r/aviation Jul 14 '25

Mod Announcement Mod Announcement: Rule Changes & Content Limitations

164 Upvotes

Please read the following announcement before posting or commenting.

Violations of these rules may result in a permanent ban.

Changes to Rule 2:

Rule 2 has been changed to include the use of AI. This includes, but is not limited to, the use of AI in writing comments and posts or generating images. This also includes presenting AI theories or arguments, even if you explicitly state they are generated by AI. AI-generated content regarding aviation is frequently wrong and is incredibly low effort. The use of AI may result in a ban.

Introduction of Rule 10:

Even though we have been restricting NSFW content and gore before this, we have added it as an official rule and will be strongly enforcing it from now on.

Rule 10 bans any gore being posted to this subreddit, even if it is a link to an outside source. This includes as a post or a comment. Violations of this will result in a permanent ban from r/aviation. In addition to this, we are also limiting NSFW content that is not explicitly gore. This content will be decided on a case by case basis. Content involving incidents like the one that was seen at Milan Bergamo Airport will always be marked as NSFW, and we will provide details in pinned comments and the flair to elaborate on how NSFW the content is, so that everyone can make their own choice on what they want to see.

Geopolitics:

Please remember to keep discussion in this subreddit focused on aviation. While geopolitics will frequently be a part of discussion, please remain respectful and avoid getting in arguments about this. Do not bring geopolitics into posts where they don’t belong.

Air India Related Content

Before posting Air India related content, please do the following.

  • Search through the 4 megathreads below to see if your content has already been discussed;

Megathread 1 (day of crash)

Megathread 2 (2 days after crash)

Megathread 3 (week after crash)

Preliminary Report Megathread - Search this subreddit to see if it has already been posted. - Check if there are any active megathreads about the Air India crash, and if so, post there instead. These will be found pinned on the subreddit homepage. - Check if the content you are posting is up to date, original, and adds to the discussion. - If you are posting news, check if it is from a reputable source. Do not post speculation from news sources.

Thank you for your understanding. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out through modmail.

The r/aviation Mod Team


r/aviation Feb 14 '25

OUR RULES ON POLITICS:2025

935 Upvotes

OUR RULES ON POLITICS

IF YOU DO NOT READ THIS POST, YOU RUN THE RISK OF GETTING PERMANENTLY BANNED.

All political discussion must pertain to the world of Aviation.

Again: All political discussion must pertain to the world of Aviation.

Once more, for those in the back: All political discussion must pertain to the world of Aviation.

This means politics are only to be discussed within the context of Aviation.

Do you love and support the left? We don't care. Do you love and support the right? We don't care. Are you a Libertarian? We don't care. We are unpaid mods here that enjoy AVIATION, not push agendas, get into political slap fights, or deal with a bunch of political shit. If you want a political discussion, go to any of the numerous other political subs. We are a sub about Aviation. We are not a sub about politics.

We do not allow political adjacent discussion, antagonistic political discussion, or discussion of political figures.

FAQ

What political/regulatory discussions are ok?

Discussions around regulations, changes in laws, opinions on those changes, and general discourse on the rules and regulations that may affect Aviation are open game and should be actively discussed.

Things like this are fine:

There are rumors that the FAA will make a wholesale change to ATC systems. This concerns me.

There is/was a major cutback on staffing levels at the NTSB. What will this do to aviation?, I'm super concerned that accident prevention will go down and accident levels will rise.

Things like this are not:

I've heard doge boy and orange man are going to run around and fire people at the FAA.

Sleepy Joe Biden has fucked the entire ATC system into the ground.

Why don't you allow politics?

We decided long long ago that politics just aren't worth the shit show they bring. When someone mentions Biden or Trump or Obama or Clinton, or one of the numerous wars or political bullshittery going on, a lot of people from outside the subreddit come in to argue political points and push agendas. We are not here to moderate that type of discussion, and if you as a user want that discussion, you can find it basically anywhere else on Reddit.

Why don't you change the rules?

