A memorable year

Taking shelter on a cold night at the Surratt Winter Survival Clinic in Marion, Mont.

Backcountry adventure with Whistler Heli-Skiing. Photo by Darryl Brennan.

Van Thaxton shines his 1944 Stinson V-77 at Sun 'n Fun in Lakeland, Fla.

Friends rallied to complete restoration of Walter Crosby's Cub, earning Piper's respect at Sun 'n Fun.

Pipers flocked to Vero Beach, Fla., to celebrate 75 years.

The Breezy is known to some as the "naked airplane."

The largest gathering of B-25s since World War II.

Survivors marked the seventieth anniversary of the Doolittle Tokyo Raid.

Flying like Doolittle: Sean D. Tucker knows loops - inside and out.

Also great at loops: the U.S. Navy Blue Angels at the Great Tennessee Air Show.

Bob Hoover helped save this P-51; the Mustang won the Favorite Aircraft Challenge. Scott Slocum photo.

Speaking of cool airplanes, readers loved this bi-directional supersonic design. University of Miami image.

Soaking in the past: A father and son wait their turn to fly at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.

Lighting the night at EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wis.

Dassault Falcon Jet raised about $3,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Photo by Tyson V. Rininger

Felix Baumgartner prepares to leap from the Red Bull Stratos capsule at 128,100 feet.

Baumgartner shattered records, reaching Mach 1.24 in freefall. Red Bull Stratos photo.

The Parade of Planes kicked off AOPA Aviation Summit.

Velocity Aircraft made the V-Twin to resist the spin.

Lightning in a (small) bottle: The BD-5J, updated as the FLS Microjet.