The TAM Museum ( pt, Museu TAM), also known as the Museu Asas de um Sonho (Wings of a Dream Museum), was an aviation museum in the city of

São Carlos São Carlos (Saint Charles, in English, ; named after Saint Charles Borromeo) is a Brazilian municipality in the interior of the state of São Paulo, 254 kilometers from the city of São Paulo. With a population of 254,484 inhabitants, it is th ...

, within the state of State of São Paulo, Brazil. The museum was located from central São Carlos and from São Paulo City. The museum was the creation of

Rolim Adolfo Amaro Captain Rolim Adolfo Amaro (September 15, 1942 - July 8, 2001), known as "Comandante Rolim," was a Brazilian pilot and airline owner and founder of TAM Airlines. Biography At age 21, he became a pilot for a new air taxi company known as TAM – ...

, founder and president of

TAM Airlines TAM may refer to: Biology * Thioacetamide, an organosulfur compound * Tumor-associated macrophage, a class of immune cells * Transparent Anatomical Manikin, an educational model Technology * Tanque Argentino Mediano, the main battle tank of Arge ...

, and his brother João Francisco Amaro. The building is annexed to the TAM Airlines Technology Center at

São Carlos Airport SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S. ...

, in the district of Água Vermelha in São Carlos.

History

In 1996, after finishing the restoration work on a Cessna 195, brothers Rolim Adolfo Amaro and João Francisco Amaro decided to buy some classic aircraft, and keep them near São Paulo, in order to make them available for flights on weekends with friends. However, once purchased, it was realised that the small collection could become a museum representative of the memory of aviation and the world. The brothers then decided to create the "Museu Asas de um Sonho" (Wings of a Dream Museum), that was maintained by the Education Service and Culture, a non-profit association founded by TAM on 23 December 1991, to administer the social programs of the company. In 2006, the museum opened with 32 aircraft and was intended to have more than 80 aircraft. The opening was part of the celebrations of 150 years of the city of São Carlos. In July 2008 the museum was closed to visitors in order to allow a complete reorganization of its installations, which included an expansion of the covered space from 9.5 thousand square metres to over 20 thousand square metres. The grand re-opening occurred in June 2010 and among the collection of 90 airplanes, held the sole surviving S.55 seaplane christened "Jahú", a F4U Corsair, a

Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

, a Dassault Mirage III, a Brazilian aircraft

Neiva Regente Neiva Regente is a Brazilian propeller-driven four-seat light utility aircraft manufactured by Indústria Aeronáutica Neiva. History The design was started in 1959 for a four-seat cabin monoplane aircraft with a high wing and fixed undercarriage. ...

. On January 29, 2016, TAM announced that the museum would be ceasing operations due to budget concerns.Museu da TAM encerra as atividades?
Aero Magazine. Retrieved on February 2, 2016. Closure actually happened on February 2, 2016, and on May 18, 2018, it was announced that it would be relocated close to the Brazilian Aerospace Memorial at São José dos Campos Airport, near the

Embraer Embraer S.A. () is a Brazilian multinational aerospace manufacturer that produces commercial, military, executive and agricultural aircraft, and provides aeronautical services. It was founded in 1969 in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, where i ...

plant, but this never happened. On December 16, 2019, the president of the Brazilian Aviation Institute (IBA), Francisco Lyra, announced to an audience at the opening of the São Paulo Catarina business aviation airport that his next project would be to preserve the "Asas de um Sonho" aviation museum. It was intended by the follower

Latam Airlines Group LATAM Airlines Group S.A. is an airline holding company headquartered in Santiago, Chile. It is considered the largest airline company in Latin America with subsidiaries in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Peru. The company filed for Ch ...

to postpone the acerve to

Campo de Marte Airport Campo de Marte Airport is the first airport built in São Paulo, Brazil, opened in 1929. It is named after Champ de Mars, in Paris, which in turn got its name from Campus Martius, in Rome. During a transitional period, the airport is jointly o ...

