World War II Weekend 2026
Story and photos by Shawn Byers The Mid Atlantic Air Museum hosted its 36th Annual World War II Weekend on June 4, 5 and 6 at Reading Regional Airport. This is one of the three annual air shows I...
Category: Aircraft carrier
VFA-137 “Kestrels”: The Pride of Lemoore
Story and photos by Steve Lewis For nearly forty years, Strike Fighter Squadron 137—the “Kestrels”—have called Naval Air Station Lemoore home. From their very first F/A-18A Hornets in the 1980s to today’s advanced F/A-18E Super Hornets, the Kestrels have...
VFA-146 “Blue Diamonds”: Precision at Sea Since 1956
Story and photos by Steve Lewis For nearly seven decades, the Blue Diamonds have fought wars, pioneered tactics, and flown five generations of Navy fighters. This is their story. When the U.S. Navy established Fighter Squadron 146 in 1956,...
CVW-17 “Team Quicksand”
Story and photos by Steve Lewis This will begin a series of articles that covers one of the most important assets in the entire United States military’s arsenal, the power of the United States Navy Carrier Air Wing. While...
TOP GUN House
The TOP GUN House is in Oceanside California. It is located at 250 N Pacific St, Oceanside, CA 92054 I had the chance to visit the historic structure on a recent trip to Southern California. First week of January...
2024 Fleet Week – New York City
Story by Bill Sarama, photos by Bill Sarama and Howard German “Fleet Week” was held in New York during Memorial Day weekend from Wednesday, May 22nd, when the “Parade of Ships” entered New York Harbor starting at 9 AM...
USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72 (Fleet Replacement Squadron Carrier Qualifications)
Story and photos by Peter Boschert USS Abraham Lincoln CVN-72 is the fifth Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. Like most aircraft carriers, it was named after a United States president. The vessel was ordered on December 27, 1982, keel laid on...
A Visit to the Flying Eagles… Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 122
Story and photography by Peter Boschert The Flying Eagles were formed in January 1999 as Strike Fighter Squadron 122 (VFA-122), the first squadron to use the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The squadron has a long history, formed in May 1950...
The Naval Air Station Oceana Airshow 2023
Story and photos by Shawn Byers This will be the third report in our pages for the Airshow at NAS Oceana. What more can I possibly say about it? Let’s get personal with a long-time attendee. It is...
A Lockheed S-3 Viking Scrapbook
S-3 Viking executing a wing fold/unfold Story by Ken Kula, photos by Ken Middleton, Don Linn, Bob Finch, Scott Zeno, Jeff Serpa, and Ken Kula In the late 1960s, the U. S. Navy put forth a requirement requesting a...
Tristars and DC-10s Enhanced Trans-Oceanic Travel Before ETOPS
After the advent of the Jet Age, large intercontinental jetliners routinely had four engines. The American Boeing B-707 and B-747, and the Douglas DC-8 designs had four; the British Vickers VC-10 had four as did the DeHavilland Comet. Even...
U.S. Navy Trainers Used During My Lifetime
Story and photos by Ken Kula I’ll soon turn 64 years old and have seen quite a few military aircraft over the years. I remember visiting cousins in Massachusetts, near the (former) NAS South Weymouth base. There was a...
