40 years of...AVIATION

Commemorating the Berlin Airlift, 60 years on — a special Aircraft online report

At the outset, Aircraft was not, it is fair to say, all that interested in out-and-out topicality. In fact, a regular news section wasn't introduced until the fourth issue, when the magazine (previously quarterly) went monthly. It and Peter R. March's 'Airview' section provided a comprehensive topical element, at a time when it was far more difficult to keep up to date than the internet, e-mail and digital photography help us be today. But as the years went on, the coverage grew and grew.

This, then, is how Aircraft covered 40 of the biggest aviation stories of its first 40 years, from 1968 to 2008. It's by no means complete — for one thing, the magazine didn't used to report disasters, like the 1977 Tenerife collision that remains the worst loss of life in any aviation accident. Rather, it provides a snapshot of some of the major events of these last four decades, and a look at the way we saw them at the time. Sometimes, this differs greatly from what we know now. Look at the claims made for the Boeing 747 on the occasion of its maiden flight, for instance — or the plans for F-22 production when it beat the F-23 in the Advanced Tactical Fighter contest! Our look back at 40 moments from 40 years also reflects the fact that the major achievements and highlights in aviation have always been tempered by sadness and tragedy, also reflected here.

Use the links below to see what was covered by Aircraft during those years.

1960s - 1970s Close Read More
1970s - 1980s Close Read More
1980s - 1990s Close Read More
1990s - 2000 Close Read More
2000 - 2007 Close Read More