In the peaceful solitude of the early hours of July 5th, 1955, a prototype of Britain’s latest interceptor, the Gloster Javelin, soared through the starry skies over southern England. The aircraft had been specially designed to fly at night and in all weather conditions, but it was a Javelin in name alone: not only did it travel at underwhelming speeds, but it was much bulkier than its contemporaries, with a large, rounded fuselage, an enormous Ttail, and a broad, triangular Deltawing configuration, earning this oddlooking beast the nickname of the “flying flatiron.” It certainly cut a strange figure as Wing Commander R.F. “Dicky” Martin guided it through the darkness at high altitude on a routine test flight.

Calmly cruising just south of London, suddenly, panic struck. As he struggled for breath, a cold sweat broke out across the pilot’s forehead as he realized that his oxygen tube was stuck in his parachute harness. He desperately fought to untangle it. Then, out of nowhere, an earthshattering boom shattered the tranquility of the lonely night sky, waking households for miles around. Somehow, in the midst of his frantic attempt to free his oxygen tube, without even meaning to, Martin and his unwieldy Javelin had done the seemingly impossible: they had broken the sound barrier.



Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, topsecret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.

As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.

All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.