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UNITED KINGDOM
WARBIRD
1930s

• The Gloster Gladiator (or Gloster SS.37) was a British-built biplane fighter, used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Royal Navy (as the Sea Gladiator variant) and was exported to a number of other air forces during the late 1930s. It was the RAF's last biplane fighter aircraft and was rendered obsolete by newer monoplane designs even as it was being introduced. Though often pitted against more formidable foes during the early days of the Second World War, it acquitted itself reasonably well in combat.

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AUSTRALIA
1971

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UNITED STATES
1937

• With production beginning in 1937, The Grumman F3F-2 and its variant F3F-3 were the last biplane fighters to enter service with the US Navy and US Marine Corps. Maximum speed was 256 MPH and service ceiling was 32,400 feet. Armament consisted of one .50 caliber and one .30 caliber machine gun mounted in the nose, firing through the propeller arc. The F3F-2 could also carry two 110-pound bombs on underwing racks.

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UNITED STATES
WARBIRD
1941
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• The Grumman F4F Wildcat was an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that began service with both the United States Navy and the British Royal Navy in 1940. Although first used in combat by the British in Europe, the Wildcat was the only United States Navy or Marine fighter in World War II 1941–42 in the Pacific Theater besides the brief appearance of the F2A Buffalo. With a top speed of 318 mph (512 km/h), the Wildcat was outperformed by the more nimble 331 mph (533 km/h) Mitsubishi Zero, but its ruggedness and tactics such as the Thach Weave resulted in a air combat kill-to-loss ratio of 5.9:1 in 1942 and 6.9:1 for the entire war.The Wildcat would be replaced in Grumman production by the faster F6F Hellcat which could outperform the Zero on its own terms. However, the FM Wildcat continued to be built by General Motors throughout the remainder of the war to serve on escort carriers, where larger and heavier fighters could not be used

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Grumman F4F Wildcat

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UNITED STATES
WARBIRD
1942

• The Grumman F6F Hellcat was a carrier-based fighter aircraft developed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat in United States Navy service. Although the F6F bore a family resemblance to the Wildcat, it was a completely new design powered by a 2,000 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800. Some tagged it as the "Wildcat's big brother"The Hellcat and the Vought F4U Corsair were the primary USN fighters during the second half of World War II.
  The Hellcat was the first US Navy fighter for which the design took into account lessons from combat with the Japanese Zero.The Hellcat proved to be the most successful aircraft in naval history, destroying 5,271 aircraft while in service with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps (5,163 in the Pacific and eight more during the invasion of Southern France, plus 52 with the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm during World War II.)Postwar, the Hellcat aircraft was systematically phased out of front line service, but remained in service as late as 1954 as a night-fighter in composite squadrons.

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UNITED KINGDOM
1932

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• The General Aircraft GAL.48 Hotspur was a military glider designed and built by the British company General Aircraft Ltd during the Second World War. When the British airborne establishment was formed in 1940 by the order of the Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, it was decided that gliders would be used to transport airborne troops into battle. General Aircraft Ltd were given a contract by the Ministry of Aircraft Production in June 1940 to design and produce an initial glider for use by the airborne establishment which resulted in the Hotspur.

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• General Aircraft Limited were chosen in January 1941 to develop this glider, which they designated the GAL. 49 'Hamilcar' and was designed to transport a single light tank or two Universal Carriers. A number of problems, which included vacilliation by the War Office on the number of gliders that it wanted and poor management by GAL, led to delays in the production of the Hamilcar, and the first production glider was only assembled in mid-1943. These problems were only partially solved, and production of the glider continued to be slow, hampered by difficulties in finding suitable locations to store and construct the Hamilcars once their parts were produced. A total of 344 Hamilcars had been built when production ended in 1946.

