USA Aviation NEWS: Flying high in Pensacola

Monday 14 March 2011

Flying high in Pensacola

PENSACOLA, Fla. -- Where can you have your photograph taken in the cockpit of an F-14 Tomcat, see the first plane to cross the Atlantic Ocean and feel the thrill of flying in an F/A18 Hornet? If you've ever been to Pensacola, you probably know the answer -- the National Naval Aviation Museum.

There's so much to see and do at the educational and entertaining world-renowned museum, a family could easily spend a whole day there. For example, every year from March through November visitors can watch the Blue Angels practise their high flying manuevres most Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, then meet the pilots and get their autographs. And the price is right. Museum admission and the practice (which takes place on the Museum Flight Line), are free, making it an extremely family friendly March Break outing.

This year, which marks the 100th anniversary of Naval Aviation in the Pensacola Bay area, is a particularly good time to visit, as many special events have been planned including air shows, concerts and more.

To get the most out of your visit, take a guided tour with one of the retired military volunteers, who will highlight the fascinating histories of some of the 150 restored aircraft on display representing the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. We couldn't have had a better guide than Charles Ellis, a retired navy captain with a lifelong passion for aviation history, who shared some amazing personal anecdotes (make sure to ask him about the O-1 Bird Dog).

Very few aircraft that were combat veterans are on display anywhere, but you can see one here -- the SBD Dauntless.

"This was a survivor from Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway, and when we restored it we found 200 repaired bullet holes in it," Ellis says. "This (plane) crashed in Lake Michigan on a training flight and we recovered it 40 years later."

Other aircraft we see include: The PBY Catalina, which sank more Japanese ships than any other aircraft during the Second World War. The NC-4 flying boat -- the first plane to cross the Atlantic Ocean, it had a maximum speed of 130 kph and couldn't fly any higher than 1,371 metres. The huge PB2Y Coronado sea plane. The world's only surviving Coronado, Howard Hughes once flew this plane, which belonged to five-star admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the fleet commander for the U.S. Navy in the Pacific during the Second World War.

Aside from aircraft, the museum also has 4,000 artifacts such as uniforms, artwork and personal letters on display, plus an IMAX theatre (the IMAX Naval Aviation Memorial Theatre), where three films are currently showing: The Magic of Flight, Hubble, and Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag.

You can also wander through the museum's Home Front U.S.A. exhibit, which recreates a typical small town Main St. circa World War II, or take a free 20-minute tour of the flight line behind the restoration hangar. An interesting option for lunch is the museum's authentic Cubi Bar Cafe, decorated with more than 1,000 squadron and unit plaques reassembled from the historic Officers' Club at Cubi Point in the Philippines.

And there's a lot to interest children here, whether it involves climbing into the cockpit of an F-14 Tomcat, checking out the new USS Kiddie Hawk children's exhibit, or experiencing an F/A 18 motion-based flight simulator.

While in Pensacola, you'll also want to explore the city and enjoy the long white sandy beaches. These are so stunning that some call the region the "Jewel of the Emerald Coast."