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National Museum of the United States Air Force

Encyclopedia : N : NA : NAT : National Museum of the United States Air Force

 

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Main entrance to the museum
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Main entrance to the museum

The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official national museum of the United States Air Force and is located at Wright-Patterson AFB, east of Dayton, Ohio. Over 300 aircraft and missiles are on display, most of them indoors. Admission is free.

The museum has many rare and important aircraft and other exhibits, including one of four surviving Convair B-36s, the only surviving XB-70 Valkyrie, and Bockscar—the B-29 Superfortress that dropped the second atomic bomb in World War II.

The museum has several Presidential aircraft, including those used by Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. The centerpiece of the Presidential aircraft collection is SAM 26000, the first aircraft to be called Air Force One, used by John F. Kennedy through Richard Nixon during his first term, after which served as the backup Presidential aircraft until 1990. That aircraft was most used by Lyndon B. Johnson.

There is a large section of the museum dedicated to pioneers of flight, especially the Wright Brothers, who conducted some of their experiments at nearby Huffman Prairie. The Wright's 1909 Military Flyer is on display, as well as other Wright Brothers artifacts. The building also hosts the National Aviation Hall of Fame, which includes several educational exhibits.

The museum has a large inventory of USAAF and Air Force clothing and uniforms in its collection. At any time over fifty WWII vintage A-2 jackets are on display, many of which belonged to famous figures in Air Force history. Others are beautifully painted to depict the airplanes and missions flown by their former owners. Included in the museum's displays are the A-2 jacket worn by Gen. Jimmy Stewart, P-38 ace Maj. Richard I. Bong's B-3 sheepskin jacket and boots, an A-2 jacket worn by one of the few USAAF pilots to get airborne during the Attack on Pearl Harbor, and former President Ronald Reagan's peacoat.

The museum completed the construction of a third hangar and hall of missiles in 2004. It now houses Cold War-era planes such as the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, the F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter and others. Fundraising has begun for a fourth hanger to house the musuem's space collection, presidential planes and an enlarged educational outreach area, making all more accessible to the public.

The museum has an IMAX theatre that mainly features aviation and space oriented IMAX films. There is a charge for these films.

Contents

Partial List of Collection

All aircraft in this list were designed/built in the United States of America, unless otherwise indicated.

Building an Air Arm (

Inter-War Years

Museum display depicting the Doolittle Raid
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Museum display depicting the Doolittle Raid

Bockscar and a replica of Fat Man on display at the museum
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Bockscar and a replica of Fat Man on display at the museum

Hanoi Taxi flying over the museum in December 2005
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Hanoi Taxi flying over the museum in December 2005

Post Cold War

Presidential Aircraft

Research and Development Aircraft

External links

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