Morrow Lindbergh rises from the seaplane Lockheed 8 Sirius to Bridge on F 2. On the pier there are two higher command and five men, air force.

Lt. E. Lee, pilot of the 90th Photographic Reconnaissance Wing, poses in the cockpit of this Lockheed F-5 at an airbase somewhere in North Africa.

DF-SD-07-26044. Base: Hector Air Field State: North Dakota (ND) Country: United States Of America (USA)

Two Pilots Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, Consume Doughnuts And Coffee After Returning To Their Base In Italy From A Mission.

Squadron Leader Douglas Bader, CO of No. 242 Squadron, seated on his Hawker Hurricane at Duxford, September 1940. British Personalities: Squadron Leader Douglas Bader DSO DFC CO of 242 Squadron, Royal Air Force seated on the cockpit of his Hawker Hurricane.

Lt. H.R. Nielson Of Yankton, Sd, A Lockheed P-38 Reconnaissance Pilot, Is Shown At His Base At Mount Farm, England. He Is A Member Of The 7Th Photo Group. 1 July 1943.

X-1-2 with Pilots Robert Champine and Herb Hoover

Capt. Ginocchio

The Royal Navy during the Second World War Sight setter of a gun receiving orders through his headset on board a destroyer in a flotilla at sea.

Photo collection Service for army contacts Indonesia. DLC Visit MP jr. G.A.M.J. Ruijs de Beerenbrouck on Medan (Sumatra). Arrival of Medan airport. Jonkheer G.A.M.J. Ruijs de Beerenbrouck, in Bermuda, is greeted by Lieutenant Colonel Supheirts and Assistant Resident. March 28, 1948. Indonesia, Medan, Dutch East Indies, Sumatra

Foresters at Work - Oregon. Photographs Relating to National Forests, Resource Management Practices, Personnel, and Cultural and Economic History

Challes Les Eaux, Air Cadets Center. Photographs of Marshall Plan Programs, Exhibits, and Personnel

Lt. Lawrence Succop of Houston, Texas in front of his Curtiss P-40. His score after the mission from which he has just returned is one Zero and one bomber. Dobodura, New Guinea. May 1943.

021206-M-3031H-023. Country: United States Of America (USA)

Royal Air Force in the Middle East, 1944-1945. Leading Aircraftwoman Iris Denholm of Morden,Surrey, and Leading Aircraftwoman Doris Evans of Leytonstone, London, check the desert survival equipment of a Hawker Hurricane at a Maintenance Unit in the Middle East.

During His Inspection Of A U.S. Bomber Command, Lord Trenchard, Father Of The Raf, Is Shown Inspecting The Tail Of Consolidated B-24 At The 93Rd Bomb Group Base At Hardwick England. Colonel Edward Timberlake Of San Antonio Texas Is Seen In The Background

The Duke of Gloucester visits R.A.F. Station in South Wales -- The Duke of Gloucester at he controls of a Mosquito during his visit to an R.A.G. Fighter Station.Air Marshal H.R.H. The Duke of Gloucester visited R.A.F. Stations in South Wales, recently. He travelled by air and was accompanied by group captain Lord Willoughby De Broke, M.C. A.F.C., Deputy director of public relations, Air Ministry. August 30, 1943. (Photo by L.N.A.).

Mystere IV - American Air Force Team Visit Dassault Co. Testing Grounds. Photographs of Marshall Plan Programs, Exhibits, and Personnel

Lt. Wright, Pilot, Stands Beside His North American B-25 'Kid Sister' Of The 81St Bomb Squadron, 12Th Bomb Group Somewhere In India.

A Member Of The 379Th Bomb Group Models A Flak Helmet At An 8Th Air Force Base In England On 12 January 1944.

Royal Air Force- Italy, the Balkans and South-east Europe, 1942-1945. Squadron Leader E D 'Rosie' Mackie, Commanding Officer of No. 92 Squadron RAF, photographed at Canne, Italy, when his score of victories stood at 15 confirmed enemy aircraft destroyed. Mackie joined the RNZAF in 1941 and arrived in the United Kingdom in 1942 where, after a period at an Operational Training Unit he was posted to No, 485 Squadron RNZAF. Early in 1943 he joined No. 243 Squadron RAF in North Africa, and achieved considerable success, becoming a flight commander in May and commanding the squadron itself in June. In November 1943, after further victories over Sicily and Italy he was given the command of 92 Squadron RAF. Mackie's long tour of operations ended on 20 February 1944, after which he returned to the United Kingdom and converted to flying the Hawker Tempest. In December 1944 he joined No. 274 Squadron RAF in Holland, but was made Commanding Officer of No. 80 Squadron RAF the following month, and t

The Battle of Britain A member of staff at a technical college preparing to remove the 'Mickey Mouse' staffel emblem from the rear fuselage of a shot-down Messerschmitt Bf 109E4, 'Red 2', of 3./LG 2.

