The Museum of Flight is a private non-profit air and space museum in the Seattle city area. It is situated at the southern end of King County International Airport (Boeing Field) in the city of Tukwila, right away south of Seattle. [5] It was established in 1965 and is completely certified by the American Alliance of Museums. As the biggest personal air and space museum worldwide, it likewise hosts large K-12 educational programs. [6]

The museum draws in over 500,000 visitors every year, [2] and likewise serves more than 140,000 trainees annually through its onsite programs: a Challenger Learning Center, an Aviation Learning Center, and a summer camp (ACE), in addition to outreach programs that take a trip throughout Washington and Oregon. [7]

History

The Museum of Flight can trace its roots back to the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation, which was established in 1965 to recuperate and restore a 1929 Boeing 80A-1, which had been found in Anchorage, Alaska. The repair took place over a 16-year duration, and after completion, was put on display screen as a focal point for the museum. In 1968, the name "Museum of Flight" initially appeared in use in a 10,000 sq feet (900 m2) facility, rented at the Seattle Center. Planning began at this time for a more irreversible structure, and preliminary ideas were drafted. [8]

In 1975, The William E. Boeing Red Barn was obtained for one dollar from the Port of Seattle, which had seized it after Boeing abandoned it throughout The second world war. The 1909 all-wooden Red Barn, the original home of the company, was barged 2 miles (3 km) up the Duwamish River to its existing area at the southwestern end of Boeing Field. [9] [10] Fundraising was sluggish in the late 1970s, [11] and after remediation, the two-story Red Barn was opened to the public in 1983. [12]

That year a funding campaign was introduced, so capital might be raised for construction of the T.A. Wilson Great Gallery. In 1987, Vice President George Bush, joined by 4 Mercury astronauts, cut the ribbon to open the facility on July 10, [12] [13] [14] with an extensive volume of 3,000,000 cubic feet (85,000 m3). The gallery's structure is constructed in an area frame lattice structure and holds more than 20 hanging airplane, consisting of a Douglas DC-3 weighing more than 9 tons. [8]

The museum's education programs grew significantly with the structure of an Opposition Learning Center in 1992. This interactive exhibition allows trainees to experience an Area Shuttle mission. It consists of a mock-up NASA mission control, and experiments from all areas of space research study.

Completed in 1994, the 132-seat Wings Cafe and the 250-seat Skyline multipurpose banquet and conference space increased the museum's footprint to 185,000 square feet (17,200 m2). At the very same time, among the museum's most extensively acknowledged and popular artifacts, the Lockheed M-21, a modified Lockheed A-12 Oxcart created to bring the Lockheed D-21 reconnaissance drones, [15] was positioned on the floor at the center of the Great Gallery, after being completely restored. [16]

The very first jet-powered Flying force One (1959-1962, SAM 970), a Boeing VC-137B, was flown to Boeing Field in 1996; it arrived in June and was opened to visitors in October. [17] [18] Retired from active service earlier that year, [17] it is on loan from the Flying force Museum. Originally parked on the east side of the museum, it was driven throughout East Marginal Way and now resides in the museum's Aviation Pavilion, where it is open to public walkthroughs.

In 1997, the museum opened the very first full scale, interactive Air traffic control service tower exhibition. The tower overlooks the Boeing Field runways, home to among the thirty busiest basic aviation airports in the nation. The display offers a glimpse into what it is like to be an air traffic controller.

The next major expansion was opened in 2004, with the addition of the J. Elroy McCaw Personal Courage Wing, named after J. Elroy McCaw, an area entrepreneur, business owner and World War II veteran. [19] [20] [21] North of the Red Barn, the wing has 88,000 square feet (8,200 m2) of exhibit space on two floors, with more than 25 World War I and World War II aircraft. It also has large collection of design aircraft, including every plane from both wars. [22] Many of these aircraft were from the collection of the Champlin Fighter Museum, formerly in Mesa, Arizona, [19] [23] which closed in 2003. The wing opened on June 6, the sixtieth anniversary of D-Day. [21]

In June 2010, the museum began on a $12 million brand-new building to house a Space Shuttle it wanted to receive from NASA, called the Charles Simonyi Space Gallery. [24] [25] The new structure consists of multisensory exhibits that stress stories from the visionaries, designers, pilots, and crews of the Space Shuttle and other space related objectives. The gallery opened to the public in November 2012. [26] [27]

