Keeping Cool at the National Museum of the USAF – Day 2

NOTE: If you missed our post describing our first day at the National Museum of the USAF, click HERE!

Normally when you visit a large museum, you are in a rush to see everything before it closes so you get your money’s worth out of your admission ticket. But one great thing about the National Museum of the USAF is that admission is free!

And since time is something that Rhonda and I now have in abundance, we had no problem pacing ourselves during our first visit and returning another day. So we returned to the museum several days later at around noon, knowing that we should have time to visit all of the remaining exhibits without being in too much of a hurry.

Walking immediately to hangar 3, site of the Cold War Gallery, we arrived just in time to attend a free guided tour by one of the many museum volunteers. It was well done, lasted a little over an hour, and really educated us about the basic goals of military aviation during the cold war era. They were: nuclear deterrence, range, and reconnaissance.

Basically, if you had nukes within range and could drop them on the enemy before they could drop theirs, you won the exchange. A horrible thing to consider, but logically sound.

So the majority of the aircraft in this hangar helped achieve one or more of those goals.

The aircraft of this time were always a blind spot in my (limited) knowledge of military aviation, so I found the tour fascinating.

Hangar 3 was filled to the brim with aircraft and other things that fly, so we had a lot of ground to cover!

Among the aircraft we were introduced to were the SR-71 reconnaissance aircraft…

The F-117A Stealth Fighter...

And the B-2 Stealth Bomber...

After the tour we moved on to hangar 4, which took us through the Missle Gallery on the way. It contained a variety of intercontinental ballistic missiles such as the Titan and Minuteman missiles, as well as exhibits about their deployment methods and the warheads they contained.

Also in the Missile Gallery was a reproduction of the Sputnik satellite.

We finally emerged into hangar 4, which contained an eclectic mix of spacecraft, R&D aircraft, and planes that carried the President of the United States during different decades in US history.

Here are some great examples from the Space Gallery…

Here is a reproduction of the Space Shuttle cockpit.

Moving on to the Research and Development Gallery, we saw a VZ-9AV Avrocar “spaceship”…

And the “parasite fighter” XF-95 Goblin. This plane was carried on a bomber and was released during flight to defend the bomber from attackers. It was then reclaimed by the bomber by being caught up in a net-like mechanism that looked really sketchy to my eye.

And in the Presidential Gallery, there was housed the Air Force One aircraft that carried the body of President John F. Kennedy after he was assassinated.

What a fascinating two days at the National Museum of the USAF!

I can’t overstate how HUGE this place is and that our photos barely scratch the surface of what the museum has to offer. If you live within driving distance and have an interest in the history of United States aviation, then you really need to visit the National Museum of the USAF.

Did I mention it’s free?

Just bring a comfortable pair of walking shoes.

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