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The 10 Sexiest Airplanes

B

Bob Axsom

Well Known Member
In the September issue of Plane & Pilot Budd Davisson has an article entitled the 10 Sexiest Airplanes. Now, I do not personally know Budd Davisson even though I have read his articles for many years and I recognize a serious talent that goes far beyond dressing up the same old stuff in different clothes and pumping it out each month. But I do not believe "sexiest" means a darn thing except I'm going to show you some pictures and you will not have an objective basis for disagreement. We are strictly talking appearance here so maintenance, performance, function means nothing as far as the article title goes. Anyway, his list is:

Supermarine Spifire MK22
Staggerwing G17S
Nemesis NXT (Now there may be some basis for the sexy description here)
Lancair 320
Lear 24D/Falcon 10
Vulcon Bomber
Cirrus/Columbia
F-86
F-22
SR-71
Followed by Honorable Mentions
F-14
Beech Starship
Cirrus/Labelle Standard Class Sailplanes
SpartanExecutive
Lockheed Model 12A, Electra Jr.
Edge 540

None of my personal apperance favorite even made the the honorable mention list, P-51D, F4U-5, F-101, F3H, F9F, RV-6A for example.

Bob Axsom
 
Polen Special would be high up on my list. WAAAAY sexier than an...Edge 540?!?! I also think the Lancair Legacy is a much nicer looking airplane than half of those listed. Military jet...mine would be the F-5. To each his own, eh?
 
Yeah, F-5/T-38 Top My List

dan said:
Military jet...mine would be the F-5. To each his own, eh?
Click to expand...

Have to agree with Dan here, T-38s are so graceful both off and on the ground; beautiful in a delicate sort of way, unlike the bulkier fighters. (I may be affected by the fact that it's also the fastest thing I've ever flown . . . . :) )

Had instruction in a '46 Champ this weekend; not sexy per se, but it was awfully fun :D

John
 
Glasair III !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! where art thou. This is what got me into experimental. Still think of it . Often.
 
I'm with Dan on this one...Polen Special is a beautiful airplane. Very sleek and fast.

Some of my favorites:
- F-105
- Cessna Cardinal RG (I know I'm going to catch h@ll for this one...)
- F-16
- Citation X (really fast looking)
 
P-51D
F-16
T-38
SR-71
Ryan STA

Randy Pflanzer's F-1 Rocket rates right up there.

and of course, the one I'm flyin'! :D
 
Number one on everyone's list ought to be a P-51. Others on my list are
F-15
SR-71
B-2
RV-6A
 
Globe Swift and Citation X are my additions off the top of my head

And that Piper Seminole I'm flying... ohhh wait, that's on the totally unsexy list. Also surprised nobody mentioned whatever their wife/girlfriend/mistress is in!
 
T-38

Sexy? I've always said the T-38 is the most sexy. Non-aviating friends look at me funny when I describe an airplane as sexy. #2 would be the Supermarine. Then the 51D.

I think my top 10 would easily be all military, except for the RV-8!

But this is like comparing the contestants at the Miss World pageant or something. They're all really hot!
 
Hughes H-1 Racer

Without a doubt, for me the sexiest airplane ever.... long, sleek, big radial engine, retractable with tailwheel, polished aluminum skins. Everything a real mans airplane should be. Howard Hughes had issues, but he sure had good designers and craftsman working for him.

These guys did an incredible replica, flew it successfully for a number of years, but unfortunately it went down, killing the pilot/builder back in 03.

http://www.wrightools.com/hughes/
 
N908RV said:
Without a doubt, for me the sexiest airplane ever.... long, sleek, big radial engine, retractable with tailwheel, polished aluminum skins. Everything a real mans airplane should be. Howard Hughes had issues, but he sure had good designers and craftsman working for him.

These guys did an incredible replica, flew it successfully for a number of years, but unfortunately it went down, killing the pilot/builder back in 03.

http://www.wrightools.com/hughes/
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I agree about the Hughes racer! But I would also mention another plane he had a hand in designing and that's the sexiest airliner ever built, the Constellation.
 
