Space Shuttle

The Space Shuttle has given NASA a platform that can routinely accomplish orbital missions including launching and repair of satellites and transportation of parts and astronauts to the International Space Station.

On April 12, 1981, the Columbia was the first Space Shuttle to fly into orbit and was followed by four more orbiters: Challenger, Discovery, Endeavor, and Atlantis. The great success of the shuttle program has come with a high price as Columbia and Challenger along with each of their crews of seven astronauts have been lost—a reminder of the high risk and courage involved in spaceflight.

DWC

In 1924 the Douglas World Cruisers became the first aircraft to circumnavigate the globe. On April 4 the Chicago, New Orleans, Boston and Seattle took off from Seattle. On Sept. 28 two of the planes, the Chicago and New Orleans, returned. They had logged 27,553 miles in six months and six days, with an actual flying time of 371 hours. The flight was the greatest feat in aviation up to that time.

DC-2/DC-3/C-47

Introduction of the DC-1 in 1933 marked the beginning of the famous Douglas Commercial series of aircraft. The success of the DC-2 drove many aircraft into early obsolescence and led to the development of the legendary DC-3, which made air travel popular and airline profits possible. Recognized as the greatest airplane of its time, the DC-3 first took to the air in 1935. By 1939, more than 90 percent of the world's airline passengers were flying on DC-2s and DC-3s. During World War II, more than 10,000 DC-3s were built as C-47 military transports.

PT-17 Kaydet and T-6 Texan

Nearly every American and Allied pilot was trained to fly on these two planes during World War II. Most first learned to fly in the PT-13/17 Kaydet trainer, still affectionately called "Stearmans." The Kaydet was the primary trainer for the U.S. Army and Navy, and more than 10,000 were built at the Boeing plant in Wichita, Kan. Pilots would go on to advanced flight training in the North American T-6 Texan, known as the SNJ in Navy service and the Harvard in the Commonwealth. An amazing 14,000 T-6/SNJs were built for the U.S. Navy and Air Force between 1940 and 1945.

Model 247

The world's first modern passenger airliner. In early 1933 it was the first to combine an all-metal, low-wing, twin-engine design with retractable landing gear. It also introduced the autopilot, pneumatically operated de-icing equipment and the variable-pitch propeller. The 247 flew at 189 mph, nearly 50 mph faster than competing airliners. It was able to shave 7 1/2 hours off the flight time from New York to Los Angeles.

B-17 Flying Fortress

Arguably the most popular plane of all time and the icon of American airpower during World War II, the Flying Fortress and the courageous men who flew her were the backbone of the Allied air campaign to destroy the German air force and the war-making ability of Nazi Germany. This paved the way for the Allied invasion at Normandy. The B-17 became legendary, and garnered the everlasting affection of its crews, for being able to absorb crippling damage and still fly home. The B-17 made Boeing a household name and gave the company a reputation for building capable, rugged, quality airplanes.

314 Clipper

The Clipper was the largest commercial transport of its time and the icon of the romantic era of flight. Pan American bought 12 of the Clippers to fly routes across the Pacific and the Atlantic, where the 314 pioneered the first scheduled transatlantic flights. The airplane's 74 passengers were pampered with staterooms, a lounge and a dining salon, and the Clipper seats could convert into 40 bunks. The Clipper became the first of a long line of Boeing presidential airplanes when Franklin Roosevelt flew the Clipper to the Casablanca conference in 1943.

B-29 Superfortress

Along with the Atomic bomb, the B-29 was the most technologically advanced program of World War II. So great was the wartime requirement, the B-29 was pressed into production before the prototype had flown. Because of its long range the Superfortress served exclusively in the Pacific Theater, where after 331 missions and delivering two atomic weapons the B-29 secured the end of World War II. After the war the B-29 served as the backbone of the fledgling Strategic Air Command. Derivatives of the B-29 include the world's first production aerial tanker—the KC-97—and the 377 Stratocruiser.

F-86 Sabre

The first U.S. swept-wing jet fighter, the F-86 scored consistent victories over Russian-built MiG fighters during the Korean War, accounting for a final ratio of 10-to-1. All 39 United Nations jet aces won their laurels in Sabres. The Sabre first flew on Oct. 1, 1947, and was flown by North American test pilot George Welch, who flew the F-86 through the sound barrier just weeks after Chuck Yeager's record-breaking flight. Various models of the Sabre held world speed records for six consecutive years. North American Aviation built more than 6,000 Sabres.

P-51 Mustang

First to use the laminar flow wing, the Mustang took just 117 days to go from concept to first flight. When married with the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine the Mustang became a true thoroughbred. It is considered by most to have been the finest piston-engine fighter World War II. The Mustangs' unequaled range allowed them to escort B-17s to any target deep inside Germany and still have enough fuel to sweep the sky of German fighters, including the ME-262 jet fighter. One of the highest honors accorded to the Mustang was its rating in 1944 by the Truman Senate War Investigating Committee as "the most aerodynamically perfect pursuit plane in existence."

