Stories of daring, stories of technological feats, stories of prevailing against the odds ... these are the stories we tell at the National Air and Space Museum. Dive in to the stories below to discover, learn, and be inspired. 

Showing 11 - 20 of 112

Head-on view of an American Airlines DC-3 airplane, a large passenger airplane, on the ground with its propellers turning.

June 20, 2023

Triumph of the Gooney Bird

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

Visitors to the National Air and Space Museum can see a DC-3 that flew more than 56,700 hours for Eastern Air Lines.

Captain Joseph W. Kittinger parachutes from the gondola of the U. S. Air Force’s high altitude balloon Excelsior I, November 16, 1959. Kittinger jumped from an altitude of 76,400 feet.

June 17, 2023

The Man Who Fell to Earth

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

If you think bungee jumping is scary, look at what Joe Kittinger did.

An artist's concept of the Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight exhibition. In the center is a hanging silver airplane, a red airplane peaks out of the right. There are vertical panels with information on it.

June 17, 2023

Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

The Pioneers of Flight gallery preview.

AirSpace, a podcast, logo

June 08, 2023

AirSpace Bonus! Wronging the Wrights

Story | AirSpace Podcast

Season seven is over but don’t despair! We have some fun new things headed your way soon. In the meantime, we borrowed this episode from our friends at Smithsonian’s Sidedoor to tide you all over.

An engineer in a hazmat-type suit and mask inspects the James Webb Space telescope's primary mirror segments, large octagonal mirrors that are the size of the engineer.

June 05, 2023

Up to Speed

Story | Air & Space Quarterly

The latest news in aviation and space.

J. Herman Banning

February 24, 2023

Crossing the Country with James H. Banning

Story

James Banning is perhaps best known for this record-setting transcontinental flight, but his story and accomplishments started years earlier.

A man floats through two space suits aboard the Space Shuttle.

February 16, 2023

Charles Bolden: Pilot, Astronaut, and NASA Administrator

Story

Maj. Gen. Charles Bolden was NASA's first African American Administrator. He also served in the military and logged over 680 hours in space.

Cornelius R. Coffey

February 14, 2023

Cornelius Coffey: Aviator and Educator

Story

Cornelius Coffey was an advocate for the education of Black Americans in aeronautics.  

An adult Indian American woman with long black hair wears an orange spacesuit, smiling for a picture in front of a grey background and American flag.

February 01, 2023

Kalpana Chawla: The First South Asian American Woman in Space

Story

Chawla made history as the first Indian woman, and the first South Asian American woman, to fly in space. Discover her story.

Wilbur Wright Flying past New York

December 19, 2022

You Just Invented the Airplane, Now What?

Story

If you were the Wright brothers, you would turn your attention not to perfecting your flying skills but securing a patent and finding customers for their groundbreaking invention.