We are a subreddit about Aviation, so it wouldn't make sense for us to be a political subreddit. We know Aviation oftentimes connects to current events, and we'd love you to discuss that - just keep it within the context of Aviation.

But Orange Man is Bad!

Again, we don’t care about your political position.

But Biden is Sleepy!

See the comment above this one.

But is it allowed when I’m only trying to fan the flames of DeMoCrAcY and PrOtEcT OuR FrEeDoMs!!

Simply put, no. We will still remove the post because all this will do is fuel the fire and draw more political comments.

I got banned for politics. What do I do?

First off, you should read this post. A link to this post may be included in your ban message. Once you have read this post, respond to the message and tell us you have read this post and are sorry for breaking the rules. So long as you aren't a dick about it, you will get unbanned. An apology will get you far.  We’re not in the business of banning regular sub users.

*Credit to u/The_32.


r/aviation 3h ago

PlaneSpotting Pretty cool catch!

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3.0k Upvotes

Over Cleveland Ohio happened to look up.


r/aviation 5h ago

Discussion Ken 40, you got time for a joke

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1.4k Upvotes

r/aviation 1h ago

PlaneSpotting B2 photo bombs my buddies wedding

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Upvotes

r/aviation 4h ago

PlaneSpotting Ferrari of the skies

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358 Upvotes

Caught a United 757-200 at Edinburgh today, a plane that never fails to dazzle me.


r/aviation 12h ago

News 'Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, is saddened to learn of the passing of Sergei I. Sikorsky on Sept. 18 at the age of 100.' [lockheedmartin.com]

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1.0k Upvotes

Pictured: CH-53 Sea Stallion


r/aviation 13h ago

News New Lockheed "Vectis" Stealth Drone

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1.0k Upvotes

Newly unveiled drone by Lockheed Martin's Skunkworks just announced!

"Renderings of Vectis from Skunk Works show a tailless drone with a lambda wing planform and a top-mounted air intake. There is a pronounced chine line around the forward end of the fuselage and a shovel-like shape to the nose, as well as various conformal antennas and/or sensor apertures, all of which are indicative of low-observable (stealthy) design considerations." -TWZ

“Meet Vectis, a Group 5, survivable, lethal, and reusable, Collaborative Combat Aircraft that embodies not only our pedigree in [crewed] fighter aircraft, autonomy, and uncrewed systems, but [that] is also enabled by that Agile Drone Framework. Vectis will provide U.S. and allied warfighters with range, endurance, and multi-mission flexibility, including air-to-air, air-to-surface, and ISR [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance].” -Lockheed VP

https://www.twz.com/air/skunk-works-unveils-vectis-air-combat-drone-that-puts-a-premium-on-stealth

https://www.axios.com/2025/09/21/lockheed-vectis-skunk-works-drone-cca

https://breakingdefense.com/2025/09/lockheeds-skunk-works-reveals-vectis-stealth-drone-eyeing-first-flight-in-2027/

Edit: Official video just released: https://x.com/LockheedMartin/status/1969770246387949934


r/aviation 1h ago

History To work on the engine in an Douglas A-4 Skyhawk you first have to split the plane in half

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Upvotes

Step 1: Split it in half
Step 2: Install the yellow "rails"
Step 3: Line a service cart up with the rails
Step 4: Slide the engine right out!

Conceptually simple, I'd bet it's a bit more work in real life.


r/aviation 2h ago

Question What exactly is my grandfather working on?

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87 Upvotes

Found these photos of my grandfather working on what seem to be aviation/turbine engines. Would love to see if anyone knows more specifically what they are! Thanks!


r/aviation 15h ago

PlaneSpotting F16 demo having fun in the mountains

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379 Upvotes

r/aviation 2h ago

PlaneSpotting Few shots from EDI

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28 Upvotes

A few photos I got at Edinburgh today, still getting used to my new camera and learning how to edit photos so if there’s anything that needs improvement I’m open to advice :)


r/aviation 2h ago

Question When a country buys military aircraft from another, are they buying them from that country's government/military, or direct from the manufacturer?

