Palm Springs Air Museum leaves nothing in the air: Beyer's Byways

The concept of flying has always intrigued me. How can some object simply leave the earth in a matter of seconds and soon fly so easily through the heavens?

As a young boy, I jumped off my parent’s tall garage roof over our backyard and flapped my arms as fast as a hummingbird. Luckily, the ground broke my fall.

My father just looked at me. “What were you thinking?”

“I thought I was a bird.”

He walked away, shaking his head.

Thus, when I can visit an air museum, I jump at the chance—not fly but jump, since no matter how hard you flap your arms, gravity will keep you grounded.

So recently, my lovely wife, Laureen, and I traveled to the beautiful city of Palm Springs to wander the Palm Springs Air Museum grounds.

Walking up to the entrance will take the visitor quite a few minutes because this large museum doesn’t only have historical military exhibits inside but a lot to see on the outside.

A Mikoyan-Gurevick MiG-15 sits proudly just south of the museum's main entrance. This Soviet Union jet fighter was the terror of the skies after its introduction in 1949. The swept-back wings and short fuselage made this plane extremely maneuverable during aerial combat, which was proven when these planes were used during the Korean War. As a result, the United States introduced the American F-86 Sabre to counter the MiG-15.

We wandered from exterior exhibits like the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet to the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon to another four or five beautifully maintained planes pointing out air power's importance for any nation.

The museum's message is: ‘The Palm Springs Air Museum is a living history museum dedicated to educating the public about the role Air Power played in preserving American liberties and way of life.’

One such aircraft on display outside was an observation plane, the 0-2 Skymaster, which resembles its predecessor, the Cessna 0-1 E Bird Dog. This sight brought a lump to my throat as my uncle, Captain Edmund Thornell, had been flying the Bird Dog on a mission in Vietnam on September 10, 1966, when he was shot down and killed. It was his birthday. He had just turned 33 years of age.

I closed my eyes for a moment before we moved on.

As we entered the museum, quite a few docents of all ages were waiting to answer questions from the visitors lining up at the doors. It appeared many were veterans of a different era, but all were eager to greet and offer information about every exhibit the museum had to offer.

There is a lot to see in the museum's various hangars, but first, we were interested in the guests who were waiting by a check-in counter at the end of the large glass foyer.

These folks were anxiously awaiting their flight in one of the Warbird planes available to the public. These flights take approximately 60 minutes to complete, with at least 20 to 30 minutes in the air. They allow an individual to get a bird' s-eye view of the entire Coachella Valley and perhaps a fly-over of the Salton Sea.

Numerous pristine, iconic planes are available, and the price for a ride varies in part based on the fuel consumption for each craft. The cheapest seat in the house is aboard the famous C-47 Transport, which was used to ferry troops and provisions to different locales during WWII. It is probably best known for delivering paratroopers on D-Day, the Allies' invasion of France.

The most expensive ride available is the two-seater T-33 Shooting Star. This Lockheed mid-1940s fighter was the first jet utilized by the United States Army Air Force.

There are more planes to choose from, all meticulously maintained and flown by experts.

“Which plane are you going to jump into?” Laureen asked.

I felt my wallet shrink in my back pocket and chose instead to purchase a T-shirt featuring the Warbird, Man O’War. This P-51 Mustang was built in February 1945 and shipped to England, but it was too late to see any wartime action. Now, folks can sit in the back seat and enjoy the maneuvers this plane can deliver.

“A t-shirt?” Laureen asked.

“I’ll embellish the purchase,” I replied.

The hangars at the air museum include aircraft from various eras, all dealing with military service and other modes of transportation.

While wandering here and there, my eyes saw a gorgeous, olive-drab Indian motorcycle used by the United States Army. A light brown leather seat and saddlebags gave the machine a look as though it were ready for a mission of utmost importance at any moment.

“Maybe we should buy a motor . . .” I started.

“Nope,” came a reply to my right. I did not even bother to turn, recognized it, and moved on to the next exhibit.

Large models of Navy ships take up almost an entire wall of one of the hangars. Detailed information about each is readily available for visitors to learn where the ships were built, where they served during military action, and the final disposition of such ships.

A pair of huge WWII Japanese deck binoculars give the appearance they are still in use, waiting to spot an approaching American fighter or bomber headed their way.

Walking through any museum is a learning experience for all ages. Laureen and I used to take the girls to museums quite often, and to this day, they still marvel at how much fun they had.

“We went to what?” Kelly still asks.

Erica would chime in then, “Remember when Dad would drag us . . .”

“I’d rather read the book,” was uttered more than once by Jessica.

I generally stop listening at that point.

It is amazing to view all the aircraft jammed into the hangars at the museum—not haphazardly, but carefully orchestrated like an oil masterpiece—much like the Monet I have hanging next to my neon Miller Lite sign.

Guide ropes allow guests a chance to get a close-up view of the exhibits while at the same time preventing those same guests from touching the exhibits with their dirty, greasy hands.

Perhaps those ropes were meant for me.

There are pilotless drones, helicopters, and ceilings hanging from the ceiling.

I'm writing about the helicopters, and there are a lot of them on display. There is a Bell H-13 Sioux, a Bell AH-1 Huey Cobra, a Bell UH-1 Iroquois, and a Heck-of-a-Bell Sasquatch.

Everything is available for the aviation geek within and outside the museum, enough to spend hours gawking.

One of Laureen’s favorites was the dark blue Chance Vought F-4U Corsair. This was the plane used by the United States Navy during WWII, flying off the decks of the humongous aircraft carriers. The powerful Pratt and Whitney behind the long propeller indicated nothing but power.

As I was snapping a photograph of the Corsair, I suddenly heard a man grunting near me and saying something like, “Ooh—ooh, more power.”

“Was that Tim Allen?” Laureen asked.

The Palm Springs Air Museum has created a wonderful real-time experience for visitors to honor all the military branches and learn what part each of those branches played in keeping this awesome country free.

It should be noted that the Lockheed Martin F-117A Nighthawk stands in one hangar. The building's lights are low. Subtle red lights beneath the fuselage give the fighter an ominous look. A guest can see what this plane would look like as it suddenly swept over an enemy at night.

Is the combat fighter a mockup or the real thing?

I was sworn to secrecy.

John can be contacted at: beyersbyways@gmail.com

For more information

https://palmspringsairmuseum.org/

This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Palm Springs Air Museum leaves nothing in the air: Beyer's Byways