Museum of Aviation

I n 1984, the Museum of Aviation was established at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. Since then, it has become the second largest museum in the U.S. Force and the third most visited museum in the entire Department of Defense with more than 600,000 visitors a year. A collection of over 90 historic aircraft on the 51-acre complex is a standing tribute to the thousands of miles flown by American aircrews in defense of freedom. It's a place that beckons young and old visitors alike to learn about great aircraft, significant moments in history and the Georgians who blazed trails in the sky.

From humble beginnings, the Museum is now a world-class facility with more than 200,000 square feet of indoor exhibits and education space in several climate-controlled buildings. More than 11.6 million people from all over the world have visited the museum in 27 years, including more than 917,000 children which have participated in Museum education programs. The Museum is one of only eight aviation museums in the United States accredited by the American Association of Museums.

The museum's main three-story building—the Eagle Building—is shaped like the Air Force "Star and Bars" insignia. A breathtaking circular rotunda greets visitors who immediately see an F-15 Eagle fighter beneath two World War II training planes suspended from the 40-foot high ceiling. Life-sized photomurals on the walls depict flight line hangars at Robins AFB where fighters and transports are repaired and modified by base employees. Eagle Building exhibits take you back in time—to an American "Flying Tigers" airfield in China in 1942 where a P-40 Warhawk readies for its next mission; to India where U.S. C-47 transports flew over "The Hump" (Himalayan Mountain peaks rising to 20,000 feet) in the 1940s to resupply American troops fighting for China; and to a Korean flight line revetment with an F-84 Thunder jet.

The Museum is the home of the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame where the feats and memorabilia of more than 80 famous Georgia pioneer aviators are displayed. Those enshrined include Ben Epps, the first person to fly in Georgia; Eugene Bullard, the first black American military pilot and Georgia's only WWI flying ace; pioneer women aviators like Jackie Cochran and Georgia's "Top Gun" Navy fighter pilot and astronaut, Sonny Carter; and medal of honor recipients Capt. Hilliard A. Wilbanks and Col. Joe Jackson. A special exhibit salutes Macon's own WWII Ace, Brig. Gen. Robert L. Scott Jr., author of the 1943 bestseller "God is My Co-Pilot." The General was an ardent supporter of the museum and helped raise millions of dollars for its development before passing away at age 97 in 2006.

A unique gift shop with hundreds of aviation-related items is available along with a Victory Café which has a third floor eating area where large windows look out on the many planes below. The museum is a "living history" facility with numerous seminars, classes and activities for students, teachers and interns. The museum's education programs reach over 58,000 children each year with offerings such as a flight simulation center, an air traffic control classroom, a C-130 fuselage, a NASA resource center, a Young Astronauts Day, a DoD-sponsored STARBASE ROBINS program and the Middle Georgia Youth Science and Technology Center. A "Transporter" flight simulator is on site, along with a restful picnic/playground area and memorials to POW/MIAs and Medal of Honor Winners.

The Century of Flight Hangar and Education Complex houses famous aircraft like the world speed record holder SR-71 Blackbird, the U-2 Dragon Lady, an MH-53 special ops helicopter used in Iraq and a former F-16A Thunderbirds aircraft. Hangar One houses several aircraft from the Vietnam- era including an UH-1 "gunship" and an O-2 "Bird Dog."

The museum's newest 60,000 square-foot WWII Exhibit Hangar houses two award winning exhibits; a comprehensive exhibit on the Tuskegee Airmen of WWII and a walk-through interactive exhibit on the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment and the Air Invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944 known as "D-Day." Several WWII aircraft are preserved there including a B-25 and B-29 bomber, a C-46 cargo plane, open-cockpit P-19 and P-22 trainers and Mark 17 Atomic Bomb display.

Located 10 miles east of Interstate 75 Exit 144 at the intersection of Highway 247 and Russell Parkway, the museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. except New Year's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas and Christmas and New Year's Eve after 1 p.m. Admission is always free. For more information call (478) 926-6870 or visit its website at http://www.museumofaviation.org.