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GERMANY
1980

• The Gyroflug SC 01 Speed Canard is an unconventional sports plane produced in Germany in the 1980s and 1990s. Inspired by the Rutan VariEze, the Speed Canard was an all-new design created without input from Rutan. Like the VariEze, the Speed Canard is a canard-configured mid-wing monoplane with wingtip fins that incorporate rudders. The two-seat tandem cockpit and canopy design were derived from Grob Twin Astir sailplane, and the nosewheel of the tricycle undercarriage is retractable. Construction throughout is of composite materials, and when the design attained German certification in 1983, it became the first composite canard design to achieve certification anywhere in the world. An interesting feature of the control system is that the twin rudders operate independently, allowing both rudders to be deflected outwards simultaneously, cancelling each other's yaw but allowing speed brakes.

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FRANCE
1954  

• The CAB GY30 Supercab was a two-seat light aircraft built in France in 1954, as a further development of the CAB Minicab. The design was performed by Yves Gardan, a onetime employee of French aeronautical company SIPA.

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U.S.A
1984  

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• The Grumman X-29 was an experimental aircraft that explored a number of new technologies; the most immediately obvious being the forward-swept wings and canard control surface. The inherent aerodynamic instability of this arrangement required the use of computerized fly-by-wire control. Composite materials made the wing twist while bending, reducing the required rigidity and weight. The X-29 first flew in 1984 and two X-29s were flight tested over the next decade.

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• The General Dynamics F-111 "Aardvark" is a medium-range interdictor and tactical strike aircraft that also fills the roles of strategic bomber, reconnaissance, and electronic warfare in its various versions. Developed in the 1960s and first entering service in 1967, the United States Air Force (USAF) variants were officially retired by 1998. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the sole remaining operator of the F-111

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U.S.A
1940

• The Grumman XF5F Skyrocket was a prototype of a twin-engine shipboard fighter interceptor to which Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation applied the model number G-34. The U.S. Navy ordered one prototype airplane on 30 June 1938 with the designation XF5F-1. The aircraft possessed a unique appearance in that the forward part of the fuselage did not extend forward of the wing. Provisions were included in the prototype for two 23 mm (.91 in) Madsen cannons.

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U.S.A
1995   

• The Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon is a multirole jet fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force. Designed as a lightweight, daytime fighter, it evolved into a successful multirole aircraft. The F-16's versatility is a paramount reason it has proven a success on the export market, having been selected to serve in the air forces of 25 nations. The F-16 is the largest Western jet fighter program with over 4,400 aircraft built since production was approved in 1976.Though no longer being purchased by the U.S. Air Force, advanced versions are still being built for export customers. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta.

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U.S.A
1941

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• Grumman's first torpedo bomber was the heaviest single-engine aircraft of World War II, and it was the first design to feature a new wing-folding mechanism created by Grumman, intended to maximize storage space on an aircraft carrier; There were three crew members: pilot, turret gunner and radioman/bombardier/ventral gunner. One .30 caliber machine gun was mounted in the nose, a .50 caliber (12.7 mm) gun was mounted right next to the turret gunner's head in a rear-facing electrically powered turret, and a single .30 caliber hand-fired machine gun mounted ventrally (under the tail), which was used to defend against enemy fighters attacking from below and to the rear. This gun was fired by the radioman/bombardier while standing up and bending over in the belly of the tail section, though he usually sat on a folding bench facing forward to operate the radio and to sight in bombing runs. Later models of the TBF/TBM dispensed with the nose-mounted gun for one .50 caliber gun in each wing per pilots' requests for better forward firepower and increased strafing ability. There was only one set of controls on the aircraft, and no access to the pilot's position from the rest of the aircraft. The radio equipment was massive, especially by today's standards, and filled the whole glass canopy to the rear of the pilot. The radios were accessible for repair through a "tunnel" along the right hand side. Any Avengers that are still flying today usually have an additional rear-mounted seat in place of the radios, which increases crew to four.

