About
The development of aviation revolutionized the transportation industry, proved crucial to implementing war tactics and strategy, and contributed to the global markets and geopolitics of today. This site is an attempt to establish a global inventory of aircraft which played a significant or iconic role in that history.
The research is based on +40 years of scrutinising and collecting aviation books and magazines, and visiting museums and air shows all over the world. Lists, details and pictures are ranged by period (see the tabs above, in the main menu), per country/state where they were developed. However, many types were built under license in other countries - these examples are still ranged under the original manufacturer/designer. I've kept the information on the type itself very limited - it's fairly easy to find our more about every aircraft type on the internet (Wikipedia is a great resource !), but the number built is mentioned, so one can make an idea how rare the survivor is. The lists are arranged by construction number. When it is known the number painted in the fuselage is not correct, it is mentioned between brackets. I am trying to visit and photograph the museums as much as possible. The pictures watermarked with "cynrik.com" are made by myself. Most of them were taken digital. The quality depends, besides my own limits, on the conditions in the museum. Aircraft are big objects, difficult to frame in the limited space of a hangar or exhibition space. Sometimes the light conditions are so poor, and the use of a tripod is often prohibited (most of the times I've got a little one in my pocket, which I am trying to use, hoping the museum personnel won't harrass me...). Since 2015 I am experimenting with HDR (High Dynamic Range) - only possible when one can use the tripod, but often with interesting results. |