San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot a ...

and space exploration museum in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, which is listed on the US National Register of Historic Places. SDASM was established by

articles of incorporation Article often refers to: * Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness * Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication Article may also refer to: ...

on October 12, 1961, and opened to the public on February 15, 1963.

Collection

It contains many original and reproductions of historic

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engine ...

and

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, p ...

, including: * Lockheed A-12 Oxcart * Bowlus SP-1 Paper Wing - replica * Convair YF2Y-1 Sea Dart *

Apollo 9 Apollo 9 (March 313, 1969) was the third human spaceflight in NASA's Apollo program. Flown in low Earth orbit, it was the second crewed Apollo mission that the United States launched via a Saturn V rocket, and was the first flight of the ful ...

command module ''Gumdrop'' *''

Spirit of St. Louis The ''Spirit of St. Louis'' (formally the Ryan NYP, registration: N-X-211) is the custom-built, single-engine, single-seat, high-wing monoplane that was flown by Charles Lindbergh on May 20–21, 1927, on the first solo nonstop transatlant ...

'' replica (Spirit 3 was built after the 1978 fire) * Curtiss A-1 Triad *Montgomery 1911 Evergreen glider * General Atomics MQ-1 Predator UAV (tail number 0018) *

Ryan Firebee The Ryan Firebee is a series of target drones developed by the Ryan Aeronautical Company beginning in 1951. It was one of the first jet-propelled drones, and remains one of the most widely used target drones ever built. Development Ryan Fireb ...

Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk The Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk is a high-altitude, remotely-piloted surveillance aircraft of the 1990s–2020s. It was initially designed by Ryan Aeronautical (now part of Northrop Grumman), and known as Tier II+ during development. The ...

(1/2 scale model) *

1902 Wright Glider The Wright brothers designed, built and flew a series of three manned gliders in 1900–1902 as they worked towards achieving powered flight. They also made preliminary tests with a kite in 1899. In 1911 Orville conducted tests with a much mor ...

(reproduction) *''

Wright Flyer The ''Wright Flyer'' (also known as the ''Kitty Hawk'', ''Flyer'' I or the 1903 ''Flyer'') made the first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft—an airplane—on December 17, 1903. Invented and flown b ...

'' (reproduction, currently not on display) *

Vin Fiz Flyer The ''Vin Fiz Flyer'' was an early Wright Brothers Model EX pusher biplane that in 1911 became the first aircraft to fly coast-to-coast across the U.S., a journey that took almost three months. History The publisher William Randolph Hearst ha ...

(reproduction) * Ford 5-AT-B Trimotor * Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk.XVIe * North American P-51D Mustang * SPAD S.VII.c.1 *

Nieuport 28 The Nieuport 28 C.1, a French biplane fighter aircraft flown during World War I, was built by Nieuport and designed by Gustave Delage. Owing its lineage to the successful line of sesquiplane fighters that included the Nieuport 17, the Nieu ...

Curtiss JN-4D Jenny The Curtiss JN "Jenny" was a series of biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for th ...

North American F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing ...

(at Gillespie Field annex) * Mitsubishi A6M7 Model 63 Zero *

Grumman F-14 Tomcat The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, twin-tail, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental (VFX) program after the ...

(at Gillespie Field annex) *

Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-17; NATO reporting name: Fresco) is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the Soviet Union from 1952 and was operated by air forces internationally. The MiG-17 ...

(It is in fact a Chinese

Shenyang J-5 The Shenyang J-5 ( Chinese: 歼-5) ( NATO reporting name ''Fresco'') is a Chinese-built single-seat jet interceptor and fighter aircraft derived from the Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17. The J-5 was exported as the F-5 and was originally designa ...

.) * McDonnell Douglas F-4S Phantom II * Bell AH-1E Cobra *

PBY-5A Catalina The Consolidated PBY Catalina is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft that was produced in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served w ...

Horten Ho 229 The Horten H.IX, RLM designation Ho 229 (or Gotha Go 229 for extensive re-design work done by Gotha to prepare the aircraft for mass production) was a German prototype fighter/bomber initially designed by Reimar and Walter Horten to be built ...

(model) *

P-26 Peashooter The Boeing P-26 "Peashooter" was the first American production all-metal fighter aircraft and the first pursuit monoplane to enter squadron service with the United States Army Air Corps. Designed and built by Boeing, the prototype first flew in ...