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Symmetry

Most of my favorites have already been listed, but one that hasn't been is the Symmetry, although I think there's only one built.
cbsymmetry2.jpg
 
Tough call

I've always liked the P-51D, but then in 2003 at Airventure, I saw the Hughes Racer, H-1 #2. What amazed me was how SMALL it was. It was a petite airplane...and I had a crush on her, just like the one I had on that girl in high school. (On September 4, we'll celebrate 37 years!) :D
Don
 
My Favorite is

the Piranha, only one left flying in the world and it even has VANS wheel pants and lower cowl FI scoop.

dsc08003lr9.jpg
 
I know I am biased, but this EVO wing is pretty tough to beat in the looks department. This picture was taken at turn 4 of the Rocket 100 race last fall.
 
All right. All you guys with flying RV's better plan a trip to Dayton and the Air Force Museum. I can't believe no one has mentioned the B-58 Hustler.
My personal favorite plane of all time, and only 45 miles away so I can see her at least once a year!!
 
Did you notice, so as not to offend a couple of major advertisers, that Columbia and Cirrus tied? LMAO!!!
 
Good Call

Brian130 said:
Most of my favorites have already been listed, but one that hasn't been is the Symmetry, although I think there's only one built.
cbsymmetry2.jpg
Click to expand...


Good Call on the Symmetry, Brian - that is a beatiful aircaft, so simple in its lines it belies the compexity in design. Glad you brought that one up.

Doug, the HL-10 Lifting Body- cool one, but I can't get past my childhood watching Steve Austin crack up in on in the Six Million Dollar Man. "Oscar, she's breaking up, she's breaking up!" :D
 
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Do you have any more info on this plane or the pilot? I parked next to him in Hondo a couple of years ago and talked to him for a while but missed him leaving, so I didn't get his name or the name of the plane.
Cam


rv969wf said:
the Piranha, only one left flying in the world and it even has VANS wheel pants and lower cowl FI scoop.

dsc08003lr9.jpg
Click to expand...
 
DeltaRomeo said:
HL-10 Lifting Body!!!

ECN-1289.jpg


BTW, if you've never spent time at http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/index.html you can literaly spend an entire work day goofing off (look for the contact sheet links). Movie of the HL-10 in 'flight' at http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Movie/HL-10/480x/EM-0014-04.mov

b,
dr
Click to expand...

IIRC, this is the vehicle that crashes in the opening sequence of the old TV show "The Six Million Dollar Man".

If it wasnt the same one, I believe it was one of the variants from the same project, believe it was called "Dyna-Soar"

http://www.friends-partners.org/partners/mwade/graphics/x/x20early.jpg

Little space shuttle family resemblance there---------
 
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jmartinez443 said:
P40 Warthog
and its little brother the A10 Warthog is ugly-sexy.
Click to expand...

Good nomination, but I've got a few corrections:

1. P-40 Warthog?? Do you mean the P-47, with which the A-10 shares a name-lineage (Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt II)?

2. A-10s, like most military aircraft, are not masculine, they're feminine.

3. I think the A-10 is incredibly sexy. I'm allowed to say it because I "dated" one for a long time. Ugly is only a state of mind.

:)

Cheers,
Buck
Ex-Hogdriver, 1989-1991
511 TFS, RAF Alconbury, UK
 
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That list is totally BS. Without the P-51, Cessna 310, and an RV of any kind on it, it is just farcical. :p

Roberta

Oh!! Sorry Buck, but the P-40 is a Warhawk or Tomahawk. The P-47 is a Thunderbolt. You get no credit. :D

And I'm glad I don't waste my money on that m(r)ag that published this dribble.
 
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Mike S said:
If it wasnt the same one, I believe it was one of the variants from the same project, believe it was called "Dyna-Soar"
Click to expand...


