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My Favorite Things: The SR-71 Blackbird
For the Spring 2024 issue of Air and Space Quarterly, I was asked to write about one of my favorite artifacts in the National Air and Space Museum. It was not a difficult choice. Check out the article online here, or in the print edition, for a rundown on the history of the Museum’s Blackbird.
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New Talk on the Lafayette Escadrille – American Volunteer Fighter Pilots in World War I
Last fall I was very honored to be invited to speak at the National World War I Museum and Memorial’s annual symposium, where I gave a talk called “Myth and Memory of the Lafayette Escadrille.” This was a dedicated squadron of American volunteer fighter pilots that flew with the French in World War I, before…
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New Podcast: Commanding Strategic Bombing in WW2
Don’t miss the latest episode of the From Balloons to Drones podcast! We’re joined by Dr. Luke Truxal to talk about bombing in WW2 — specifically, who was in command, and how did the relationships between different commanders affect the campaigns? This is a great episode you won’t want to miss! You can listen on…
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The First American Women to Fly Combat Missions
I’m very excited about a new article I wrote that was just published in the new issue of Air and Space Quarterly, the member magazine of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. It reveals the names of the first American women to officially fly combat missions. U.S. Navy Lieutenant Kimberly “Face” Dyson was the…
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New Podcast: Women in Military Aviation with Eileen Bjorkman
The new ‘From Balloons to Drones’ podcast is out! Eileen Bjorkman (Col., USAF, ret.) joins us to talk about the history of women in military aviation. She takes us from the women flying in World War II, and through the long road to get to women in combat aviation in the 1990s and beyond. She…
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Dec. 2, Celebrate at the Udvar-Hazy Center
This Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023, the National Air and Space Museum is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Udvar-Hazy Center! Come out and enjoy a ton of cool events, including a behind-the-scenes, up-close look at our restoration hangar, curator talks and Q&A’s, and tons of other fun events. I’ll be there! At 12-noon I’ll be…
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New Article: The Cuban Missile Crisis
A few weeks ago was the 61st anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis — often considered the time where we got closest to a nuclear war (although that is debated). I’ve written a new article summarizing the Cuban Missile Crisis over at the National Air and Space Museum’s website, check it out here. It was…
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World War I Museum Guest Lecture: Myth and Memory of the Lafayette Escadrille
Come join me in Kansas City this weekend at the National World War I Museum and Memorial Symposia! I’ll be there on Friday afternoon to give a talk about the Lafayette Escadrille, the group of American volunteers who flew for France before the United States entered World War I. There’s plenty of other great speakers…
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NASM Fellowships Seeking Applications
The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum is excited to announce several fellowship opportunities opening for applications on October 15, 2023. This includes the Guggenheim Predoctoral and Postdoctoral Fellowships and the Verville Fellowship for 2024-2025, as well as the Lindbergh Chair for 2025-2026. If you’re working on scholarly history in the fields of aviation history…
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Sending Skyhawks and Phantoms to Israel
I’m very honored to have been quoted in an interesting new article from Air and Space Quarterly. The piece is by Stephen Harding, who writes about Operation Nickel Grass. This was the effort in 1973–50 years ago this year–to supply Israel with U.S. military equipment and weapons during their war with a coalition of Arab…
Michael W. Hankins
Curator, Military Aviation Historian