Grissom Air Museum

The Grissom Air Museum is a military aviation museum at Grissom Air Reserve Base near Peru, Indiana with over twenty aircraft on display.

History

The museum's origins date to 1981, when the Grissom Air Force Base Heritage Museum Foundation was formed by John Crume and other military veterans to preserve the aircraft located at the base. The Grissom Air Museum was started in 1987 when aircraft were moved to an area outside the northern main gate from a location on base.

The indoor museum was completed in 1991. Its fortunes began to decline in 1992, when the Air Force announced that six airplanes at the museum would be transferred to other sites. Less than a year later, a feasibility study suggested that the museum needed new leadership and additional funding. After another year the situation had improved, with enough money being raised to keep the airplanes on location. In 1995, the museum was transferred from the United States Air Force Museum system to the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites system. The museum obtained two "new-in-box" Quonset huts for additional display space in 1997. Then, in 2010, the museum was dropped from the latter system.

In 2015, the museum's B-17 was disassembled and transferred to the Museum of Aviation for restoration. By 2020, the museum was raising funds to construct a shelter for the B-58.

Collection

The museum has over twenty aircraft on outdoor display, reflecting both the base's history and that of the United States Air Force and the United States Navy. The indoor museum contains a number of artifacts related to the United States Naval Training Station at Bunker Hill (1942–46), Bunker Hill Air Force Base (1954-1968), the Grissom Air Force Base (1968-1994), and the Grissom Air Reserve Base (1994–Present). Other sit-in displays, including an F-4 Phantom cockpit, Huey Helicopter, MJ-1 Bomb Loader, A-10 Trainer, and an F-16 Mock Cockpit.

Aircraft

* Bell UH-1H Iroquois ''68-16256''
* Boeing B-47B Stratojet ''51-2315''
* Boeing EC-135L ''61-0269''
* Boeing KC-97L Stratofreighter ''52-2697''
* Cessna O-2A Skymaster ''68-6871''
* Cessna T-37B Tweet ''54-2736''
* Cessna U-3A ''57-5922''
* Douglas TA-4J Skyhawk ''153671''
* Convair TB-58A Hustler ''55-0663''
* Convair TF-102A Delta Dagger ''56-2317''
* Douglas C-47D Skytrain ''43-49270''
* Fairchild C-119G Flying Boxcar ''52-5850''
* Fairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II ''77-0228''
* Grumman C-1A Trader ''136790''
* Grumman F-11A Tiger ''141790''
* Grumman F-14B Tomcat ''162912''
* Lockheed T-33A ''52-9563''
* McDonnell F-4C Phantom II ''64-0783''
* McDonnell F-101B Voodoo ''58-0321''
* NAMC YS-11A
* North American B-25J Mitchell ''44-86843''
* North American F-100C Super Sabre ''53-1712''
* North American T-2C Buckeye ''158583''
* Republic F-84F Thunderstreak ''51-9456''
* Republic F-105D Thunderchief ''61-0088''

Indoor exhibits

The cabin of a HH-1K and the cockpit of a F-4C are on display inside the museum building.

Tower

The entire Grissom Air Reserve Base and aircraft display are visible from the top of the five-story Cold War-era Observation Tower.

Events

Events on location include the Open House, Armed Forces Day Celebration, GUS Fly In, and Warbird Cruise-In.

See also

* B-17G "Flying Fortress" No. 44-83690

References

External links

Grissom Air Museum

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Aerospace museums in Indiana
Military and war museums in Indiana
Museums in Miami County, Indiana
Museums established in 1981
1981 establishments in Indiana