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U.S.A
1980   

F16-C
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• The F-16C is an improved version of the F-16A. In the early 1980s, the Multinational Staged Improvement Plan (MSIP) was introduced to gradually increase the capabilities of the aircraft. Planned developments included improvements in day and attack fighter performance along with night fighting and multi-role capabilities including limited SAM suppression. Stage I MSIP improvements included structural and wiring changes for improved avionics along with an environmental control system (ECS) to cool the new electronic equipment. Stage II MSIP was used primarily to install the improved avionics made possible by the Stage I modifications. The gross takeoff weight was increased by almost 2,000 pounds because of critical redesign of aircraft skin (thickness) and structure. Stage III MSIP improvement included provisions for mounting a Low-Altitude Navigation and Targeting for Infra-Red (LANTIRN) pod, a Terrain-Following Radar and Forward Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) pod, an external 30mm gun pod, electronic counter-measures (ECM), etc.

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U.S.A
1947

• The history of the Albatross reaches back well into world war II. In 1944 the USAF ordered the development of an amphibious aircraft which was to be used for training future flying boat crews and serve as a Search and Rescue aircraft. Three years later on 24th october 1947 the Grumman's wining proposal, the Albatross left ground for the first time.

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U.S.A
1969 

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U.S.A
1953 

• The Grumman S-2 Tracker (previously S2F) was the first purpose-built, single airframe anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft to enter service with the US Navy. Its predecessor, the AF-2 Guardian was the first purpose-built aircraft system for ASW, using two airframes, one with the detection gear, and the other with the weapons.

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Grumman S-2E Tracker  (2)

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U.S.A
1974

GENERAL DYNAMICS F-16

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U.S.A
1959 

Grumman OV-1 Mohawk

• The Grumman OV-1 Mohawk is an armed military observation and attack aircraft, designed for battlefield surveillance and light strike capabilities. It is of twin turboprop configuration, and carried two crewmembers with side by side seating. The Mohawk was intended to operate from short, unimproved runways in support of Army maneuver forces.

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U.S.A
1980 

Gloster F-5/34

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U.S.A
1980 

Grumman G-159 Gulfstream

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BRITAIN
1939 

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Gloster F-9/37

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U.S.A
1940 

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Grumman G-44 Widgeon

• The Widgeon was originally designed for the civil market. It is smaller but otherwise similar to Grumman's earlier G-21 Goose, and was produced from 1941 to 1955. The aircraft was used during World War II as a small patrol and utility machine by the United States Navy, US Coast Guard and by the Royal Navy. The first prototype flew in 1940, and the first production aircraft went to the United States Navy as an anti-submarine aircraft. In total, 276 were built by Grumman, including 176 for the military. During World War II, they served with the US Navy, Coast Guard, Civil Air Patrol and Army Air Force, as well as with the British Royal Navy, who called it the Gosling.

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Grumman G-44 Widgeon  

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BRITAIN
1940 

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U.S.A
1937 

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• The Grumman G-21 Goose amphibious aircraft was designed as an eight-seat "commuter" plane for businessmen in the Long Island area. The Goose was Grumman’s first monoplane to fly, its first twin-engined aircraft and its first aircraft to enter commercial airline service. During World War II, the Goose became an effective transport for the US military (including the Coast Guard), as well as serving with many other air forces. During hostilities, the Goose took on an increasing number of combat and training roles. In postwar use, the adaptable little transport continued in use.

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BRITAIN
1948

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U.S.A
1938

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• While the F3F-1 was entering production, the US Navy was already looking ahead. They issued a contract to Grumman to integrate the supercharged Wright R-1820 Cyclone engine onto the F3F airframe. This required a complete redesign from the firewall forward, but the result became the F3F-2. The new engine raised available power to 950 hp, and while it only represented a 25 mph increase in airspeed, it raised the service ceiling to over 30,000 feet! While the F3F never fired a shot in anger, it was responsible for training the generation of pilots that would lead the US into aerial combat against agile foes.  

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UNITED KINGDOM
1929
 

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U.S.A
1936

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• The Grumman F2F was a single-engine, biplane fighter aircraft with retractable undercarriage, serving as the standard fighter for the United States Navy between 1936 and 1940. It was designed for both carrier- and land-based operations.

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