National Mall
We All Fly
16 reading stories
Enter the experience →Adams Balloon Basket
Mike Adams designed this basket with sculpted corners for fuel tanks and steel cables woven into its sides. Wicker and leather absorb loads while keeping weight low. A balloon basket must carry people, fuel, instruments, and burner loads while tolerating repeated ground contact. Flexible woven material can absorb energy differently from a rigid shell.
Read the story →AirCraft: The Jet as Art
Photographer and pilot Jeffrey Milstein waits near runways to photograph aircraft just before they land. The images invite us to notice symmetry, structure, and variation rather than only aircraft names. Milstein combines pilot knowledge with careful position, timing, and a high-resolution camera. The series turns repeated observations into a comparative record of aircraft form.
Read the story →Amazon Hybrid Delivery Drone
This test aircraft used rotors to rise vertically and airfoils to travel farther like an airplane. It was designed to carry small packages from a distribution center to nearby homes. Vertical takeoff reduces the need for a runway, while wing-borne flight can use energy more efficiently over distance. Motors, controls, navigation, communications, payload, and weather limits must work together.
Read the story →Aviation Specialties Unlimited Challenger III
Sean D. Tucker flew the Challenger III through demanding aerobatic maneuvers. Eight ailerons, curved wingtips, a powerful engine, and a flying tail supported rapid rolling and unusual attitudes. The Challenger III combined steel tube structure, wood wing spars, fabric covering, composite and aluminum tail parts, and a custom engine. Its control response had to remain predictable through extreme maneuvers.
Read the story →Bell Model 47B
The Model 47 became the first civilly certified helicopter type in the United States. This aircraft worked as a demonstrator, news helicopter, crop duster, patrol aircraft, camera platform, and trainer. The Model 47B traded high speed for vertical takeoff, low-speed control, and access to confined places. Its long service life shows how adaptable systems can outlast a single intended use.
Read the story →Bill Kershner's Flight Instructor Jacket
Bill Kershner taught flying and wrote manuals for students at many levels. His jacket and patches record a career built around sharing knowledge and experience. A flight instructor must make judgment visible: explain a maneuver, demonstrate it, observe the learner, diagnose errors, and decide when practice is safe to continue.
Read the story →Cessna 180 Spirit of Columbus
Jerrie Mock used this Cessna 180 to become the first woman to complete a solo flight around the world. Extra fuel, radios, navigation equipment, and survival gear prepared the airplane for the journey. The Spirit of Columbus balanced fuel capacity, payload, communication, navigation, weather, maintenance, and pilot endurance. The basic utility aircraft became a mission-specific system.
Read the story →Cirrus SR22
This SR22 became the first certified single-piston aircraft with a fully integrated glass panel. Screens brought flight, navigation, and communication information together for the pilot. A glass cockpit can organize information, but it also requires training and disciplined attention. The aircraft joins avionics, controls, structure, engine, and a whole-airframe parachute into one safety system.
Read the story →Civil Air Patrol Uniform
The Civil Air Patrol supports aerospace education, cadet programs, and emergency services. Its uniform identifies people who train to work together during public missions. Aircraft are only one part of a response. Crews also need communications, search plans, weather information, photography, ground coordination, and clear authority.
Read the story →Cosmos Phase II
Operation Migration pilots used this Cosmos Phase II to guide Canada geese, trumpeter swans, and whooping cranes along migration routes. The aircraft also appeared in Fly Away Home. The trike's low-speed performance allowed a pilot to lead birds at about their cruising speed. Training, route planning, weather, noise, visibility, and animal behavior all became part of the flight system.
Read the story →Dale White's Silk Scarf and Helmet
Dale White and Chauncey Spencer flew from Chicago to New York and Washington in 1939 to challenge the lack of opportunities for African American aviators. White and Spencer faced denial of hangar space and continued to Washington, where they discussed discrimination with Senator Harry S. Truman. Navigation and aircraft skill could not remove institutional exclusion.
Read the story →Fulton Airphibian
Robert Fulton Jr. designed the Airphibian so its wings, tail, and propeller could be detached after landing. The cabin and engine section could then travel on roads. The Airphibian had to satisfy aircraft weight and control needs while also steering, braking, and fitting into road travel. Its technical certification did not overcome the financial difficulties of production.
Read the story →Jerrie Cobb's Hammock
For more than 50 years, Jerrie Cobb transported supplies and medicine in the Amazon region. She tied this hammock to an airplane wing when she needed a place to sleep. Cobb's work connected navigation, aircraft reliability, fuel planning, local knowledge, cargo decisions, and personal endurance. The hammock records the living conditions behind the flights.
Read the story →Larry Walters's Lawn Chair
Larry Walters attached 42 helium weather balloons to this chair and climbed into controlled airspace near Los Angeles. He used a BB gun to release balloons and begin descending. Lift depended on balloon volume and helium; descent depended on releasing gas while maintaining enough stability and control. Cold, reduced oxygen, wind, and other aircraft added hazards.
Read the story →Lear Jet 23
The Lear Jet 23 brought compact jet transportation to business flying. This second prototype flew hundreds of test flights before later Learjets entered service. The aircraft accumulated 1,127 hours and 864 flights as a test platform. Engineers and pilots used repeated flights to evaluate performance, handling, systems, maintenance, and reliability.
Read the story →Smokejumper Clothing and Equipment
Smokejumpers carry protective clothing, a helmet, parachutes, rope, food, water, shelter, and other equipment to reach remote wildfires quickly. The system must protect a person during exit, parachute descent, tree landing, rough terrain, and firefighting. Tools are dropped separately so the jumper can manage mass and injury risk.
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