Though the museum did not receive among the four staying Shuttles, it did get the Full Fuselage Trainer (FFT), a Shuttle bus mockup that was used to train all Space Shuttle astronauts. [26] Because it is a trainer and not an actual Shuttle, small group (no more than 6 persons, minimum age 10, optimum height 6 ft 4 in (193 cm)) guided trips of the interior are offered, for an additional charge. The FFT started arriving in various pieces starting in 2012. The cockpit and 2 sections of the payload bay got here via NASA's Super Guppy. [28] [29]

During the 50th anniversary celebrations for Apollo 11 in 2019, the Museum of Flight hosted a traveling Smithsonian display with the Apollo Command module Columbia, which was utilized throughout the very first Moon landing. [30]

Aircraft on display

The Museum of Flight has more than 150 aircraft in its collection, including:

Exhibits and centers

On its grounds is the Personal Courage Wing (PCW) with 28 World War I and The second world war aircraft from several countries consisting of Germany, Russia, and Japan.

There is likewise the "Red Barn", a signed up historic website also referred to as Building No. 105. Built in 1909, the structure was utilized during the early 1900s as Boeing's original production plant. Through photos, film, oral histories, and restoration of work stations the displays in the Red Barn illustrate how wood aircraft structure with fabric overlays were manufactured in the early years of aviation and offers a history of air travel development through 1958.

In June 2007 the museum opened a brand-new space display: "Space: Exploring the New Frontier", which traces the advancement of area flight from the times of Robert Goddard to the present and into future business spaceflight.

Restoration facility

The museum preserves a repair facility at Paine Field in Everett with about 39 ongoing projects including a de Havilland Comet 4 jet airliner, a Jetstar, and the Boeing 2707 mockup, amongst many.

Museum of Flight Library and Archives

The Harl V. Brackin Library at the Museum of Flight was founded in 1985. As of 2011, it includes 66,000 books and subscribes to 100 regulars; focusing on aerospace and aviation, it has an online brochure. [44]

The Museum of Flight Archives is available to the general public via the Kenneth H. Dahlberg Research Center. [45] It includes countless pictures and thousands of linear feet of manuscript products. Highlights of the collections consist of the Gordon S. Williams photographic collection, the Peter M. Bowers Photographic Collection, the David D. Hatfield Aviation History Collection, the Norm Taylor Photographic Collection, the Elrey B. Jeppesen Aviation History and Navigation Collection, the American Fighter Aces Association Archives, the Lear Corporation Archives, and the Wright Airplane Company Collection. [46]

In December 2017, the Archives introduced a digital repository. The website includes digitized materials from archival, library, and artifact collections. [47] In April 2019 the Archives began to make archival collections available and searchable online. [48]

Other centers

In September 2013, Raisbeck Aviation High School (previously Aviation High School) opened in a new facility straight north of the museum's Aviation Pavilion. The school is operated by Highline Public Schools as a STEM school with a concentrate on aviation. The school operates in collaboration with the museum (which owns the land), Boeing, and other members of the regional air travel market. The center will likewise be utilized for the museum's summer education programs when school is not in session.

Opened to the public in June 2016, the Aviation Pavilion covers the gap between the high school and the Space Gallery. The cover permits airplane which were seasonally drawn out, such as the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-29 Superfortress, to be put permanently on display screen. Constructed as part of the extensive "Inspiration Begins Here!" campaign, the pavilion includes 18 of the museum's most iconic airplane. The 140,000-square-foot (13,000 m2) roofing system doubles the museum's exhibition space, and was constructed with help from Sellen Construction and Seneca Real Estate Development.

In late May 2019, the museum opened the Vietnam Veterans' Boneyard featuring the fully restored B-52G Stratofortess Midnight Express (59-2584) as the culmination of Project Welcome Home. Just west of the Aviation Pavilion, the park is totally free to the public. [49]