(currently on display) *

Vought F4U-7 Corsair The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts ...

(currently on display) SDASM promotes itself as one of the largest aviation museums in the nation, containing the third-largest collection of archives and library. SDASM has two restoration facilities, one on site, and the other located at

Gillespie Field Gillespie Field is a county-owned public towered airport northeast of downtown San Diego, in El Cajon, San Diego County, California, United States. History : ''Section reference dates.'' In 1942 the United States Marine Corps chose a site wi ...

. The Gillespie Field Annex is open to the public with numerous aircraft on display outdoors, a

Convair Convair, previously Consolidated Vultee, was an American aircraft manufacturing company that later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. The company was formed in 1943 by the merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft. In 1953, i ...

SM-65 Atlas The SM-65 Atlas was the first operational intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) developed by the United States and the first member of the Atlas rocket family. It was built for the U.S. Air Force by the Convair Division of General Dy ...

ICBM, museum model shop, and a restoration shop. The museum's library contains an extensive collection of aircraft books and historic photographs of aircraft and aircraft manufacturing.

History

The museum was first opened to the public on February 15, 1963, in the Food and Beverage Building, which had been built in 1915 for the

Panama–California Exposition The Panama–California Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California, between January 1, 1915, and January 1, 1917. The exposition celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal, and was meant to tout San Diego as the first United ...

. In 1965 the museum was moved to the larger Electrical Building. On February 22, 1978, the Electrical Building and the museum were destroyed in an arson fire.. Several one-of-a-kind aircraft were destroyed, including the Beecraft Wee Bee, the world's lightest aircraft, and her sister craft the

Queen Bee A queen bee is typically an adult, mated female ( gyne) that lives in a colony or hive of honey bees. With fully developed reproductive organs, the queen is usually the mother of most, if not all, of the bees in the beehive. Queens are developed ...

. A reproduction of the ''

'', built in 1967 by some of the same people who built the original, was also destroyed, along with more than 50 other aircraft, an extensive collection of artifacts and archives, and the International Aerospace Hall of Fame. Owen Clarke, the museum's executive director, said of the $4 million in losses, "This is unbelievably tragic. When you've spent that length of time acquiring history, building something up to where it had international prestige, then see it all disappear in a couple of hours, what else can it be?" Ford Fountains SD

Before the fire, plans had already been under way to move the museum to the larger Ford Building, also in Balboa Park, which had been built for the 1935-36

California Pacific International Exposition The California Pacific International Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California during May 29, 1935–November 11, 1935 and February 12, 1936–September 9, 1936. The exposition was held in Balboa Park, San Diego's large c ...

. Even though several important historic aircraft were lost in the fire, much of the collection on display was dated or insignificant. The museum was already accumulating new aircraft that were in storage awaiting space in the new building and so were spared from the fire. In addition, the community rallied, raising funds and donating items from private collections. The museum reopened, with a smaller but growing collection, in its current home in the former Ford Building on June 28, 1980. A new reproduction of the ''Spirit of St. Louis'' was built for the new museum. Because of its historical significance, a reproduction of the Wee Bee was also built. In 2005 the museum became affiliated with the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. It is one of only ten aerospace museums in the country to have such an affiliation, and one of only two affiliated museums in San Diego. SanDiegoAirSpaceMuseumByPhilKonstantin

Exhibits

The museum is divided into many galleries with exhibits emphasizing the contributions San Diego has made to aviation. Sections include the Theodore Gildred Rotunda, Special Exhibit area, World War I Gallery, Golden Age of Flight Gallery, World War II Gallery, and Modern Jet & Space Age Gallery, and the Edwin D. McKeller Pavilion of Flight. Admission is required and there is an additional cost to see the Special Exhibit. The restoration shop on site is available for tours when work is being done.

Theodore Gildred Rotunda

In addition to the

Command Module ''Gumdrop'', the main entrance to the museum contains examples of aircraft from local San Diego companies. It also features the different types of exhibits throughout the museum. This includes originals, like the Montgomery 1911 Evergreen glider, models, like the 1/2 scale model of the Northrop Grumman Global Hawk, flyable reproductions, like the Curtiss A-1 Triad amphibious aircraft, replicas, like the Ryan Airlines NYP (aka ''

''), and flight vehicles, like the Ryan Firebee and General Atomics MQ-1 Predator.

