Talk:Airlift

tactical airlift comparison table
Since this table ostensibly compares the abilities of several tactical airlifters, why is the maximum range given in each case unladen? It doesn't matter how far they can fly without cargo. Does this make sense to anyone else? ericg &#9992; 05:27, 10 March 2006 (UTC)
 * It's because that's the only way to compare that's easily found. Because every pound of cargo carried means one less pound of fuel that can be carried, range with a load is a variable number.  A table could be constructed with nominal loads, but I suspect that would require WP:OR.  Reductions in range are proportional to loads carried, so the unladen figures present an approximation that is useful to compare.  --Lineagegeek (talk) 15:39, 25 August 2014 (UTC)

agility of airlifters - disputed
Can someone please find data backing up the following paragraph?


 * Tactical airlift aircraft are highly manoeuvrable allowing low-altitude flight to avoid detection by radar and air-drop supplies. A Hercules has the same speed and rate-of-turn performance as a Second World War Spitfire. They are fitted with defensive aids systems to protect them from attack by surface-to-air missiles.

This is a little hard to swallow, is all. Thanks. ericg &#9992; 18:43, 14 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I've looked at it and on the speed front it seems accurate. The spitfire has a maximum speed of 605km/h while the Hercules will do 610km/h. Though, these are just maximums, it doesn't say anything about acceleration. As for turn performance, I can't find any real data on that. But when looking at a photo like this it does give me the impression that they're quite capable aircraft on the performance front: http://www.airliners.net/open.file/0374760/L/ BabyNuke 21:03, 14 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I certainly have no problem with the speeds, those are verifiable. The ‘rate-of-turn performance’, however, is less so... just because a picture shows an aircraft in a 60° bank doesn’t necessarily mean it’s agile; I’ve very nearly done that in a Cessna 152 (no parachute, otherwise I certainly could have gone further). Roll rate and turn radius are more relevant items, and I’m not sure where to find them. ericg &#9992; 21:37, 14 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I can't find any relevant data either. Did find this video though: http://www.flightlevel350.net/video_streaming.php?id=5157 ; but that still doesn't look quite as agile as a spitfire. I guess the author should elaborate. BabyNuke 09:10, 15 April 2006 (UTC)


 * I put in a request for references on the talk page of, the creator of this article. ericg &#9992; 18:46, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

First airlift?
A small air resupply mission took place in the Ogaden region of present day Ethiopia during the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, this was in 1935, before the German's mission mentioned in the article. A video of the event from a Luce Institute newsreel can be seen here. Unless I've misunderstood the criteria for an "airlift" as defined by this article, it should be mentioned in addition to the German airlift in 1936. --NEMT (talk) 18:43, 10 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I've read that the Russians did an airlift mission to Siberia in 1929. It was on the wikipedia article on Marshal Tuchakevsky. Flask Whole (talk) 17:56, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Regarding the Airbus A400M/ EU and Turkey joint project
Turkey is not in the European Union, however, Turkish Aerospace Industries a Turkish company is a partner company in the Airbus Military consortium developing the A400M. Thus, the A400M is a joint project between the European Union and the Republic of Turkey. Turkey is developing critical parts for the engine and also the fuselage. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.148.209.236 (talk) 04:38, 12 August 2008 (UTC)

Remove Mriya from list of "current" airlifters?
I know it's sad, but would it be responsible to scratch this one from the list? It says "current" airlifters are listed, but obviously if you look, the An-225 is a "was" currently. 73.254.20.136 (talk) 06:12, 6 August 2022 (UTC)

Largest Civilian Airlift
The Biafran airlift is described as "the largest civilian airlift ever". The Air India airlift during the Gulf War is described as "The largest civilian airlift in history". I think the Biafran airlift involved food relief, so it may be the largest as far as the number of aircraft. I do not know, which is why I posted here instead of editing the page to reflect the aforementioned distinction. Thanks. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dsa605 (talk • contribs) 02:13, 12 January 2024 (UTC)