The DynaSoar was a completely different vehicle, and very interesting in it's own right. Basically, it was an early 60's attempt at a Shuttle concept, but they never even came close to solving the thermal protection problem - I've read most of the documentation on the project, and they never even got that far. But much of the entry trajectory stuff that we use for the Shuttle was originally developed for DynaSoar. The program ended primarily due to the politics of military vs. civilian control of the space program.

Thus ends the history less as I head in to MCC for (hopefully) one final shift before entry tomorrow....

Paul
 
Mike S said:
IIRC, this is the vehicle that crashes in the opening sequence of the old TV show "The Six Million Dollar Man".

If it wasnt the same one, it was one of the variants from the same project, believe it was called "Dyna-Soar"
Click to expand...
Close, Mike! The M2-F2 with Bruce Peterson at the controls actually was the crash footage you're talking about (and these lifting body articles were really started in earnest after Dyna-Soar was canceled).

You're talking to a guy who had the 'Six Million Dollar Man board game' in addition to the action figure :D.

Bet you didn't know Chuck Yeager flew the M2-F1 five times.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifting_body

Info on the various "lifting bodies"
Reading 'Flying Without Wings' by Milt Thompson right now...is how I know this stuff off the top of me head <g>.

Great book!!!
 
so many...

Beauty is in the eye....yayaya. There are so many to choose from. Hey I know it's not fashionable to like anything French these days.... but Dassault builds **** sexy airplanes. Like the Falcon 20 or this one:

fmiraf1p01ldt6.jpg


Long lean and sexy....the best looking Mirage

Can't deny that several others hit on some of my favorites: Hughes H-1,
the prototype XP-38, the DeHaviland Hornet and the Polen Special.
 
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robertahegy said:
That list is totally BS. Without the P-51, Cessna 310, and an RV of any kind on it, it is just farcical.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the 310 bit, Roberta. I think you are right. I like the pointy models from the 70's.

My list (in no order)

'Stang
Sled (SR-71)
T-38
Su-27
Staggerwing
310
H-1
TA-152H
Bearcat
Lancair

Honorable mention, but disqualified due to fictionality

Obi Wan's Delta-7 Aethersprite and hyperdrive ring :rolleyes:
 
Women are sexy - airplanes are cool

Mr. Davisson has it all wrong. Women are sexy, airplanes are cool. My choices (airplanes) are very personal and represented on the wall near this computer.

Boeing 707-331B N776TW - in TWA Starstream Colors
North American F-86L

This particular Boeing is the airplane that was hi-jacked in August of 1969 on a flight between Rome and Athens. After negotiations broke down in Damascus while the airplane was parked on a remote desert airstrip, a bomb was detonated in the cockpit causing major damage. TWA and Boeing repaired the airplane sufficiently to fly it back to the states where it was rebuilt and returned to service where it flew until 1983. I had the privilege of crewing it before and after the dastardly terrorist act. The airplane is a natural for All American Coolest Airplane in that pilots fell in love with it for its grace in flight, on the ground, and above all, its ruggedness when the chips were down in really bad weather.

The F-86, which is a surprise to see on the list, is on the wall because it did not kill me. There never was a 2 seat version of it so they taught new pilots to read a check list, start and stop the engine, and off you went. Oh, there was a little more to it than that, like a couple weeks or so ground school on systems, but basically it was kick the tires and light the fire - at age 21, we were fearless and invincible (otherwise known as stupid and dangerous by experienced pilots).

Sorry for the long dissertation, but there has to be a reason for having a favorite airplane or two. Time warp forward and it is an RV for sure although the fearless and invincible parts are long gone. :)
 
The diversity of opinions is interesting. Many airplanes have been mentioned that I don't think are sexy at all.

Maybe categories are needed.

Military: No one has mentioned my favorite, the F-16. I can't imagine someone picking the F-14. T-38 is a worthy competitor.

Airliner: Yep, Concorde, no competition.

