When brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright built and flew the first fully practical airplane, they probably couldn't imagine how far we'd take it.
Now, we're flying hundreds of people at a time, sending rovers to other planets, and launching interstellar probes.
So we decided to stop for a second and appreciate the fact that humanity has conquered the skies. And we've picked the subreddit r/aviation to do it.
Created back in 2008, this online community unites 1.2 million members who constantly share anything and everything related to helicopters and rotorcraft, airships, balloons, paragliders, winged suits and anything that sustains you in the air. Here are some of their top posts.
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I Graduated Pilot Training Today, This Is The Gift My Grandpa Sent Me
“We Made History As The First Mother-Daughter Crew At Skywest Airlines.”
Happy Veterans Day To My Grandfather Who Passed Away This Year At 97. This Is Him Standing In Front Of The Plane He Flew In World War II
Today I Got To Fly In My Grandfathers Restored Ww2 Hurricane!
Life Goal [1080*1336]
![Life Goal [1080*1336]](https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/64b78484bc964_efehrcrnvuu21__700.jpg "Life Goal [1080*1336]")
Everything That Fits Into A Rescue Helicopter
My Childhood Dream Has Come True. I'm A Pilot Now!
Sea Stallion Taking A Selfie
Decided To Go Planespotting During A Long Sit Between Flights, Was Lucky Enough To Get A Shot With The Plane I Was Flying Later That Day!
The Space Shuttle Carried On A 747 And Being Escorted By Two F-18’s
I saw the 747 with the Enterprise in '83, near Amsterdam, quite impressive
The Blue Angels Posted This To Their Fb Page After They Were Joined By The Thunderbirds And The Canadian Snowbirds
The Only Picture Ever Taken Of Concorde Flying At Mach 2 (1,350 Mph). Taken From An Raf Tornado Fighter Jet, Which Only Rendezvoused With Concorde For 4 Minutes Over The Irish Sea: The Tornado Was Rapidly Running Out Of Fuel, Struggling To Keep Up With Concorde At Mach 2
Good write up here: https://theaviationgeekclub.com/heres-the-only-picture-of-concorde-flying-at-supersonic-speed/amp/ Concorde had to slow down as the Tornado couldn’t keep up in supercruise - using reheat uses massive amounts of fuel.
Bomb Tags From Every Mission My Grandfather's B-17 Did During Wwii (Included Are The Two D-Day Tags). Included On Each Tag Are Descriptors Of The Run Such As Weather, Location, Elevation, Payload, Etc
25 missions was the number needed to rotate home in WW2. This crew (or maybe just the plane) flew over 50... Brave and Fortunate men.
Maiden Flight Of The Thiccest Boi
10 Years Since The Miracle On The Hudson
Unbelievable skill of an incredibly experienced and downright intuitive pilot, Captain Sullenberger. Even though the majority of water landings do not end well, Sully managed to bring the plane down smoothly and safely, with zero fatalities—-and Sully wasn’t a young man at the time, which perfectly illustrates the priceless value of long years of experience, especially in fields where inexperience can cost lives. If anyone but Sully had been in the pilot’s seat that day, I doubt this crash would’ve ended so miraculously. If Sully had been forced to retire, and some young hot dog pilot was put in that cockpit that day, the plane would probably have crashed in a populated place and killed people on the ground, as well as everyone on board. Don’t throw people away, ignore them, or out and out disrespect them (you know, the dismissive, cruel, and derisive “OK Boomer” b******t), simply because they’re older, because you then throw away their sorely needed experience and expertise, to keep your company—-or family—-running cohesively.
Boeing 747 Rainbow Contrails
For Those Of Us Who Love The Spit
Haha
Looks like the bottom right might have actually sneezed out a helicopter.
Thank You To Those Who Work At 1:00 A.m. In Snowstorms So People Can Travel
A Lucky P-47 And Its Pilot From WWII
Wow. I can only imagine what a bear it was to bring this plane back in one piece with such a large hole blown in one propeller, not to mention other damage.. Must’ve made awful balance and power issues. Kudos to the crew.
Plane Crossing Today's Eclipse
When She’s Out Of Your League
An Air Canada 787 Bursts Through The Mist In Stunning Fashion At Heathrow
100 Years Of The Raf Spelled Out By 22 Eurofighter Typhoons Over Buckingham Palace
Took me a couple seconds to see the 💯 in the formation but this is amazing!
I Asked To Take A Photo Of The Flight Deck Of The 787-9 I Was On. The Captain Said, "No I Have A Better Idea". No Matter How Many Years Pass, The Excitement Of Sitting In The Captain's Seat Never Fades. Even At 20
A United Airlines Boeing Dreamliner Holds Position At San Francisco As A British Airways Boeing Beautifully Descends Through The Fog To Land
Somebody Had An Expensive Oopsie At Ord Last Night
That's going to be a very expensive bandaid or just use duct tape.
A Patch Being Worn By Fighter Pilots Of The Taiwanese Air Force
52,000 Christmas Lights Decorating A B-52
New York Control Asking For Help Looking For The Missing Submarine
Note: this post originally had 86 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
My aunt has my grandfather's flight book, wings and photo from the Korean War in a shadow box. I'll receive it when she passes away. He was a highly decorated fighter pilot who was shot down and had a long recovery in England. He returned to the states and became a doctor. He passed away when I was 7. Wish I'd known him longer. He and his brother did amazing things.
Aww this reminds me of my favorite teacher from middle school. He's been posting pix like crazy on FB since his son got his pilots license. So cute 🥰
My aunt has my grandfather's flight book, wings and photo from the Korean War in a shadow box. I'll receive it when she passes away. He was a highly decorated fighter pilot who was shot down and had a long recovery in England. He returned to the states and became a doctor. He passed away when I was 7. Wish I'd known him longer. He and his brother did amazing things.
Aww this reminds me of my favorite teacher from middle school. He's been posting pix like crazy on FB since his son got his pilots license. So cute 🥰