See likewise

List of aerospace museums


References

Notes

^ Lentz, Flo; Martin, Sarah J. (December 13, 2017). "Landmark Registration Form". King County. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
^ a b "Museum of Flight Annual Report 2015" (PDF). Museum of Flight. p. 18. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
^ "Matt Hayes will be successful Museum of Flight CEO Doug King." Museum of Flight, July 12, 2017
^ "The Museum of Flight Welcomes Matthew R. Burchette as its New Senior Curator" (Press release). Museum of Flight. July 2, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
^ "Museum of Flight". Yahoo Travel. Archived from the initial on November 11, 2014.
^ "Museum of Flight". Boeing Academy. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
^ "Museum of Flight/Aviation High News Release" Museum of Flight. Retrieved: September 8, 2011.
^ a b Ogden, 1986 p. 193.
^ Truett, Jim (September 7, 1977). "Real expert in charge of flight museum". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Associated Press. p. 17.
^ "Old racetrack now museum of flight". Ellensburg Daily Record. UPI. September 19, 1981. p. 19.
^ "Flight museum taxiing cab". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. October 22, 1980. p. A12.
^ a b "Air museum to open huge gallery". Spokane Chronicle. Associated Press. July 6, 1987. p. A5.
^ "VIP's anticipated for flight museum opening". Ellensburg Daily Record. UPI. July 9, 1987. p. 7.
^ "Flight museum is open". Ellensburg Daily Record. UPI. July 11, 1987. p. 3.
^ a b "World's fastest aircraft Seattle-bound - slowly". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. September 11, 1991. p. B3.
^ Ogden, 1986 p. 194.
^ a b c Szabo, Liz (June 21, 1996). "Original Air Force One retires". Allegheny Times. Beaver, Pennsylvania. Associated Press. p. A4.
^ "First Flying Force One to open for public tours this month". Seattle Times. October 8, 1996. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
^ a b Lalwani, Sheila (June 19, 2002). "Museum of Flight's growth takes wing". Seattle Times. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2014.
^ "Museum highlights personal guts in new fighter wing". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Associated Press. November 12, 2003. p. 3A.
^ a b Tu, Janet L. (June 1, 2004). "Museum to introduce new warplanes wing". Seattle Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
^ "General History Fact Sheet." Archived December 4, 2011, at the Wayback Machine The Museum of Flight, 2004. Retrieved: August 9, 2011.
^ Slivka, Judd (January 20, 2000). "Champlin Collection". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved December 11, 2022.
^ Williams, Lauren C. (June 29, 2010). "Seattle's Museum of Flight breaks ground in its huge quote for an area shuttle". Seattle Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
^ "Photo Gallery: How to display a retired area shuttle." Collect Space. Retrieved: February 4, 2011.
^ a b Broom, Jack (November 7, 2012). "Museum of Flight's Space Shuttle Trainer exhibit opens Saturday". Seattle Times. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
^ "Space Gallery Construction Has Begun." Archived March 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine The Museum of Flight, 2010. Retrieved: March 30, 2011.
^ Brown, Jack (June 30, 2012). "Super Guppy, with space-shuttle trainer on board, touches down at Boeing Field". Seattle Times. Retrieved September 14, 2014.
^ "Museum of Flight Awarded Full-Fuselage Shuttle Trainer." The Museum of Flight. Retrieved: April 13, 2011.
^ McKenzie, Madeline (April 10, 2019). "' Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission' exhibit splashes down at the Museum of Flight". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
^ "First 747 called "City of Everett"". Spokane Daily Chronicle. Associated Press. July 12, 1971. p. 16.
^ "The first 747 jet folds its wings for retirement". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. April 1, 1990. p. 7C.
^ "Concorde arrives, calls Seattle home". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. November 6, 2003. p. B6.
^ Lawless, Jill (November 5, 2003). "Concorde jets prepare for quiet times ahead". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Associated Press. p. 3E. [irreversible dead link] ^ Pyle, Richard (June 27, 2004). "Retired Concorde lands in museum". Southeast Missourian. Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Associated Press. p. 8A.
^ Gitlin, Jonathan (December 20, 2023). "What would you do with a used Rolls-Royce Olympus engine from Concorde?". arstechnica.com. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
^ "De Havilland D.H. 106 Comet Mk. 4C|the Museum of Flight".
^ "Lockheed M-21 Blackbird." The Museum of Flight. Retrieved: September 2, 2011.
^ First Boeing 727, now restored, takes final flight by: Siemny Kim Updated: March 2, 2016; KIRO-TV
^ "Super Constellation CF-TGE." rbogash.com. Retrieved: November 26, 2010.
^ "Alcor Lamson." Archived August 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Activate Media, 2006. Retrieved: May 20, 2011.
^ Said, Bob: 1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine, p. 46. Soaring Society of America November 1983
^ "Lamson L-106 Alcor Glider." Museum of Flight, May 2011. Retrieved: May 20, 2011.
^ "Start - OPAC Discovery".
^ "Proving Ground Information|Museum of Flight".
^ American Library Directory. Vol. 2 (64th ed.). Information Today, Inc. 2011-2012. pp. 2568-2576. ISBN 978-1573874113.
^ "The Museum of Flight - Digital Collections". mof.omeka.net. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
^ "Archives at The Museum of Flight". archives.museumofflight.org. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
^ "Vietnam Veterans Memorial Park". Museum of Flight. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
Bibliography

- Ogden, Bob. Great Aircraft Collections of the World. New York City: Gallery Books, 1986.