HowStuffWorks Newsletter
Flight is truly one of the most amazing engineering feats man has achieved. This collection of flight articles will show you some of the coolest aircraft ever created.
This hybrid airship isn't exactly your great-grandfather's zeppelin.
There are so many tweaks we wish airlines would implement, especially if future seat configurations mean stacking passengers with butts suspended above heads.
We're not quite at floating cruise ship phase, but modern dirigibles could be rising stars for carting cargo.
By Julia Layton
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Sure, flight-simulation video games and drone piloting both involve computer screens and handheld controllers, but do these similarities make gaming a useful training platform for real-life, high-stakes military operations?
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's an unmanned aerial vehicle traveling faster than the speed of sound!
By Chris Opfer
They're the stuff of headlines, often characterized as evil in the sky. But how do unmanned aerial vehicles actually get off the ground and flying?
Going through airport security is the worst part of flying for most people. Now you may be asked to turn your cell phone on in the security line. Why do you have to do that? And does it really keep us safe?
By Beth Brindle
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Writing a legible message on paper requires a steady hand; writing one in the sky requires a steady everything.
By Julia Layton
Why do we still lock away critical data on a box that can go down with the plane? It may be time to think differently about the black box and its contents.
Since 1948, more than 100 aircraft have gone missing while aloft and never been found. How is this possible? We'll look at some of these unsolved mysteries, as well as other bizarre airline mishaps.
It happens. And when it does, the consequences can include not only red-faced pilots, but also inconvenienced passengers, endangered planes, damaged airfields and maybe some free peanuts for everyone involved.
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Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a ... drone? Turns out, drones are doing all kinds of harmless -- and even heroic -- things all the time. Find out how drones are changing the way we farm, fight fires and make movies.
In the world of flight, it's a fine line between flying high and falling fast. Can you name 10 of the innovations that keep planes and their passengers airborne?
By William Harris
Would you risk the mother of all jet lag if you could cross the U.S. in less time than it takes to pass through airport security? After all, your time is precious, and haven't supersonic and hypersonic technologies been around for decades now?
The airline industry is one of the largest contributors to global carbon emissions, but it's possible to fly and do minimal damage to the environment.
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Steampunk enthusiasts imagine an alternate version of history, where the dress code demands petticoats and suit vests and airships are the most romantic forms of all transportation.
What is the future of supersonic flight? Learn more about the future of supersonic flight in this article.
Discovery Channel deliberately crash-landed a Boeing 727 passenger jet in a remote and uninhabited Mexican desert as part of a scientific experiment for a new documentary. Plane crashes terrify people -- but what do the statistics show?
In fall 2011, 240 passengers climbed aboard the Boeing 787 Dreamliner to get up close and personal with the long-awaited, much-discussed aircraft. In 2013, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded U.S.-registered Dreamliners. What happened?
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Not your "typical" Honda: This one features fully-adjustable leather seats, power window shades and a private bathroom with a black marble sink -- oh, and don't forget its over-the-wing engines, too.
More than 100 years ago the Wright brothers made their historic first flight in Kitty Hawk, N.C. Even after all these years, their creation still boggles the mind: How can something so heavy take to the air?
Why would a pilot ever want to eject an airplane's fuel intentionally? And why would it happen during a flight? Although it sounds alarming, a fuel dump is a safe procedure.
By Jane McGrath
It's hard to look up in the sky on a clear day and not see a "cloud" trailing from an airplane. They're called contrails, though some refer to them as "chemtrails" and have odd explanations for their existence.
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Private pilots have the luxury of being able to pick up and go, soaring over the gridlocked streets below. But earning this privilege is no simple matter -- it takes hours of work and thousands of dollars in lessons and practice. How is it done?
The loops, rolls and rocketlike maneuvers these stunt pilots perform are astounding. What's the history behind aerobatics and how do they perform those tricks in the sky?