Piston business airplane: Another one that no one has mentioned, Beech Staggerwing.

Jet business airplane: Grumman G-IV in the air; just about any Lear, on the ground.

Sport airplane: Maybe something like the Lopresti Fury or Evo Rocket and definitely the Polen Special. I don't think any of the standard RVs quite make the cut, although I love them. Agreed that no unlimited aerobatic airplane is all that sexy.

The last category would also be the overall winner, gliders. Nothing else really competes. I agree that the Libelles are beautiful. I don't think the Duo Discus is all that great. The very very sexiest aircraft in the world are Schleicher gliders. A good example would be the ASW-28.

Alexander_Schleicher_ASW_28-18.jpeg
 
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I got my sexy back...

I fly the T-38...probably too much since I am pretty burned out right now. But I've been to numerous airshows and the T-38 always has a crowd around it...even when parked next to an Eagle or a Viper. I re-realized how sexy the Talon was coming up initial at NAS Oceana on Friday night with the sun setting in the backgound.

I also agree that gliders are sexy...but in a different kind of way. Most fighters are sexy in the porn star kind of way...while a single seat racing glider is sexy in the pure, innocent, girl next door kind of way.

Once I get my -8 done and paid for...I will buy a good fast glider and maybe get into some racing. I just gotta find a woman who will sit around all day and come pick me up when I land in a field...
 
Im a little surprised the F4 Phantom has not been mentioned...

My favorite good lookin' planes, in no particular order, are: Spitfire, Me-109, F-86, F-4, Stearman, Lancair, and P-51 (if the guppy air scoop is removed).
 
XB-70 Valkyre

Anybody who has seen the XB-70 Valkyre at the Wright Pat museum would have to agree that this is a huge, sexy aircraft. For those who haven't seen one, google XB-70 Valkyre. Only a couple of these bombers were built before the program was cancelled.
 
RV-6 and Concord

1flyer said:
I'm surprised that no one has added Concord to the list.
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N157GS_Concord.jpg


Since you asked for the Concord, how about my RV and the Concord. Oshkosh 1998. I am parked in my CAMPING spot.
My airplanes first year at Oshkosh.
 
SR-71 is first on my list

Interesting (and worthy) choices in above posts.

I would nominate the SR-71 as the ?ber Alles number one sexy airplane. (Full disclosure, I spent some very enjoyable time in the back seat of these critters - not as flight crew, but as electronics tech, on the ground)

The P-51, just when it drops its wing tanks, is second for me.

I agree with the poster that likes the F 4 Phantom. Watching them take off in tandem is a cold war memory worth keeping.

So many cool airplanes, I would have trouble limiting to just ten.

Some airplanes that would make my un-sexy (if not downright yucky) list, the Ercoupe, the Vaught F8 E Crusader, and that Vulcan bomber on Davvison's sexy list.

Regards all - - Tom in Sacramento
 
You beat me to it--------------

cbo111 said:
Anybody who has seen the XB-70 Valkyre at the Wright Pat museum would have to agree that this is a huge, sexy aircraft. For those who haven't seen one, google XB-70 Valkyre. Only a couple of these bombers were built before the program was cancelled.
Click to expand...

Well, if I cant be first to mention it, how about me putting up the photo???



Sexy???? Downright phallic if you ask me.
 
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Top 10 Sexisest Airplanes

This one is a tough one - but I can't believe I have not seen the ME-262 in anyone's list !

Here is my list (not necessarily rank ordered):

1. ME-262A-1a Swallow
2. B-58A Hustler
3. F-104A Starfighter
4. Buggatti Racer (see it at the EAA Museum at KOSH)
5. MC-202c ( Maachi )
6. P-51D Mustang
7. SR-71A Blackbird
8. Supermarine Spitfile MK-22
9. Fockewulf FW-190-D9
10. J7W1 Shinden

There are so many that it is impossible to really keep it down to 10. :D

Bye for now -
 
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