We are used to seeing the engines of airplanes. Nowadays, they are mostly located under the wings, allow us to watch them even while we are flying. However, engines have been located in very different places throughout aviation history. We wanted to investigate this subject a little more and see the diversity. It was the first time we encountered some designs and we were amazed. Frankly, we did not know that aviation history had such different, bold and sometimes extreme designs. There are various reasons for this; such as safety, allocation of required power, arranging space for weapons, adjusting additional fuel location, increasing aerodynamic efficiency, facilitating maintenance, ground/water clearance etc. Our article has turned into a much more colorful and rich content than we expected.
The models on this page are sample models selected for a specific engine location. There are other models with the same design, but we have selected the most distinctive ones. Almost every model alone has its own unique features that are worth researching in depth. We enjoyed preparing this article, so we hope you enjoy reading it.
Important Note: If by any chance, there is a picture which is subjected to copyright, we apoligize and ask you let us know please so we can replace or remove it.
Single Tractor Propeller


Single Contra-Rotating Tractor Propeller


Twin Tractor Propeller

ATR-72 Beechcraft King Air 300
Triple Tractor Propeller

Junkers Ju-52 Britten-Norman Trislander
Quad (Four) Tractor Propeller


Quad Tractor Contra-Rotating Propeller


Six Tractor Propeller

Junkers Ju-390 Blohm & Voss BV 238
Eight Tractor Propeller

Howard Hughes
Single Pusher Propeller

BD-5 Micro Velocity XL

OTTO-Celera-500L
Single Contra-Rotating Pusher Propeller

Sud-Ouest SO 8000 Narval B-42 Mixmaster
Twin Pusher Propeller

Saras Piaggio P-180
Quad Pusher Contra-Rotating Propeller

Northrop XB-35
Six Pusher Propeller
Convair B-36 Peacemaker
Tractor and Pusher Propeller Combination

Adam A500 Cessna Skymaster

Dornier Do X
Ekranoplans

Alexeyev A-90 Orlyonok Alexeyev Ekranoplan
Amphibious Aircraft



Lisa Akoya Hydroplan
Twin-Boom Tractor Propeller

Hughes XF-11
Twin-Boom Jet in the Fuselage

de Havilland Vampire
Twin-Fuselage Tractor Propeller

F-82 Twin-Mustang
Engines on the Wingtips

Vought V-173 Bell MV-22 Osprey

CL-400 Suntan
Engines by the Fuselage

Sikorsky (S-72) X-Wing
Engines Inside the Wings

Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
Engines Inside the Fuselage

F-16 Grumman X-29

F-4 Phantom Virgin Galactic

Sukhoi Su-57 Douglas X-3 Stiletto
Engines on the Tail

Ilyushin 62M Boeing 727
Trijets

Lockheed L-1011 TriStar McDonnell Douglas DC-10
Twin Jets on Top of the Wings

Beriev BE-200 Antonov An-72

VFW Fokker-614 Honda Jet
Single Jet on Top

Cirrus-G2 Vision Jet Eclipse 400
Centrally Positioned Engines

Edgley EA-7 Optica Stipa Caproni
Jets Under the Wings

Airbus A350 B-52

Boeing 747 Antonov An-225 Mriya
Special Purpose Airplane Engine Under the Wings

Virgin Galactic
Supersonic Jet Engines Under the Wings

Concorde Tupolev Tu-160
Engines under the Wings, on Wingtips and Tail (Electric Planes)

Joby Lilium
Asymmetric Aircraft Engines

Rutan Model 202 Boomerang