Five militants at the aircraft Phönixjagaren, 1923 Group portrait. Five militants at the airplane Phönixjagaren marked number 953 from the airplane company. A man sits in the driver's seat, three men sitting on the airplane, a sitting on the ground.

French Army aviators, Mineola

R.A.A.F. Men in Britain for Berlin Air-Lift -- Squadron Commander C.A. Greenford, who is in command of the R.A.A.F. contingent in this country. Now training at an R.A.F. station in Norfolk are 40 Royal Australian Air Norfolk are 40 Royal Australian Air Force men who have come here to assist in the Berlin air lift. They comprise ten air crews and they will fly R.A.F. Dakotas. They were based in Australia Schofield, New South Wales, and all are members of No. 86 R.A.A.F. Transport Squadron, Squadron, a squadron, a squadron that from late 1945 until January of this year was engaged on the courier run between Australia and Japan. September 9, 1948.

Pilot George Cooper on flightline after test flight holding a dead bird (duck / goose) apparently brought down by his aircraft

Sgt. Lester O. Gardner of Kansas City Missouri, who was awarded the Air Medal and Sgt. Norman W. Hennig of Tucumcari, New Mexico, who was awarded the Air Medal and the Purple Heart.

RAF Officer To Fly To Australia -- Group-captain Bandidt packing his small luggage into his plane at Lympne today, ready for the start of the journey tomorrow.The first solo flight to Australia since the war will be made by Group - Captain A.F. Bandidt, who leaves tomorrow from Lympne in a Miles ***** aircraft for Wondai, a small place near Brisbane; in easy stages, he expects to make the journey in 13 days. When in India, he hopes to be able to obtain permission for a Mount Everest Expedition, of which he will be a member, to travel into Thibet in about 2 years time. The expedition will use new equipment including oxygen, in an effort to reach the peak. November 29, 1946. (Photo by Fox)

Second Lieutenant flyer W.M. Van den Bosch, born in 1915, at a Bücker Bü 131 D Jungmann.

A Pilot Of The 94Th Fighter Squadron, 1St Fighter Group, Sits In The Cockpit Of His Lockheed P-38 Lightning At An Air Base Somewhere In Italy.

ENGLAND-Capt. Edward J. O'Neill, 1718 Rugby Road, Schenectday, N.Y. navigator.

Digitally restored vector portrait of General James Harold Doolittle. Doolittle was an American aviation pioneer long before World War Two. But he is perhaps most well-known for the Doolittle Raid. His raid was the first attack on the Japanese homeland and it earned him the Medal of Honor.

Francesco de pinedo, 1927

Royal Air Force- Italy, the Balkans and South-east Europe, 1942-1945. Wing Commander W G G Duncan-Smith, Wing Commander Flying, No. 244 Wing RAF, with 'Bonzo', a bulldog mascot of one of the squadrons of the Wing, standing by his personal communications aircraft, a commandeered Italian Saiman 202, at Tortorella, Italy. Duncan-Smith joined the RAFVR as a Sergeant pilot before the War and flew his first operations with No. 611 Squadron RAF in October 1940. As his successes steadily mounted he was commissioned in spring 1941 and was then posted as a flight commander to No. 603 Squadron RAF in August 1941. Following a period of illness he was posted as adjutant to Southend airfield in January 1942, but eventually joined No. 411 Squadron RCAF as flight commander. In March 1942 Duncan-Smith was given the command of No. 604 Squadron RAF, and then led the Norwegian Spitfire Wing at North Weald until December 1942 when he was appointed Wing Commander Tactics at HQ Fighter Command. In May 1943 h

Lt. William R. Groseclose, Pierre, S. Dak., Pilot Of A P-51 Of The 8Th Air Force In England.

Vintage Photograph. Vintage deep-sea diving gear: a glimpse into maritime history.

