The USS ''Hornet'' Museum is a

museum ship A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...

, located on the southernmost pier of the former

Naval Air Station Alameda Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station in Alameda, California, on San Francisco Bay. NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and 07-25 measuring . Two helicopter pads and a control tower were ...

in Alameda, California, US. The museum is composed of the aircraft carrier , exhibits from the NASA Apollo Moon exploration missions, and several retired aircraft from the Second World War and the transonic and early supersonic jet propulsion period. A number of compartments contain exhibits concerning contemporary carriers that are supported by related associations. The flight deck, hangar deck, and first deck below are open for self-guided tours.

Docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de conf ...

-led tours are available into the ship's navigation and flight deck control areas of the island and down into one of the engineering spaces containing two of the four ship's propulsion turbines.

Mission statement

Aircraft Carrier Hornet Foundation preserves and honors the legacy of , a national historic landmark, and its role in naval aviation, the defense of the United States, the Apollo Program, and exploration of space. The USS ''Hornet'' Museum connects the greatest generation of Americans with future generations, educating and inspiring them to meet their challenges.

Opening ceremony

The USS ''Hornet'' Museum officially opened to the public on October 17, 1998. Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin was the principal speaker. Attending dignitaries included Congresswoman Barbara Lee; Honorable Jerry Brown – Mayor-elect of Oakland; Honorable Ralph Appezzatto – Mayor of Alameda; General Richard Hearney – Vice President for Domestic Business Development, Boeing Company; and Rear Admiral Robert Chaplin – Superintendent,

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD ci ...

, Monterey, California.

Aircraft on display

The USS ''Hornet'' Museum has a number of aircraft on display including propeller aircraft, jet aircraft, and rotorcraft. The aircraft are from the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Museum guests can get up-close to the aircraft displayed on the flight deck and on the hangar deck. Aircraft are sometimes moved between decks utilizing the ship's #1 aircraft elevator. Exhibit highlights include: * TBM-3E Avenger – torpedo bomber from World War II * T-28B Trojan – military trainer * US-2B Tracker – anti-submarine warfare (ASW) utility aircraft *

FJ-2 Fury The North American FJ-2 and FJ-3 Fury are a series of swept-wing carrier-capable fighters for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. The FJ-2 resulted from an effort to navalize the North American F-86 Sabre operated by the United States ...

– 1950s swept-wing fighter jet *

TA-4J Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic aircraft, subsonic Carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta wing, delta-wi ...

– trainer from the last aggressor squadron, VC-8 * F8U-1 Crusader – Vietnam War era

supersonic Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound ( Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...

fighter * S-3B Viking – all-weather, multi-mission, long-range aircraft *

F-14A 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 t ...

– veteran of the Gulf War * HUP-1 Retriever - ship based utility helicopter for search and rescue * SH-2 Seasprite - Mid-1950s shipboard utility helicopter * SH-3H Sea King - All weather helicopter designed for anti-submarine warfare * UH-34D Seahorse - Vietnam era personnel transport and combat assault helicopter *

FM-2 Wildcat The Grumman F4F Wildcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that entered service in 1940 with the United States Navy, and the British Royal Navy where it was initially known as the Martlet. First used by the British in the North Atlant ...

- WW2 fighter

Apollo splashdown display

USS ''Hornet'' was selected in 1969 to serve as the Prime Recovery Ship (PRS) for the Apollo 11 Moon mission. ''Hornet'' led the recovery of the first

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

s to land on the Moon following their splashdown back on Earth. Four months later, ''Hornet'' recovered the all-Navy crew of

Apollo 12 Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the sixth crewed flight in the United States Apollo program and the second to land on the Moon. It was launched on November 14, 1969, by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commander Pete Conra ...

. The USS ''Hornet'' Museum has the largest Apollo Program exhibit on the West Coast of the United States. Artifacts on display include: * Apollo Command Module CSM-011 used for the AS-202 uncrewed suborbital flight test * Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) used by the

Apollo 14 Apollo 14 (January 31, 1971February 9, 1971) was the eighth crewed mission in the United States Apollo program, the third to land on the Moon, and the first to land in the lunar highlands. It was the last of the " H missions", landings at s ...

astronauts following their return to Earth * SH-3H Sea King used in the 1995 movie ''Apollo 13'' * Memorabilia and photos from the Apollo 11 and 12 splashdowns

Tours

The ship is mostly self-guided. A tour map is available at the admissions desk and

museum docent Museum docent is a title given in the United States of America to people who serve as guides and educators for the institutions they serve, usually as a volunteer (unpaid) position. The English word itself is derived from the Latin word ''docēns ...

s are available throughout the ship to answer questions and lead special tours. A short video on the history of the ship is shown in the orientation area.

Overnight programs

The USS ''Hornet'' Museum offers a Live-Aboard Program that is available to any organized youth group or family. Guests can experience the life of a sailor by touring the ship at night, eating in the crew's mess, and sleeping in the berthing compartments (bunks).

Gallery

File:USS Hornet Museum island.JPG , The island File:USS Hornet Museum - Flight deck 2.JPG , Flight deck and the island File:USS Hornet Museum - flight deck 1.JPG , Flight deck, with San Francisco in the background File:USS Hornet Museum interior 11.JPG , Hangar deck File:USS Hornet Museum - Interior 12.JPG , Hangar deck File:USS Hornet Apollo CM.jpg , Apollo Command Module CM-011A for AS-202 mission File:USS Hornet Museum - engine room.JPG , A steam turbine in the engine room File:USS Hornet Museum - 0172.jpg , Control panel in the engine room File:USS Hornet (CV-12) enlisted berthing 2.JPG , Enlisted berthing File:USS Hornet (CV-12) Marines head 1.JPG , Marines' head (term for bathroom) File:USS Hornet Museum - second deck.JPG , Passageway on the second deck File:USS Hornet (CV-12) pharmacy.JPG , Pharmacy File:USS Hornet Museum - cafeteria.JPG , Mess deck

References

External links

Official page
USS ''Hornet'' Museum and Aircraft Carrier Hornet Foundation {{DEFAULTSORT:Uss Hornet Museum Hornet National Historic Landmarks in the San Francisco Bay Area California Historical Landmarks Military and war museums in California Museums in Alameda County, California Aerospace museums in California Hornet Tourist attractions in Alameda County, California National Register of Historic Places in Alameda County, California 1998 establishments in California Museums established in 1998