Infamous Aircraft

Book excerpt: An in-depth look at some of the 20th century’s notoriously terrible aircraft. Many aircraft, some famous and some rare, gained a reputation for being difficult to fly and sometimes downright dangerous. This book looks at some of the worst culprits over a period spanning World War I to the age of supersonic flight. The following aircraft are included . . . B.E.2: The Royal Flying Corps went to war in it in 1914. The B.E. was easy to fly and very stable—but it was difficult to maneuver and very easy to shoot down. Tarrant Tabor: The Tabor was grotesque, a massive misfit of an experimental bomber that predictably came to grief on its first flight. Avro Manchester: The twin-engine Manchester would fly all the way to Berlin and back—only to burst into flames over its own base. Messerschmitt Me 210: The Me 210 was developed as a successor to Goering’s Destroyer, the Bf 110. It was a disaster with a phenomenal accident rate. Martin B-26 Marauder: They called the B-26 the “widowmaker,” fast and powerful, with some savage characteristics. Reichenberg IV: The manned version of the V-1 flying bomb was a desperation weapon, and its pilots intended to fly suicide missions against Allied shipping. Tu-144: Rushed prematurely into its test program to beat the Anglo-French Concorde, the Tu-144 was intended to be Russia’s supersonic dream.