Every year, hundreds of airshows and flight demonstrations take place across the United States, showcasing the glory of aviation’s past. With so many choices available to enthusiasts wishing to see history come alive and take wing, we decided to provide our readers with a highlighted selection of museums and private organizations that preserve, restore, and fly classic military aircraft from every era since the dawn of fight. Some operate out of a home location, but many tour around the country to airshows—national and regional—bringing that glorious history to us. Some even offer rides in these exquisitely restored and preserved warbirds. This is by no means a comprehensive list—or even a ranking in the conventional sense. Rather, we’re offering a cross-section of some of the collections that maintain airworthy warbirds so that you can find a nearby location and experience these extraordinary machines in person.
FLIGHT TEAMS & ORGANIZATIONS
AMERICAN AIRPOWER MUSEUM
Farmingdale, NY | americanairpowermuseum.com
Located on the grounds of Republic Airport in the town of Farmingdale, New York, the American Airpower Museum might seem oddly situated by today’s standards, sitting as it does on Long Island, just a scant 30 miles from the heart of New York City. But during World War II the site was home to Republic Aviation, where more than 9,000 copies of the burly Republic P-47 Thunderbolt rolled off the assembly line and onto the very runways where the museum now stands. More than a dozen warbirds spanning WW II through the Vietnam era are on display in and around the museum's hangar. In addition, the museum offers a Flight Experience (ride) in some of its restored aircraft, including a T-6 Texan trainer, a WACO biplane, and a D-Day reenactment in its C-47 Skytrain.
CLASS OF '45
This story is from the April 2020 edition of Flight Journal.
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This story is from the April 2020 edition of Flight Journal.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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Scourge of the Allied Fighters
IT HAD TO BE THE MOST HELPLESS FEELING in the world: you're at 25,000 feet over Europe knowing that your primary function is to drop bombs-or flying escort for the bombers while being a slow-moving target for some of the world's finest shooters. However, you have John Browning's marvelous .50 caliber invention to give some degree of protection. Unfortunately, you're absolutely helpless against flak. Piloting and gunnery skills play no role in a game where sheer chance makes life and death decisions. For that reason, the Krupp 88 mm Flak 18/36/37 AA cannon could be considered WW II's ultimate stealth fighter. You never saw it coming.
ZERO MYTH, MYSTERY, AND FACT
A test pilot compares the A6M5 Zero to U.S. fighters
Fw 190 STURMBÖCKE
The Luftwaffe's \"Battering Rams\" against the USAAF heavy bombers
American BEAUTY
\"Forgotten Fifteenth\" top-scoring Mustang ace John J. Voll
BANSHEE WAIL!
Flying Skulls over Burma
KILLER CORSAIR
Albert Wells, Death Rattlers Ace
BACKSTREET BRAWLER
A young man, his Hurricane and the Battle of Britain
Still Flying After All These Years
One of the oldest airworthy J-3 Cubs
NOORDUYN NORSEMAN
Canada's rugged, fabric-covered workhorse
A good landing is one you can walk away from
NO, THIS IS NOT A SCENE FROM A MOVIE where the hero staggers away from a \"good landing\" on Mindoro, Philippine Islands, after being shot down by a Japanese Zero.
