The National Naval Aviation Museum (formerly called the National Museum of Naval Aviation) is a military and aerospace museum located at 1750 Radford Boulevard, on the grounds of Naval Air Station Pensacola. It opened in 1962.
| National Naval Aviation Museum | |
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| Location | 1750 Radford Boulevard Naval Air Station Pensacola |
| Operated by | U.S. Navy Naval Aviation Museum Foundation |
| Director | Captain Robert L. Rasmussen |
| Opened | 1962 |
| Cost of Admission | Free |
| Hours of Operation | Daily, 9AM to 5PM |
| Website | NavalAviationMuseum.org |
| <googlemap version="0.9" lat="30.352139" lon="-87.301826" width="288" height="150">
30.348839, -87.303773, National Naval Aviation Museum </googlemap> | |
The 300,000 square foot museum houses more than 4,000 artifacts and 150 aircraft representing Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aviation. These include four former Blue Angel A-4 Skyhawks, a United States Coast Guard helicopter, biplanes, a K47 Airship control gondola and tail fin, the plane 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.
In addition to the displays, the museum operates an IMAX theater, museum store, and cafe. Also the museum is the home of the National Flight Academy, a 6-day program designed (in partnership with the Escambia and Santa Rosa school districts) to teach 7th through 12th grade students about the importance of science and math in aerospace careers. The Academy is currently planning a 245,000 sq. ft. expansion to the museum which would add classroom and dormitory space for the students during their stay.
The museum is open 9:00AM to 5:00PM every day except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Parking and admission to the museum are free, though donations are welcome. Some exhibits inside the museum, such as the IMAX theater and flight simulators, charge separate admission.
Captain Robert L. Rasmussen, a retired Navy captain and Blue Angel, is the current director of the National Museum of Naval Aviation. He hand-sculpted many of the statues in the museum as well.
Contents
Features & exhibits
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IMAX Theater
Hourly showings from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Flight Deck Museum Store
Oopen 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Cubi Car Café
Open from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
USS Cabot Flight Deck
Replica of aircraft carrier USS Cabot, with actual deck planks taken from the USS Lexington.
Blue Angels atrium
Spacious room on north end of museum with seating available for large functions. Four A-4 Skyhawks, former Blue Angels, are suspended in formation from the ceiling.
Flight simulators
- Motion-based flight simulator: 15-seat simulator that offers two virtual reality missions: a Blue Angel flight and a Desert Storm sortie
- Top Gun Air Combat Simulator Center: 10-minute preflight briefing and 20-minute ride in the cockpit of an F-14 Tomcat simulator
Art gallery
Collection of Naval aviation artwork.
Collection of manuscripts, 8,000 books and manuals, and 400,000 declassified Navy photos for researchers. Open weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Other exhibits
- Recreation of Hoa Lo P.O.W. camp
- Sunken Treasure - recreation of WWII fighters at the bottom of Lake Michigan
- Home Front USA - World War II-era small town memorabilia
- Naval Aviation in Space - Apollo command module, Skylab 2
- Lighter Than Air - dirigible exhibit
- Cockpit trainers
Collection of aircraft
The expansive collection of aircraft on display at the museum include the following:
- A-1 Triad
- A-1 (AD) Skyraider
- A-3 (A3D) Skywarrior
- A-4 (A4D) Skyhawk (5)
- AF Guardian
- AH-1 Sea Cobra
- AJ Savage
- AM Mauler
- A6M Zero
- A-6 Intruder
- A-7 Corsair II
- AV-8 Harrier
- BFC Goshawk
- C-1 (TF) Trader
- C-9 Skytrain II
- C-45 (SNB/JRB) Navigator
- C-47 Skytrain
- C-117 (R4D-8) Skytrain
- C-118 Liftmaster
- C-131 Samaritan
- C-130 Hercules (2)
- CH-37 Mojave
- CH-46 Sea Knight
- CH-53 Sea Stallion
- D-558-1 Skystreak
- E-1 (WF) Tracer
- EC-121 (WV) Warning Star
- F.1 Camel
- Fokker D.VII
- F4B
- F6C Hawk
- F7C Seahawk
- F3D Skyknight
- F4D (F-6) Skyray
- FF
- F3F
- F4F Wildcat (3)
- F6F Hellcat (2)
- F7F Tigercat
- F8F Bearcat
- F9F-2 Panther
- F9F-6 Cougar
- F9F-8 Cougar
- F11F Tiger
- FG Corsair
- FH Phantom
- F2H Banshee
- F2H-2P Photo Banshee
- F3H Demon
- F-4 (F4H) Phantom II
- FJ-2 Fury
- FJ-4 Fury
- FM-2 Wildcat (2)
- F4U Corsair
- F7U Cutlass
- F-8 (F8U) Crusader
- F-14 Tomcat (3)
- F-16N Viper
- F/A-18 Hornet
- GB Traveller
- Hanriot HD-1
- HH-1K
- HNS Hoverfly
- HO3S
- HO4S (H-19)
- HO5S
- HTE
- HTL (TH-13) Sioux
- HUP (UH-25) Retriever
- HU-16 Albatross
- H-2 Seasprite
- H-3 Sea King
- H-34 (HSS/HUS) Seabat/Seahorse
- HH-52 Sea Guard
- JD Invader
- JN-4D Jenny
- J2F Duck
- J4F Widgeon
- JRC
- JRF Goose
- K-47 Airship Control Car
- LNS
- L-8 Airship Control Car
- MF Boat
- MiG-15 Fagot
- N1K2-J Shiden Kai (GEORGE)
- NC-4
- N2C Fledgling
- N3N-3 (2)
- NR Recruit
- N2S Kaydet
- NT-1
- N2T Tutor
- N2Y
- Nieuport 28
- OS2U Kingfisher
- O-1 Bird Dog
- PBJ Mitchell
- PBY Catalina (3)
- PB2Y Coronado
- PB4Y-2 Privateer
- P5M-2 (SP-5B) Marlin
- PS-2
- PV-2 Harpoon
- P2V-1 Neptune (Truculent Turtle)
- P2V-7 (SP-2H) Neptune
- P-3 Orion
- P-40 Tomahawk
- RA-5C Vigilante
- R5C (C-46) Commando
- RF-4B Phantom II
- RR-5 Tri-Motor
- SB2A Buccaneer
- SBD Dauntless (3)
- SB2U Vindicator
- SNC Falcon
- SNJ Texan
- SNV Valiant
- S-2 (S2F) Tracker
- S-3 Viking
- S-4C Scout
- Skylab Command Module
- TBM Avenger
- TC-4 Academe
- TDR
- TH-57 Sea Ranger
- TV-2 (T-33) Shooting Star
- T-2 Buckeye
- T-28 Trojan
- T-34 Mentor
- T-39 Sabreliner
- U-1 (NU-1B) Otter
- VH-3 Sea King (Marine One)
- ZPG-2 Control Car (Snow Bird)