In 1968, six F-111As were sent to Thailand for Combat Lancer. - the aircraft’s first combat deployment and a key test of its new low-level strike capabilities. The F-111s flew at night, in poor weather, and without visual contact with their targets, yet still showed...
The Cessna A-37 Dragonfly earned a reputation as one of the most effective close-support and counter-insurgency aircraft of the Vietnam war. From a small jet trainer, the “Super Tweet” was transformed into a heavily armed CAS aircraft capable of carrying thousands of...
In the early 1970s, McDonnell Douglas proposed a carrier-based version of the F-15 for the US Navy. Known as the F-15N, it promised extraordinary speed, a lighter airframe, and more advanced avionics. But adapting the Eagle for carrier operations meant solving one...
In our continuing series on RAAF operations, we take a look at the defence of Port Moresby. In 1942, Port Moresby stood between the Japanese advance and Australia’s north-eastern approaches. After the fall of Rabaul, the town came under relentless air attacks and...
In the unforgiving skies of the Rhodesian Bush War, an unlikely aircraft emerged as one of the most effective weapons of the conflict. The Lynx—an improvised, heavily armed version of the Cessna Skymaster—combined simplicity, adaptability, and raw firepower to deliver...
Australia's decision to acquire the F-111 wasn't driven by prestige—it was born from necessity. We explore the strategic realities that shaped one of the RAAF's most important procurement decisions. With the rise of Cold War tensions in Southeast Asia and Indonesia's...
The A-7D Corsair II was never intended to become one of the U.S. Air Force's greatest strike aircraft. Originally acquired as a stopgap solution during the Vietnam War, it evolved into arguably the most accurate conventional attack aircraft of the conflict. Equipped...
The AGM-65 Maverick transformed air-to-ground warfare. Developed during the Vietnam War to replace the flawed AGM-12 Bullpup, it became one of the world's first truly effective fire-and-forget precision-guided missiles. We explore the Maverick's origins, its...
Operation Nile (July 9-10, 2006) was a daring preemptive strike on Taliban leadership in the Chora Valley north of Tarin Kowt. The op was executed by Canada's elite Joint Task Force 2, Australian Delta Commando Company 4RAR, Afghan National Security Forces, two...
The North American F-100 Super Sabre was America's first operational supersonic fighter, but its journey from cutting-edge air-superiority aircraft to one of the most important strike fighters of the Vietnam War was anything but straightforward. Plagued by dangerous...
The Yak-28 occupies a strange place in Cold War aviation history—mass produced, widely used, yet almost completely forgotten. On paper it promised speed, range, and versatility; in reality, it became known for difficult handling, questionable design compromises, and a...
In January 1942, the Australian outpost at Rabaul stood directly in the path of Japan’s advance across the Pacific. Poorly defended, under-equipped, and relying on outdated aircraft, the men of the RAAF and Lark Force faced overwhelming odds as Japanese air raids...
From Cold War necessity to Top Gun legend, the Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter became one of the most agile and influential lightweight fighters ever built. Originally designed as a low-cost export fighter to counter the spread of Soviet MiGs, the F-5 proved itself far...
In the late 1970s, Northrop proposed the F-18L — a land-based variant of the F/A-18, stripped of naval constraints and optimised for speed, agility, and cost. Lighter, simpler, and potentially more capable in several key areas, it was designed to compete directly with...
Introduced in the early 1960s as a Mach 2 carrier-based nuclear bomber, the Vigilante pushed the limits of aviation technology. With cutting-edge systems like one of the first onboard digital computers, early fly-by-wire elements, and advanced navigation and bombing...
Australia joining the B-21 Raider program was considered, by some, to be the right strategic move—but ultimately policy makers walked away from the long-range bomber option. Was that the right decision? In this video, we break down the strategic, financial, and...
The fall of Malaya in 1941–42 was one of the fastest and most decisive airpower collapses of the Second World War. In just ten weeks, Allied air forces were overwhelmed by superior Japanese aircraft, flawed assumptions, and a rapidly shifting operational environment....
Between 1942 and 1945, tens of thousands of young Allied airmen flew into the heart of Nazi Germany—day after day, night after night—knowing that every mission could be their last. This powerful documentary explores the psychological toll on the bomber crews of RAF...
Britain’s first true all-weather interceptor is often overlooked—but not here. Developed out of early Cold War anxiety and nuclear-era urgency, the Gloster Javelin was designed to defend the UK against an evolving Soviet threat. We break down its unusual design,...
South Korea’s KF-21 Boramae has moved from concept to production in just a decade—an unusually fast timeline for a modern fighter program. As a follow-on from our previous video on the KF-21, we break down how Korea achieved it: a modular, upgrade-driven design...
Cheap, scalable, and relentless—Shahed drones reveal a critical shift in warfare, where economic pressure and persistence matter more than precision or firepower.Since the start of the Iran War, Shahed drones - among other types - have predictably emerged in massive...
Australia’s helicopter fleet is undergoing a striking reset—bringing in Apache, Black Hawk, Chinook, and Seahawk platforms that are, in some cases, older than the aircraft they replace. So why make that choice? Greg Furguson breaks down the strategic logic behind the...
In the late 1970s, France quietly began developing a powerful new fighter intended to rival the world’s best—an aircraft comparable in size and ambition to the F-15. Known as the Mirage 4000, this twin-engine interceptor promised exceptional speed, range, and...
The F-117 Nighthawk is one of the most iconic aircraft in aviation history. It was the world’s first true stealth plane, created through the secret Project Have Blue by the Lockheed Skunk Works team. Its unique faceted shape was designed to deflect radar signals, and...