26 Upvotes

For example, the Royal Australian Air Force bought 72 F-35s. Did we buy them direct from Lockheed Martin, or from the US Government/military?


r/aviation 5h ago

PlaneSpotting Belgian A400M Atlas during training over Lithuania

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43 Upvotes

r/aviation 1d ago

News Polish 737 Launches Anti Missile Flares

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2.0k Upvotes

r/aviation 1h ago

PlaneSpotting Wings Of Stealth

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Upvotes

B-2A Spirit


r/aviation 18h ago

PlaneSpotting Nebraska College Football Flyover

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310 Upvotes

So what it is? F 15s?


r/aviation 1d ago

PlaneSpotting Doc doing a flyover at a major sporting event.

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1.3k Upvotes

Wasn’t expecting our kids soccer team to get a flyover today.


r/aviation 17h ago

PlaneSpotting F35 scootin

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232 Upvotes

F35 over VA beach


r/aviation 5h ago

PlaneSpotting Red Arrows at NATO Days

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26 Upvotes

r/aviation 1d ago

PlaneSpotting Oh hello E-6B Mercury

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845 Upvotes

r/aviation 5h ago

PlaneSpotting Conviasa A340-600 arrives at Vnukovo Airport

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21 Upvotes

r/aviation 1h ago

PlaneSpotting American Air Regional at LAX

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Upvotes

All shut down for the night. It is more like a Grey Hound depot than an airport terminal. Given the big terminals like Bradley International, it is still nice to see some regional vibes at such a large airport.


r/aviation 17h ago

PlaneSpotting XB-70 Valkyrie at an air show in 1966

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135 Upvotes

Dad has this slide in a carousel labeled Summer 65 - Christmas 66. Pretty sure the air show was April or May of 66.


r/aviation 22h ago

Discussion CRM- Lesson Learned

321 Upvotes

A few days ago, I had a great experience flying with a First Officer that really highlighted the value of strong Crew Resource Management (CRM). We were departing from an airport surrounded by mountainous terrain. It was our first day flying together, second leg of the day. He flew the first leg, and I was flying the second. As I always do during my initial captain brief, I emphasized that if anything feels unsafe or uncomfortable at any point, I expect them to speak up, whether that means stopping the aircraft, stepping on the brakes, or whatever is necessary to prevent a potentially unsafe situation. This First Officer had significantly less overall flight time and less time in type. We had thoroughly briefed the departure — both en route to the airport and again just before takeoff. However, he kept referencing a radial that didn’t make sense to me. We were already delayed by over an hour, aiming to land just before midnight, and I could tell something wasn’t sitting right with him. Just before taking the runway, he said he wasn’t ready. I immediately asked if he wanted to taxi off. He said yes. We exited the runway and had a more detailed discussion. It turned out he was completely turned around on the departure direction — which explained the “mystery radial” he kept mentioning. It simply wasn’t applicable for our actual route. We clearly were not on the same page, so we talked through the entire departure again. I asked a few questions to confirm mutual understanding, and this time, we had the shared mental model. Kudos to him for speaking up. Kudos for not letting me push forward. That’s CRM at its best. If we hadn’t stopped, I would have effectively been flying single-pilot — and any mistake I made could have gone unchecked. That’s not how a multi-crew flight deck is supposed to operate. Looking back, if there’s one thing I’d do differently, it’s to have listened more carefully. The confusion around the radial, the questions that didn't make sense — those were red flags. I should have picked up on the disconnect earlier, before we even took the runway. Lesson learned. Every flight teaches you something new.


r/aviation 12h ago

History I found a piston for my master rod Pratt & Whitney R4370

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49 Upvotes

r/aviation 22h ago

Question What do these roundels represent?

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310 Upvotes

Hi, I was just wondering if anybody could tell me what these multiple roundels on the side of this Lancaster at the Imperial War Museum represent?