Probably for about as man has walked the earth he has wished he was able to fly like the birds. Once we mastered flight, ideas  beyond your run-of-the-mill airplane came fast and furious. As one might expect, some of the most bizarre ideas got their start with the military, who is always trying to outpace another country or come up with something that solves a specific problem.

1. Lockheed XFV “Salmon”

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Traditional-looking airplanes that are able to take off and land vertically are no longer just a concept. Modern fighter aircraft like the AV-8B Harrier have been doing it for a number of years. The “Salmon” was an early attempt at making the concept a reality, and although it did actually fly, landing it was extremely hazardous and the project never really took off, so to speak.