The National Naval Aviation Museum, formerly known as the National Museum of Naval Aviation and the Naval Aviation Museum, is a military and aerospace museum located at Naval Air Station Pensacola,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

. Founded in 1962 and moved to its current location in 1974, the museum has since 2019 been closed to the public and open only to holders of U.S. Defense Department identification cards.

Overview

The museum is devoted to the history of naval aviation, including that of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

, and the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, m ...

. Its mission is "to select, collect, preserve and display" appropriate memorabilia representative of the development, growth and historic heritage of United States Naval Aviation.Coleman, J. F., "Welcome Aboard the New Naval Aviation Museum", ''All Hands - The Magazine of the U.S. Navy'', Department of the Navy, Washington, D.C., April 1975, Volume 52, Issue Number 699, pages 3-4. More than 150

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or by using the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in ...

and

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, ...

are on display, including four former

Blue Angels The Blue Angels is a flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.

A-4 Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed ...

s, the Curtiss NC-4 (the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic), U.S. Coast Guard

helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attribu ...

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a ...

s, a K-47 Airship control gondola and tail fin, an aircraft that President George H. W. Bush trained in, and the S-3 Viking used to transport President George W. Bush to the USS ''Abraham Lincoln'' in 2003 (''see'' Navy One). These historic and one-of-a-kind aircraft are displayed inside the museum's of exhibit space and outside on its grounds. The museum also functions in coordination with the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIRSYSCOM or NAVAIR) as the Navy's program manager for nearly all other retired Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aircraft on display aboard U.S. military installations in the United States or overseas, or in numerous other museums or public displays. In a similar manner to U.S. Air Force aircraft on loan from the NMUSAF's collection that remain under official USAF ownership, these other American-preserved naval aircraft remain the property of the Department of the Navy and are typically identified at these locations as being "On Loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum." The museum has a Giant Screen Theater,

flight simulator A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and the environment in which it flies, for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they re ...

s, Blue Angels 4D Experience, museum store, and cafe. The Cubi Point Café displays squadron memorabilia from the closed NAS Cubi Point Officers' Club.

Emil Buehler Naval Aviation Library

The museum houses the Emil Buehler Naval Aviation Library. Established in 1992 with funding from the Emil Buehler Trust, it serves as a non-circulating repository for the National Naval Aviation Museum and is considered one of the richest sources of Naval history in the United States. The library's namesake, Emil Buehler, was an aviation pioneer who funded a philanthropic trust and education programs in colleges throughout Florida and the eastern United States. The library holds artifacts and special collections of items from people and events of importance to the history of aviation in America and naval history. The collection contains books, oral histories, pictures, manuscripts, technical manuals and about 400,000 photographs, many of which are searchable and organized. The library's special collections include a sampling of the earliest tales gathered by members of the Brown Shoe Project, who have compiled stories and histories of aviation squadrons that flew missions during the Korean War. It hosts commemorations such as the 50th anniversary of the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, ...

moon landing in 2019. The library holds

Buzz Aldrin Buzz Aldrin (; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot. He made three spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission. As the Lunar Module ''Eagle'' pilot on the 1969 A ...

’s flight training records from the early days of his Naval career.

National Flight Academy

Adjacent to the museum and library is the National Flight Academy, a four-story simulated aircraft carrier housing over 30 networked flight simulators. Throughout the summer, more than 200 students per week (7th through 12th grade) from across the nation attend the National Flight Academy's 6-day program, designed to inspire attendees to pursue a future in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). The museum is supported by a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit organization, the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. Since 1966, this foundation has raised tens of millions of dollars to construct the museum, build exhibits, recover and restore aircraft, and develop educational programs like the National Flight Academy. Practice demonstrations by the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the

Blue Angels The Blue Angels is a flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.

, may be viewed from the museum most Tuesday and Wednesday mornings between March and November. These practices are weather permitting, and a tentative practice schedule may be viewed on the Blue Angels' website. Captain Robert L. Rasmussen, a retired Navy captain, former Navy fighter pilot and former

Blue Angels The Blue Angels is a flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.

demonstration pilot, served as museum director for 27 years and reported to the

Naval History & Heritage Command The Naval History and Heritage Command, formerly the Naval Historical Center, is an Echelon II command responsible for the preservation, analysis, and dissemination of U.S. naval history and heritage located at the historic Washington Navy Yard. ...

. Also an artist, some of his works are displayed in the museum. Captain Rasmussen retired as director in 2014 and was replaced by Captain Sterling Gilliam, Jr.

History

The museum was established 14 December 1962 in a cramped 8,500-square-foot building erected during World War II. It was dedicated in June 1963. Construction of the current facility began in November 1972. The Phase I portion opened in November 1974 and was dedicated on 13 April 1975 . The Phase II portion was completed in 1980, and the Phase III portion in 1990. The museum and some of its aircraft on display outside were damaged by

Hurricane Ivan Hurricane Ivan was a large, long-lived, Cape Verde hurricane that caused widespread damage in the Caribbean and United States. The cyclone was the ninth named storm, the sixth hurricane and the fourth major hurricane of the active 2004 Atlant ...

in September 2004. In 2019, after a gunman killed three people and injured eight more at the air station, the museum and other National Park attractions were closed to the public. In 2020, the museum was closed for seven months during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, museum officials were reported to be planning to reopen the museum to the public. In 2022, discussions began on converting portions of existing roads to create a dedicated access corridor to the museum.

Collection

References

External links

National Naval Aviation Museum
official website
National Flight Academy
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Museum Of Naval Aviation Aerospace museums in Florida Maritime museums in Florida Museums in Pensacola, Florida Pensacola metropolitan area United States naval aviation Military and war museums in Florida United States Navy museums Marine Corps museums in the United States Museums established in 1962 Naval History and Heritage Command 1962 establishments in Florida

Overview

Emil Buehler Naval Aviation Library

National Flight Academy

History

Collection

See also

Naval aviation museums

United States museums

Other

References

External links