Joe Baugher

Joseph F. Baugher was an academic by profession and an aviation enthusiast at heart. Though he originally set his sights on a career in aeronautical engineering, he ultimately found success in the field of physics. Still, his passion for aviation never waned, and neither did his curiosity for other subjects like astronomy.

Joe shared an extensive personal biography on his website, which you can still read thanks to the Internet Archive: Joe Baugher's Biography.

At some point (when or where inspiration struck, no one quite knows) Joe took it upon himself to tackle a monumental task: to document the individual histories of every aircraft ever used in U.S. military service. What sounded like an impossible undertaking, he managed to accomplish to an extraordinary degree. His website became an essential resource, and the name "Baugher" earned legendary status among aviation enthusiasts worldwide.

Joe Baugher passed away on November 12, 2023, at the age of 82.

I never took the opportunity to thank Joe for his exceptional work, and I truly regret it. I know many others share that sentiment. Fortunately, there's still a way to express your gratitude, by sharing a few kind words with his wife, Judith. You can reach her at jfbaugher@gmail.com.

Marco Dirkx

I was born in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, in 1967, and spent my early years living right under the flight path of the local air base. F-84F Thunderstreaks would scream overhead, and I’d respond in kind, by bolting into the house in full panic mode. To this day, I stubbornly claim I was just dashing for my binoculars... Despite that less-than-glamorous introduction to aviation, the bug bit me early. By my teenage years, I spend most of my time near the air base, whenever I wasn’t in school... and even sometimes when I definitely should have been.

I've been an aircraft spotter, photographer, and serial number enthusiast ever since, a passion that's taken me all over the world to some truly incredible places, and still does from time to time. My fascination with post-war U.S. military aviation began early, back when I spent school holidays at my grandparents’ house, building plastic model kits. That early spark never faded and, over time, it put me in a good position to carry on Joe Baugher’s work after his passing. Of course, when I took on the project, I had absolutely no idea just how much time and effort it would require, like most things started on a whim.

After completing my military service in the Royal Netherlands Army, I pursued a degree in IT and have been working as an ICT engineer ever since. Still, I found myself missing army life, which eventually led me to join the Army Reserve (Nationale Reserve). Over the years, I worked my way up through the ranks and now hold the position of Sergeant-Major, with just a few years left before retirement. I was fortunate to be selected for a deployment to Iraq a few years ago. Deployments like that are quite rare for Dutch reservists, making it a true highlight of my military career. And yes, I even managed to sneak in a bit of plane spotting while I was there!