The Aim Is Safe Flying In All Weathers.Lieutenant Colonel P.M. Retief (who is the Chief Flying Instructor of the Empire Flying School) - he comes from South Africa - briefing. Wing Commander R.E. Bell D.F.C., Royal Australian Air Force, who comes from Sydney, and who in the cockpit of a "Buckmaster" aircraft. The Empire Flying School at Hullavington, Wiltshire, concentrators on instrument flying in all weathers in various types of aircraft, and to the specialised courses which have been arranged come skilled pilots from all R...F. June 04, 1947.

07/19/2017. Murcia, March 1988. HRH Prince Felipe at the San Javier Military Air School.

Commander of U.S. Navy's Antarctic Task Force -- Rear Admiral Richard H. Cruzen, commander of the Task Force 68,assigned to the U.S. Navy Antarctic expedition, is shown on the bridge of the Coast Guard icebreaker Northwind, which piloted ships of the Central Group of the Task Force through the pack ice off Ross Sea.The U.S. Navy Antarctic Expedition consists of 12 ships carrying 4,000 naval and civillian personnel, the latter including scientists dog sled drivers and pross and radio correspndents. March 18, 1947.

A Lockheed F-5 pilot of the 90th Photographic Reconnaissance Wing, poses for the photographer at an air base somewhere in North Africa.

RAF Fighter Command Flight Lieutenant C H Macfie of No. 616 Squadron, Fowlmere, September 1940.

Henri Salvet

Italian Air ACE Breaks his Own World Speed Record -- Lieut. Francisco Agello, photographed by the plane in which he broke yesterday.Lieut, Agello, the famous Italian speed flyer and one-time member of the Italian Schneider Trophy team, claims to have broken his own world record of 425 M.P.H. yesterday afternoon by doing 437.5 m.p.h in a close circuit on Lake Garda. Lieut. Agello set up his previous record over Lake Garda on April 10th last year. The fest was ratified by the international Aeronautical Federation. October 24, 1934. (Photo by Keystone).

Photo collection Service for army contacts Indonesia. DLC Departure Generals Wilson and Stopford. Army commander General S.H. Rail (left) and quartermaster-general General-Major j.j.c.p. Wilson at Kemajoran airport. November 11, 1946. Indonesia, Dutch East Indies

French aviator Henri Bregi.

Louis Bleriot (1872-1936), right, French aviator and first man to cross English Channel in an airplane, July 1909. With him is the French air ace Adolphe Pegoud who was killed during World War I.

Squadron Leader Robert Stanford-Tuck, CO of No. 257 Squadron, in the cockpit of his Hawker Hurricane Mk I at Coltishall, January 1941. Squadron Leader R R Stanford-Tuck, Commanding Officer of No 257 Squadron RAF, sitting in the cockpit of his Hawker Hurricane Mark I, V6864 'DT-A', at Coltishall, Norfolk. The Burmese flag is seen painted on the starboard side of the aircraft and on the port side were painted 26 victory symbols.

Buccaneer In Boots - Wing Commander Clive R. ("Killer") Caldwell, Australian ace fighter pilot, of a Spitfire wing in North Australia alongside the spit, in which he has already shot down a number of Jap. raiders. July 02, 1943. (Photo by Department of Air)

05/31/1919. Paris. The Exploits of Aviation. Lieutenant Casale, who has broken the Elevation record, Ascending in his Neuport apparatus to 9300 Meters.

Lt. Colonel Bill Stratton Poses On The Nose Of His Lockheed P-38 Lightning 'Maribelle' At An Airfield Somewhere In Italy.

All Up In The Air: And They Hope To Stay There For Some Time -- These two in shirt sleeves with a soft mattress and magazines seem to have made themselves pretty comfortable in their plane. They need to since they plan to stay up there for at least 22 days in order to beat the present continuous flying endurance record. They are Harold E. Dahl, American flyer released from a Spanish prison where he certainly needed endurance, and Earl Johnson (left), another American pilot. They are seen here with Dahl at the controls taking off from their U.S. airdrome. June 3, 1940.

Sgt. Manuel Goulart Ferreira. Rua Antonio De Padua #27, Rio De Janeiro (Lst Brazilian Fighter Squadron) Proudly Polishes The Insignia On A P-47 Thunderbolt. Italy.

French aviator Robert Martinet.

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