Fact Sheet Alphabetical List

Fact Sheet Search

  • Panavia Tornado GR1

    During the 1991 Gulf War, military planners made the elimination of Iraq's air defenses a top priority. At the start of Operation Desert Storm (called Operation Granby by the British), Royal Air Force (RAF) Tornado GR1 aircraft attacked Iraqi air bases at low-level with Hunting JP233 anti-runway

  • Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29A

    The MiG-29 was designed in response to a new generation of American fighters, which included the F-15 and F-16. Designed as an air defense fighter, this dual-purpose aircraft also possessed a ground attack capability. The task of producing a "frontal" or tactical fighter for the Frontal Aviation

  • Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19S

     The first Soviet production fighter capable of supersonic speeds in level flight, the prototype MiG-19 (NATO code-name "Farmer") made its first flight in September 1953. Entering production in 1955, it became the Soviet Union's primary fighter during the last half of the 1950s. Possibly as many as

  • Boeing YCGM-121B Seek Spinner

    The BRAVE 200 was designed and built by Boeing Military Airplane Co. in the early 1980s and received the military designation YCGM-121B. It is an unmanned aerial vehicle designed to seek out and attack the radars that control enemy anti-aircraft artillery or surface-to-air missile defenses. (Some

  • Teledyne-Ryan AQM-91A Compass Arrow

    This high-flying, unmanned photo reconnaissance aircraft is an early example of stealth technology. Developed in the late 1960s to fly into deep China, Compass Arrow was to cruise at nearly 15 miles altitude while taking photos showing ground details as small as one foot in size. After air-launching

  • Northrop BQM-74C

    Northrop developed the BQM-74C to simulate subsonic aircraft, including cruise missiles, for the US Navy in the late 1970s. Prior to the beginning of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, the US Air Force acquired 44 BQM-74Cs and reconfigured them from aerial targets into decoys. The BQM-74C's ability to

  • Ryan BQM-34 Firebee

    The Firebee, originally designated the Q-2, was a high-speed target drone for both surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles. It was used primarily for the testing of newly-developed missiles and for the training of fighter-interceptor pilots whose aircraft were armed with missiles.Capable of being

  • Ryan AQM-34N

    In the mid-1960s the U.S. Air Force needed a system to conduct reconnaissance and gather intelligence without putting aircrews in danger. Ryan's proven Model 147 Firebee unmanned target drone, built in more than 20 variants, filled the requirement. The Model 147H, designated AQM-34N by the USAF,

  • Sikorsky MH-53M Pave Low IV

    U.S. Air Force special operations forces used the Sikorsky MH-53M to covertly enter enemy territory. Capable of operating at day or night or in bad weather, these helicopters conducted long-range, low-level missions to insert, extract, and resupply special operations forces. The MH-53 helicopters

  • Vertol CH-21B Workhorse

    This aircraft has been moved to storage.Designed by helicopter pioneer Frank Piasecki, the Vertol H-21 first flew in April 1952. With two main rotors, its long fuselage could hold large numbers of people or heavy cargo loads. Later adaptations allowed the aircraft to perform rescue and assault