Warbird

thumb|Critical Mass, a modified Sea Fury air racerthumb|A SBD-5 Dauntless Dive Bomber is salvaged from the depths of Lake Michiganthumb|The same aircraft after restoration

Warbird is a term used to describe vintage military aircraft.

Naming

Although the term originally implied piston-driven aircraft from the World War II era, it is now often extended to include all military aircraft, including jet-powered aircraft, that are no longer in military service. Vintage jet aircraft in flyable condition, however, are much rarer due to technical complexity.

Sometimes, the term "warbird" also applies to newly built replicas and reproductions of vintage aircraft, such as Allison V-1710 powered Yak-9s from Yakovlev, Me 262s built by the Me 262 Project and FW 190s by Flug Werk, and can, for earlier eras when military aircraft design was of a less complex nature, even include any one of a large number of different World War I and later military aircraft designs, up through the late 1930s in origin, sometimes powered by vintage engines from the era of the aircraft design being flown.

Restored warbirds are a frequent attraction at airshows. Highly modified as well as "stock" warbirds can also frequently be seen at air races, since late-war fighter planes are among the fastest propeller-driven planes ever built. Some of the most popular warbirds for races are the North American Aviation P-51 Mustang, the Hawker Sea Fury, the Grumman F8F Bearcat, and the North American......
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