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Bill Walton
Bill Walton is a life-long aviation enthusiast and expert in aircraft recognition. As a teenager Bill helped his engineer father build an award-winning T-18 homebuilt airplane in their Wisconsin basement. Bill is a freelance writer, an avid sailor, engineer, announcer, husband, father, uncle, mentor, coach, and Navy veteran. Bill lives north of Houston TX with his wife and son under the approach path to KDWH runway 17R, which means they get to look up at a lot of airplanes. A very good thing.
Latest stories
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in BlogThe US-3A Viking COD: The Uncommonest COD Was Actually a Compromise
Fleet Tactical Support Squadron FIVE ZERO (VRC-50) Foo Dogs flew a variety of aircraft between their establishment in 1966 and their disestablishment in 1994. They were redesignated as a Fleet Logistics Support Squadron in 1976. The squadron flew Grumman C-1A Traders and C-2A Greyhounds, North American CT-39 Sabreliners, and Lockheed C-130F Hercules airlifters. But one […] More
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Ranger 12: Naval Aviation is a Risky Business- Especially at Night
The Douglas A3D Skywarrior was the largest and heaviest aircraft to regularly operate from US Navy aircraft carriers. They were not restricted to the Forrestal-class “supercarriers” either. They operated from the Essex-class carriers fitted with angled decks and steam catapults as well as the Midway-class carriers. Although fitted with folding wings and a folding vertical […] More
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in Blog
Watch See and Hear What It’s Like to Fly a Spitfire Warbird
It’s no secret we love EAA AirVenture. So much to do and see and hear! The recording of incredible video footage and eye-watering pictures happens all day long, but sometimes something rare occurs. This year the Royal Air Force (RAF) celebrated its 100th anniversary. At many airshows, all around the world, warbird tribute flights were […] More
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in Blog, Commercial, Vintage
PSA Flight 182: VFR on a Beautiful Morning Spelled Disaster
At 0834 local time on 25 September 1978, Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Flight 182 departed Los Angeles International Airport (KLAX) bound for Lindbergh Field (now San Diego International Airport- KSAN). The flight originated in Sacramento (KSMF) and stopped at KLAX prior to heading south to San Diego. The flight was a Boeing 727-214 serial number […] More
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The XB-51: Martin’s Movie Star Bomber Smashed The Bomber Mold
With their innovative XA-45 attack aircraft, Martin was building on the success of their B-26 Marauder medium bomber. Conceived in 1945 as Martin’s answer to a US Army Air Force (USAAF) requirement for a low-level bomber, the aircraft featured a number of ground-breaking design characteristics. When the war ended and the USAAF did away with […] More
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The Mercator: A Cold War Spy Plane Many Never Even Knew Existed
Martin’s P4M Mercator maritime reconnaissance aircraft was built as a potential replacement for the Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer but lost out to the Lockheed P2V Neptune for the role. Development of the aircraft, initially designated Project 219 by Martin, began clear back in 1944. The resemblance between the Mercator and the Neptune was remarkable, especially to […] More
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Watch Military Jets Making Freedom Noises in Pacific Skies
This recently shot high-definition footage features US military aircraft operating from Anderson Air Force Base (AFB) on Guam in the Marianas during Valiant Shield joint training exercises. The footage is mostly takeoffs and departures, but it’s the variety of aircraft seen in the clip that makes it so awesome. The video was uploaded to YouTube […] More
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Powered Flight During the 1970s Was More Than Just Awesome
The film “Flying Machines- Powered Flight in the 1970s” was produced for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the days when the airlines were booming and research and development were investigating amazing new technologies. The piece features everything from classic airliners and general aviation aircraft to military jets and experimental types- some of […] More
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BREAKING: USAF T-6A Trainer Down in San Antonio- Crew Safe
On Tuesday 18 September at approximately 1600 local time a United States Air Force Beechcraft T-6A Texan II turbine-powered trainer crashed in a field in the vicinity of Rolling Oaks Mall near Nacogdoches Road just outside Loop 1604 in the northeastern San Antonio, Texas, area. The crew of two aboard the trainer successfully ejected from […] More
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The Helldiver: Haste Made a Waste of This World War II Dive Bomber
The Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber was one of the aircraft that won World War II. But like every aircraft in service during the late 1930s, improved replacements were on the drawing boards at several contractors even before the United States went to war. Of course the SBD would turn out to be one of […] More
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in Blog
The Starjet Might Have Been America’s First Jet Powered Fighter
A blended body with aft-mounted laminar flow wings and forward mounted canards. Slotted flaps to enhance lift. Tricycle landing gear. Twin axial flow turbojet engines with afterburners fed by advanced aft-mounted NACA-type intakes reducing frontal area and therefore drag. Four nose-mounted 20 millimeter cannons for armament. Does this remind you of any 1950s or 1960s […] More
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The First Delta Airlines A220-100 Rolls Out of the Airbus Paint Shop
On 13 September 2018 the first Airbus A220-100 wearing Delta Airlines colors rolled out of the paint shop at the Airbus assembly line in Mirabel, Quebec in Canada. The jet looks sharp in its colors, but isn’t quite finished yet. The aircraft will be completed on the final assembly line at Mirabel before it is […] More
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