Special exhibits

In addition to the changing special exhibits at the front of the museum, there are a number of early aviation exhibits hanging from the ceiling. Visitors are encouraged to look up while making their way through the special exhibit. Guests who do not pay to see the special exhibit pass through the Hall of Fame hallway where portraits of aviation pioneers are displayed. Also along this hallway are exhibits about Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran and the

Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees. Members of WASP became t ...

. Hanging above this area are exhibits of the Leonardo da Vinci Ornithopter (mock-up), Cayley Glider (reproduction), Lilienthal Glider (reproduction), Chanute Glider (reproduction), 1901 Wright Glider (reproduction), 1902 Wright Glider (reproduction), Deperdussin 1911 Type Militaire, Beachey "Little Looper" (reproduction), and the

(reproduction). The museum also has the

California lunar sample displays The California lunar displays are two commemorative plaques consisting of small fragments of Moon rock, Moon specimen brought back with the Apollo 11 and Apollo 17 lunar missions and given in the 1970s to the people of the state of California by ...

World War I Gallery

In addition to the boardwalk and era-style tent similar to those used by the

Lafayette Escadrille The La Fayette Escadrille (french: Escadrille de La Fayette) was the name of the French Air Force unit escadrille N 124 during the First World War (1914–1918). This escadrille of the ''Aéronautique Militaire'' was composed largely of Ameri ...

, the gallery has reproductions of an Albatros D.Va, a Fokker Dr.I and Fokker E.III Eindecker, and authentic examples of a SPAD S.VII.c.1 and

. Among the many displays is a model of the synchronization gear first developed for the Fokker Eindecker. With the press of a button, guests can see how the propeller and rotary engine would move and coordinate the trigger action so pilots wouldn't shoot off their own propellers in combat.

Golden Age of Flight Gallery

Along the long back stretch of this gallery are many aircraft both on the deck and hanging from the ceiling. Aircraft in this section include a Lincoln Standard J-1,

Consolidated PT-1 Trusty The Consolidated PT-1 Trusty (company designation Model 1) was a biplane primary trainer used by the United States Army Air Service (USAAS). Design and development In 1921, Colonel Virginius Clark, chief designer of the Dayton-Wright Company ...

, Aeronca C-3 Collegian, Ryan M-1 (replica),

Lockheed Vega The Lockheed Vega is an American five- to seven-seat high-wing monoplane airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation starting in 1927. It became famous for its use by a number of record-breaking pilots who were attracted to the rugged and very l ...

(replica made for the 2009 movie

Amelia (film) ''Amelia'' is a 2009 biographical film about the life of Amelia Earhart. Most of the story is told in flashbacks before ending with Earhart's mysterious disappearance. The film was directed'' by Mira Nair and based on ''The Sound of Wings'' by ...

) Fleet Model 2, Gee Bee R-1 (reproduction), Bowlus SP-1 Paperwing (reproduction), Ryan B-5 Brougham, Ryan STA,

Piper J-3 Cub The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Pi ...

, and

Pitts Special The Pitts Special (company designations S-1 and S-2) is a series of light aerobatic biplanes designed by Curtis Pitts. It has accumulated many competition wins since its first flight in 1944. The Pitts biplanes dominated world ae ...

. The museum also has a number of aircraft engines on display. This gallery contains a

Curtiss OX-5 The Curtiss OX-5 was an early V-8 American liquid-cooled aircraft engine built by Curtiss. It was the first American-designed aircraft engine to enter mass production, although it was considered obsolete when it did so in 1917.Smith, 1981, page ...

Aeronca E-107 The Aeronca E-107 was one of the first low-cost reliable engines of the post-World War I era. Design and development The E-107A was a production aviation flathead engine designed to replace a Morehouse engine on the first prototype of the Aer ...

, Liberty L-12, Wright J-3 Whirlwind, Curtiss V-1570 Conqueror, Jacobs L-4MB (cutaway), Menasco A-4, and

Continental A-40 The Continental A40 engine is a carbureted four-cylinder, horizontally opposed, air-cooled aircraft engine that was developed especially for use in light aircraft by Continental Motors. It was produced between 1931 and 1941. Design and developm ...