B-47 Stratojet

The world's first large swept-wing jet, the B-47 was a revolution in aviation technology. It incorporated a plethora of new concepts that had a direct and lasting impact on future jet aircraft, both military and commercial. The B-47 pioneered the basic design for large jets, incorporating swept wings at 35 degrees and introducing podded engines. The B-47 design continues to be the basic pattern for current and future jet transports including the A380 and 7E7. Lessons learned resulted in spoilers, yaw dampers, maintenance access and structural integrity.

B-52 Stratofortress

First entering service on June 29, 1955, the B-52 was the premiere nuclear deterrent during the Cold War. Originally designed to carry nuclear weapons, the B-52 has been called upon to drop only conventional weapons. It served with distinction during the Vietnam War, Operation Desert Storm—where B-52s employed the first use of conventional air-launched cruise missiles—and most recently in the war against terrorism in Afghanistan and in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The B-52 is one of the most successful and cost-effective warplanes of all time and one of the few that can claim to have been flown by three generations of crew members.

F-4 Phantom II

Some aircraft are memorable for the number produced, length of service or combat record. It is rare when one is remembered for all three. Such was the McDonnell F-4 Phantom II. It made its first flight in 1958 and established 16 speed and altitude records. It was the first supersonic fighter to serve simultaneously with the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force. The F-4 also served in the air arms of 11 other nations. It is the only jet ever to have flown concurrently with the Air Force's Thunderbirds and the Navy's Blue Angels.

Mercury

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American to go into space. He did so with a suborbit flight aboard a McDonnell Mercury spacecraft named Freedom 7. Twenty days later, U.S. President John F. Kennedy made his famous speech calling for the landing of an American on the moon by the end of the decade. There were five more Mercury flights, including John Glenn's orbital flight aboard Friendship 7 in February 1962. Engines developed by the Rocketdyne division of North American Aviation powered the Redstone and Atlas rockets used for the Mercury program.

A-4 Skyhawk

The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk was America's smallest combat jet. Known as "Scooter" or the "Mighty Midget," it reversed the trend toward bigger and more complex aircraft in favor of durability and reliability. It first flew in 1954, demonstrating combinations of speed and maneuverability never before seen in a lightweight tactical jet. The Skyhawk was the most numerous jet built by Douglas. In 1979, 25 years after its first flight, the last of 2,960 A-4s was delivered.

707 Jet Stratoliner

Taking one of the greatest risks in business history, then Boeing President William Allen gave the go-ahead to invest $13 million of the company's own money on developing a jet transport prototype. The Dash 80 was able to win over both the U.S. Air Force and the airlines, leading to the KC-135 Stratotanker and the world's first successful commercial jet transport, the 707. Introduced in 1958, the 707 put Boeing back into the commercial market and led the way to a family of world-leading jet transports.

Apollo/Saturn

One of the greatest achievements not only in aviation history, but in human history as well, the Apollo/Saturn program took the first humans to the moon. Apollo/Saturn was a team effort that brought together all the major companies that are now part of The Boeing Company. North American Rockwell built the Apollo command and service modules, and the second stage of the Saturn booster. North American's Rocketdyne division was responsible for all of the Saturn rocket engines. McDonnell Douglas built the third stage of the Saturn booster, and Boeing built the giant first stage and the Lunar Rover, and assisted NASA with overall management of the Apollo-Saturn program.

747 Jumbo Jet

During the late 1960s, some 50,000 Boeing workers took the moniker "The Incredibles." Their logo was an image of Paul Bunyan because they knew they were part of something big—the biggest commercial transport ever to fly and the biggest building in the world, which would house the manufacture of that plane. As if in defiance of its critics, the first 747 effortlessly took to the skies on Feb. 9, 1969. Since that time the equivalent of more than half the world's population have flown on a 747. One of the most popular and successful airliners of all time, the 747 truly is the "Queen of the Skies."

F-15 Eagle

The F-15 Eagle has been the most capable air-superiority fighter in the world for the past 30 years. It has a perfect air-combat record of 101 victories and zero defeats. With engine thrust greater than its fully loaded weight, the Eagle can stand on its tail and climb straight up, accelerating to supersonic speed. It has reached heights of 98,000 feet (29,700 meters) in less than three and one half minutes. Today's F-15E Strike Eagle is the world's most capable multirole fighter and retains the air-to-air capability of the original F-15.

X-15

The X-15 was designed to conduct research experiments during actual flight conditions beyond the earth's atmosphere and to obtain knowledge of aerodynamic heating, re-entry conditions, acceleration and deceleration forces, and reactions of humans to weightlessness. The X-15 shattered speed and altitude records. On Aug. 22, 1963, NASA pilot Joseph Walker piloted the craft to a record altitude of 354,200 feet, slightly over 67 miles (107 km). U.S. Air Force Capt. William "Pete" Knight took the X-15A-2 to the fastest speed recorded during the program, Mach 6.7, during an Oct. 3, 1967, flight.