This incredible museum was the last stop in my Ohio adventure this past summer. This museum sits on the Wright Patterson Air Force Base and is the oldest (100 years old in 2023!) and the largest of its kind in the world. It has over 360 aircraft and missiles and covers 20 indoor acres. And it’s FREE!!! The following is just a sampling of what there is to see!!
1931 Autogiro, the predecessor to the helicopter.Ca 32 WWI, maximum 87 mphWW1 Model T Ford AmbulanceWWI and WWII Sharks mouth’s purpose was to intimidate the enemy.Fairchild PT-19A Cornell, 1938 , used for military primary trainer. 124 mphWWII German V2 MissileDouglas A 206 Havoc, 1943, Attacking with forward firing .50 cal. machine guns, 317 mphWWII B29 Bomber that dropped Fat Man nuclear weapon on Nagasaki, Japan on 8/9/1945Big Belly Bomber from Vietnam war. It could carry 84 500lb bombs.OA-10 Catalina equipped with flying boat hull and more. Used for WWII air/sea rescue of downed fliers.ENORMOUS B52 Bomber, has 8 jet engines, a weapon payload of diverse 70,000 lbs and has been in use since 1950. Photo 1.Photo 2 of continuing B52 Bomber wing – Total wing span of 185 ft. Maximin speed is 650 mphRescue CopterDon’t know what this is but loved the paint job!!!Military Air Transport – can carry tanks, bull dozers, trucks, 200 soldiers or 127 patients on stretchers and their attendants. Northrop Grumman B2 Spirit 1980’s Stealth BomberCV-22B Osprey has the qualities of a helicopter and more – used for Special Ops ForcesFDR’s Sacred Cow. 1943, 1st Presidential aircraft.Missiles on display, one of which is the Minuteman III, a 3 stage missile that can reach targets 6000 miles away. That’s a lot of switches!!!A glimpse inside the Sacred Cow. Air Force One most historically remembered because it was the aircraft that carried John F. Kennedy’s body from Dallas to Washington DC after his assassination and also where Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the new President in 1963. Lego model of JFK’s Air Force One made by Jack Carlson.Harry Truman’s Predental aircraft 1947-1953.
Hoped you enjoyed the photos. A most interesting Museum, but sadly, it all has to do with war. My heart and soul ached as I walked through the hangers. The million dollar question being – as civilized as we believe we are – will there ever be a world without war ?
Jeannie's Travel Addiction 