. The Curtiss JN-4D "Jenny" was returned to the restoration shop to reskin the wings, but has since been returned to the gallery. Access to the Edwin D. McKeller Pavilion of Flight is from this portion of the museum. This is also where the Education Center is which hosts monthly Family Day activities. Guests will also locate the restrooms for the museum in this section of the building. On some days lunch is available on the outer patio outside of this portion of the museum. There is an exhibit of the

Pacific Southwest Airlines Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) was a regional U.S. airline headquartered in San Diego, California, that operated from 1949 to 1998. It was the first large discount airline in the United States. PSA called itself "The World's Friendliest Airl ...

(PSA), also known as the Poor Sailor's Airline, in the museum. A replica of the airline's first ticket office has displays about the airline with a smile and includes stewardess uniforms from the 1950s through 1980s, including the hot pants worn during the 1970s.

PSA Flight 182 Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Flight 182 was a scheduled flight of Pacific Southwest Airlines from Sacramento to Los Angeles and San Diego. On September 25, 1978, the Boeing 727-214 serving the flight, registration N533PS, collided with a p ...

, registration N533PS, a

Boeing 727-214 The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavy 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airpor ...

commercial airliner collided with a private

Cessna 172 The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company. The latest addition to the museum is a replica

flying wing which was put on display July 2009. This was donated to the museum's permanent collection by Northrop Grumman (owners of Ryan Aeronautical) following radar testing at the same test site which was used for the B-2 stealth bomber. Details of the work on the model and the history of the aircraft were featured on the National Geographic Channel's documentary, Hitler's Stealth Fighter. Other aircraft in this portion of the museum include a Stearman N2S-3 Kaydet, North American P-51D Mustang,

Douglas C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained ...

(DC-3) Nose and Cockpit section, Messerschmitt Bf 109G-14 (mock-up), Supermarine Spitfire Mk.XVI. This section of the museum is also where a mock-up of the USS Yorktown (CV-10) was built. This Essex Class aircraft carrier has many of the Navy aircraft on display, including a Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless, Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat, and Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat. Racing just feet over the deck, guests will see a Mitsubishi A6M7 Zero-sen. Throughout the gallery are many of the aircraft engines which were used during this period. On display are a Junkers Jumo 004B-1, Allison V-1710-39, Walter RI-202B, Rolls-Royce Merlin 62,

Pratt & Whitney R-2800 The Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp is an American twin-row, 18-cylinder, air-cooled radial aircraft engine with a displacement of , and is part of the long-lived Wasp family of engines. The R-2800 saw widespread use in many importan ...

, Pratt & Whitney R-1830-17,

Wright R-1820 Cyclone The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Uni ...

, Ranger 6-440C-2, and Ranger SGV-770C-1.

Modern Jet and Space Age Gallery

This gallery contains a

Douglas A-4B Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed a ...

, F/A-18A Hornet "Blue Angel 1", Gemini spacecraft (replica), and an

Apollo Command and Service Module The Apollo command and service module (CSM) was one of two principal components of the United States Apollo spacecraft, used for the Apollo program, which landed astronauts on the Moon between 1969 and 1972. The CSM functioned as a mother sh ...

mock-up. At the far end of the gallery is the Boeing GPS-12 Satellite. This was an operational ground spare. Launched into space for the original GPS constellation were 23 operational spacecraft and two on orbit spares. A number of spares were flight ready on the ground in case there were malfunctions on orbit, these spacecraft could be launched as replacements. When the next generation of spacecraft were developed, the ground spares were no longer needed and one was donated to the museum. On display is a flight-ready GPS satellite. Along the inside wall of this gallery is the cockpit canopy of the North American X-15. This supersonic rocket plane first flew on June 8, 1959, with

Scott Crossfield Albert Scott Crossfield (October 2, 1921 – April 19, 2006) was an American naval officer and test pilot. In 1953, he became the first pilot to fly at twice the speed of sound. Crossfield was the first of twelve pilots who flew the North America ...

at the controls. Also in the display case near the canopy is Crossfield's flight suit from the X-15 and the air conditional case used by Neil Armstrong when he was an X-15 pilot. Eight of the X-15 pilots flew into space (above 60 miles) to earn their astronaut wings. The many astronauts who grew up and lived in the San Diego area include

Wally Schirra Walter Marty Schirra Jr. (, March 12, 1923 – May 3, 2007) was an American naval aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. In 1959, he became one of the original seven astronauts chosen for Project Mercury, which was the United States' f ...

