Carolinas Aviation Museum, July 8, 2011

On July 8, Phil and I rode our motorcycles to Charlotte, NC to the Carolinas Aviation Museum. It is at a new location, and I visited it for the first time there with him during my visit home. Seen here is a bit of a hometown plane of sorts, this McDonnell Douglas F-4S Phantom II Fighter-bomber was stationed at NAS Barbers Point. It last flew with VMFA-235. Built in 1985 it was one of the last models of the Vietnam era fighter. The plane had a Pilot and a Radar Intercept Officer who sat sort of "motorcycle style" in the aircraft. The plane was capable of supersonic flight and carried a mix of missiles and also (later on anyhow) a 20mm cannon.
Phil is seen in this photo in front of this Douglas DC-3. This was a former C-47, which was the major transport aircraft of WWII, and the DC-3 was a major airliner prior to the war, and for a time after. In fact many are still flown today (mostly hauling cargo) many years after they were first built. This plane was built in 1942, and is still flown by the museum. It won an award at Oshkosh a few years ago. This plane never flew with Piedmont Airlines (which was a Carolina based airline which later was merged with US Airways) but has been outfitted in that role. It flies to many airshows in the region, as well as many others in the US.
Plane seen here is a Boeing PT-17/N2S Kaydet. It was the primary flight trainer for US Navy and US Army Air Force (the US Air Force was established after WWII) pilots. It is a two cockpit plane, which held the student and the instructor pilot. The small blue unit next to it was a WWII Link Trainer. One of the first "Flight simulators" the Link was used to teach the basics of flight to new students.
The museum has a nice collection of planes and other flight items. Unfortunately, many of the planes in the collection are outside the hanger beyond a fence and can not be easily seen as they are on "Airport property". Much of that is due to the new addition to the museum, which takes up a lot of room.
That new addition is this historic aircraft. It is the Miracle on the Hudson plane, aka US Airways Flight 1549. Flown into the Hudson River by Captain Chesley B. Sullenburger after the engines quit shortly after striking a flight of Canadian Geese on takeoff on January 15, 2009, the plane made a successful ditching and all 155 on board were rescued. The plane was moved from storage in New Jersey, where it had been stored, and arrived at the museum on June 10, 2011. US Airways and Airbus mechanics are restoring the plane for display; where it will remain at the museum at its "Final Destination". The plane can be seen in the water on tv as part of a movie on the event.
Before leaving the airport, Phil and I rode to the airport viewing area, and watched a few US Airways (and a Delta jet) takeoff on the very hot and humid day which was July 8, 2011. Had a great time during the ride and enjoyed the visit to the busiest airport in North Carolina. There were a lot of planes departing and arriving when we got there. The museum is very nice, and though there is a small admission charge, it was well worth the price and we enjoyed the visit. I will be returning in the near future, enjoyed the combination of aircraft and a great motorcycle ride as well.