Aircraft Boneyard: Where “Dead” US Military Planes Get a Second Life
When US military and government planes have served their purpose, they are brought to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group or 309 AMARG, which earned the moniker the "Boneyard." The aircraft boneyard is located in Tucson, Arizona, specifically in the Sonoran Desert, a perfect storage facility with low humidity (only 10%-20%), meager rainfall, and relatively high altitude that prevent or at least postpone metal corrosion. The Sonoran Desert also has a hard alkaline soil, so there is no need to pave the surface to store and move around the aircraft. The Fate of the Airplanes As of this writing, ...
Aircraft Welding Diaries: History of Mooney Aircraft
Knisley Welding caters to the aircraft exhaust systems of some of Mooney International Corporation’s aircraft. Let’s take a look into the brief history of Mooney and how it has come about, how it has contributed to the aircraft industry, and how it is doing now. Mooney Aircraft: Its Foundation Mooney started out as Mooney Aircraft Corporation in 1929. It was founded by Albert Mooney together with his brother Arthur with financing from the Bridgeport Machine Company in Wichita Kansas. In 1930, Mooney went bankrupt and the Mooneys had to work for other aircraft companies. Albert reopened Mooney as Mooney ...
Former Beech and Cessna chief dies at 91
As an engineer, Max Bleck has always been fascinated with machines and this passion brought him places including the seat of the president in the four biggest aircraft manufacturing companies in the world – Beech, Cessna, Piper Aircraft and Raytheon Co. With nearly fifty years on his sleeve in the aircraft industry, Black was the most sought-after leader- trusted by his peers, respected by his companions, and acknowledged by the industry. Related article: History of Cessna In 1961, Bleck began his journey as a chief engineer for Cessna’s Wallace division and climbed his way up until he was named vice president ...
Women Impacting the Aviation Industry
Historically, one of the most memorable female names in the world of aviation has always been Amelia Earhart, and in today’s modern aviation industry women continue to make history and break barriers in all fields of aviation. Whether they are managing one of the most time-efficient airline operations in the world, becoming the first black, female Airline Transport pilot for helicopters in South Africa, or advancing the field of aerospace engineering, women all across the world are having a positive impact on the aviation industry. Take Lindie Bruyns for example, the 30 year old operations manager for FlySafair, a low-cost ...
Aircraft Welding Diaries: History of Bell Aircraft
Knisley Welding caters to the aircraft exhaust system for some of Bell’s aircraft. Let’s take a look into the brief history of Bell aircraft and how it has come about, how it has contributed to the aircraft industry, and how it is doing now. Bell Aircraft Corporation was a US aircraft manufacturer that is known for creating the first-ever supersonic aircraft, the Bell X-1. Bell Aircraft has built numerous fighter aircraft for World War II, as well as different types of civilian and military helicopters. Bell Aircraft was bought by Textron in 1960 and is now known as ...