A group of pilots on an aviation forum I visit came up with a list of aviation museums that you can fly to (i.e., within walking distance from aircraft parking)and this month I decided to start visiting them.
The New England Air Museum in Bradley, CT was a really nice surprise. The restorations, displays, and research at this museum are really spectacular, with quality comparable to the National Air and Space Museum. There's a heavy focus on WWII, as well as local contributions to aviation. Since Sikorsky was based nearby they have a huge presence (literally and figuratively, including a giant 4-engine transatlantic flying boat), and there's a big display for Kaman, who engineered several inovations in helicopters in the 50s and 60s before engineering Ovation guitars in his twilight years. (I also learned you pronounce his name like "command," without the D at the end.) Many of the planes have cockpits that can be opened, so with the supervision of a docent you can try them on for size. I was following my 8-year old around for the day and he got to sit in the cockpit of an F-100 for a good long time. There were also a P-47 (my favorite), a P-51, F-104, A-10, B-25, A-26, F4U Corsair, F4F Wildcat, F6F Hellcat, a DC-3, and a few dozen too many others to mention.
The queen of their fleet is this gorgeous B-29. It was assembled from 2 different airframes, and later on they made a trade with the team that was restoring Doc to flying status. Doc needed some airworthy parts for the tail and traded a turret and some other parts for static display.
We were only there for about 2 1/2 hours before it was time to fly home, and I'd guess that you need at least 4 hours at this museum to take it all in. I was busy chasing my 8 year old son around so I didn't take many pictures, but I'll make sure to do that for the next trip.
If you're in the area, I highly recommend this museum.
Before we departed, we were treated to a bunch of touch-and-goes by the VP's transport (callsign Venus when it's not Air Force 2) while I did the preflight inspection. I know, a Piper Warrior pales in comparison, but it did a good job of getting us where we needed to go.
The New England Air Museum in Bradley, CT was a really nice surprise. The restorations, displays, and research at this museum are really spectacular, with quality comparable to the National Air and Space Museum. There's a heavy focus on WWII, as well as local contributions to aviation. Since Sikorsky was based nearby they have a huge presence (literally and figuratively, including a giant 4-engine transatlantic flying boat), and there's a big display for Kaman, who engineered several inovations in helicopters in the 50s and 60s before engineering Ovation guitars in his twilight years. (I also learned you pronounce his name like "command," without the D at the end.) Many of the planes have cockpits that can be opened, so with the supervision of a docent you can try them on for size. I was following my 8-year old around for the day and he got to sit in the cockpit of an F-100 for a good long time. There were also a P-47 (my favorite), a P-51, F-104, A-10, B-25, A-26, F4U Corsair, F4F Wildcat, F6F Hellcat, a DC-3, and a few dozen too many others to mention.
The queen of their fleet is this gorgeous B-29. It was assembled from 2 different airframes, and later on they made a trade with the team that was restoring Doc to flying status. Doc needed some airworthy parts for the tail and traded a turret and some other parts for static display.
We were only there for about 2 1/2 hours before it was time to fly home, and I'd guess that you need at least 4 hours at this museum to take it all in. I was busy chasing my 8 year old son around so I didn't take many pictures, but I'll make sure to do that for the next trip.
If you're in the area, I highly recommend this museum.
Before we departed, we were treated to a bunch of touch-and-goes by the VP's transport (callsign Venus when it's not Air Force 2) while I did the preflight inspection. I know, a Piper Warrior pales in comparison, but it did a good job of getting us where we needed to go.