, the only astronaut to command missions in Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo.

Edwin D. McKellar Pavilion of Flight

The original courtyard of the Ford Building was used like a showroom during the 1935 California Pacific International Exposition. Now it houses many of the larger aircraft in the museum's collection. These aircraft include the Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina,

, Bell AH-1E Cobra, and Ford 5-AT-B Trimotor. It also includes a replica of the Beecraft Wee Bee and several racing aircraft, and two Ford cars on loan from the

San Diego Automotive Museum The San Diego Automotive Museum in Balboa Park in San Diego, California is a museum containing a collection of cars and motorcycles illustrating the history of the American automotive culture. The San Diego Automotive Museum is a non-profit corpo ...

. The McDonnell Douglas F-4J/S Phantom II on display in the pavilion was the aircraft flown by

Duke Cunningham Randall Harold "Duke" Cunningham (born December 8, 1941) is a former American politician, decorated Vietnam War veteran, fighter ace, and ex-felon. Cunningham served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's ...

and

William P. Driscoll William Patrick "Willy Irish" Driscoll (born March 5, 1947) is a retired commander in the United States Navy and a flying ace. Driscoll, a Naval Flight Officer, and aircrewmate Duke Cunningham, a Naval Aviator, were their service's only aces o ...

in Vietnam from the USS ''Constellation'' (CV-64). Cunningham was the first ace to get all of his kills with missiles. The aircraft here has both radar guided Sparrow missiles along the belly and infrared heat seeking Sidewinder missiles loaded on the wings. The museum also rents the pavilion to special events from lectures to dinners. Upon request volunteer museum docents can be available to provide additional information about the exhibits during these events.

Front of museum

On display outside the museum are a

Lockheed A-12 The Lockheed A-12 is a high-altitude, Mach 3+ reconnaissance aircraft built for the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) by Lockheed's Skunk Works, based on the designs of Clarence "Kelly" Johnson. The aircraft was designat ...

and a Convair YF2Y-1 Sea Dart.

Gillespie Field Annex

In addition to the main facility at Balboa Park, the museum also has an annex at

El Cajon El Cajon ( , ; Spanish: El Cajón, meaning "the box") is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajón, which was in turn named for the box-like shape of the va ...

. The Annex featured additional display space for more aircraft, and restoration facilities. Some of the featured aircraft and spacecraft here include: *

Convair F-102A Delta Dagger The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair. Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpo ...

* Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15bis * Bleriot XI (reproduction) *

Lockheed P-2 Neptune The Lockheed P-2 Neptune (designated P2V by the United States Navy prior to September 1962) is a maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft. It was developed for the US Navy by Lockheed to replace the Lockheed PV-1 Ventura and ...

Douglas A2D Skyshark The Douglas A2D Skyshark was an American turboprop-powered attack aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company for the United States Navy. The program was substantially delayed by engine reliability problems, and was canceled because more prom ...

* General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon * Bell UH-1 Iroquois *

Ryan X-13 Vertijet The Ryan X-13 Vertijet (company designation Model 69) was an experimental vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) jet aircraft built by Ryan Aeronautical and flown in the United States in the 1950s. The main objective of the project was to demons ...

* Hawker Siddeley AV-8A Harrier * Boeing FB-5 Hawk (reproduction project) * Ryan PT-22 Recruit * WACO YKS-7 *

Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk The Sikorsky SH-60/MH-60 Seahawk (or Sea Hawk) is a twin turboshaft engine, multi-mission United States Navy helicopter based on the United States Army UH-60 Black Hawk and a member of the Sikorsky S-70 family. The most significant modificat ...

Lockheed S-3 Viking The Lockheed S-3 Viking is a four-crew, twin-engine turbofan-powered jet aircraft designed and produced by the American aerospace manufacturer Lockheed Corporation. Because of its characteristic sound, it was nicknamed the "War Hoover" after th ...

North American F-86F Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...

* Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21bis

Special events

The museum hosts a number of lectures, student programs, and other special events. Groups can rent the Pavilion of Flight for their own event or dinner.

References

External links

*
Hitler's Stealth Fighter: a National Geographic Documentary on the Horton 229 in the museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:San Diego Air and Space Museum 1963 establishments in California Aerospace museums in California Balboa Park (San Diego) Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums Museums established in 1963 Museums in San Diego