Flyin’ High!

Well, we didn’t actually fly anywhere, but we did head on over to the Tillamook Air Museum.  In 1942, the U.S. Navy began construction of 17 wooden hangars to house the K-class blimps being used for anti-submarine coast patrol and convoy escort. Two of these hangars were built at the Naval Air Station in Tilllamook, and were commissioned in December 1942 to serve the Oregon-Washington coastal area. The Tillamook Air Museum is now housed in one of those hangars. First photo below is a picture of the outside of the hangar/museum.  The second photo is of the inside.

The air museum is now home to 30 magnificently restored vintage flying aircraft.  The following photos are just a few of the planes we viewed (these photos I pulled from their website.

Ki-43 Oscar:  A very rare Japanese fighter recovered from the Kuril Islands North of Japan and restored to flying condition.

 P-38 Lightening:  This "forked tail devil" is one of only a handful of the aircraft in the world still in flying condition. Tillamook's P-38 has been named Tangerine.

F4U-7 Corsair:  With its inverted gull wing, and set back cockpit, military commanders felt the pilots would have a hard time landing on aircraft carriers. Eventually a new landing technique was developed in which the pilot made a wide, sweeping approach in order to keep an eye on the landing deck at all times  until the last seconds when he would roll the wings level and pounce on the deck.

P-51 Mustang:  The Mustang was among the best and most well-known fighters used by the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. Possessing excellent range and maneuverability, the P-51 operated primarily as a long-range escort fighter and also as a ground attack fighter-bomber. The Mustang served in nearly every combat zone during WWII, and later fought in the Korean War.

P-47 Thunderbolt:   Affectionately nicknamed "Jug," the P-47 was one of the most famous AAF fighter planes of World War II. Although originally conceived as a lightweight interceptor, the P-47 developed as a heavyweight fighter and made its first flight on May 6, 1941. In April 1943 the Thunderbolt flew its first combat mission -- a sweep over Western Europe. Used as both a high-altitude escort fighter and a low-level fighter-bomber, the P-47 quickly gained a reputation for ruggedness. Its sturdy construction and air-cooled radial engine enabled the Thunderbolt to absorb severe battle damage and keep flying. During WWII, the P-47 served in almost every active war theater and in the forces of several Allied nations.

The Erickson below (isn’t that just about the ugliest plane you’ve ever seen?) was a plane that we were able to go inside and tour.  This large guppy was used to transport grounded helicopters back to home base for repairs.   About 1/3^rd of the back end was actually “hinged” so that the aircraft would open to a dolly-type of mechanism that would move the busted copter to the front allowing the loading of more than one at a time.  That's Gary standing in front of the plane to give you some perspective.  The second photo is a picture of the cockpit.

Finally, here are pictures we took of each of us next to planes inside the hangar.  Gary is standing next to a MIG-17.

 I'm standing next to an Aviat Aircraft Husky, a small spotter plane.

 

 



Psalms 55:6-8 … I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove!  I would fly away and be at rest.  Behold, I would wander far away, I would lodge in the wilderness.”  Selah.  “I would hasten to my place of refuge from the stormy wind and tempest.”