, which also never happened. In March 2022, it was mistakenly reported that the museum pieces had been acquired by Helisul, an

air taxi An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand. In 2001 air taxi operations were promoted in the United States by a NASA and aerospace industry study on the potential Small Aircraft Transportation System (SATS) an ...

company, and would be displayed at the Foz do Iguaçu Convention Center, however the company denied the purchase, not ruling out the possibility of a future partnership.

Aircraft exhibits

:''Source: Ogden''Ogden (2008) The museum had 35 aircraft in a historical building measuring 450 metres long by 130 metres wide and 11 metres high. The exhibits planned to be accessible to visitors in 2010 were as follows: {, class="wikitable" style="text-align:left" , - ! width="200", Designation !! width="50", FAB desig!! width="100", Identity!! width="400", Notes , - ,

Aeronca C-3 The Aeronca C-3 was a light plane built by the Aeronca Aircraft, Aeronautical Corporation of America in the United States during the 1930s. Design and development Its design was derived from the Aeronca C-2. Introduced in 1931 in aviation, 1931, ...

, , , , NC14630, , , - ,

American Flea Ship The American Flea Ship (Flea Triplane) is a homebuilt triplane design of the early 1930s. It is one of the first examples of a female-designed-and-built aircraft. One example is displayed at the Wings of a Dream Museum. Development The American ...

, , , , PP-TKX, , Universal Aircraft , - , Boeing-Stearman Model 75, , , , LV-FGD, , , - , Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann, , , , E3B-595, , , - ,

Cessna 140 The Cessna 120, 140, and 140A, are single-engine, two-seat, conventional landing gear (tailwheel), light general aviation aircraft that were first produced in 1946, immediately following the end of World War II. Production ended in 1951, and ...

, , , , PP-DYX, , , - ,

Cessna 180 The Cessna 180 Skywagon is a four- or six-seat, fixed conventional gear general aviation airplane which was produced between 1953 and 1981. Though the design is no longer in production, many of these aircraft are still in use as personal aircr ...

, , , , PT-BXZ, , , - , Cessna 185, , , , PT-KJM, , , - , Cessna 195, , , , PT-LDK, , , - , Cessna L-19 Bird Dog , , , , 54736, , , - , Cessna L-19 Bird Dog , , , , 62612, , , - , Cessna L-19 Bird Dog , , , , 72774, , , - ,

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...

, , , , N101KC, , "Rose" , - , EAY Ypiranga Paulistinha, , , , PT-ZGY, , , - ,

Fairchild 24 The Fairchild Model 24, also called the Fairchild Model 24 Argus and UC-61 Forwarder, is a four-seat, single-engine monoplane light transport aircraft designed by the Fairchild Aviation Corporation in the 1930s. It was adopted by the United Sta ...

, , UC-61A, , 2687, , , - ,

Fairchild PT-19 The Fairchild PT-19 (company designation Fairchild M62) is an American monoplane primary trainer aircraft that served with the United States Army Air Forces, RAF and RCAF during World War II. Designed by Fairchild Aircraft, it was a contempora ...

Cornell, , , , PP-GAY, , , - , Gloster Meteor F.8, , F-8, , 4440, , , - , Lockheed 049 Constellation, , , , PP-PDD, , Bought in Paraguay and painted as

Panair do Brasil Panair do Brasil was an airline of Brazil. Between 1945 and 1965 it was considered to be the largest carrier not only in Brazil but in all of Latin America. It ceased operations in 1965. History NYRBA do Brasil (1929–1930) ''Panair do Bras ...

, - ,

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

G-2, , , , 12456, , , - , MiG-15, , , , 6247, , , - , MiG-17, , , , 23, , , - , MiG-21, , , , 17, , , - , Miles M.2H Hawk Major, , , , G-ADAS, , , - , Neiva

CAP-4 __NOTOC__ The CAP-4 Paulistinha was a military and civilian trainer aircraft built in Brazil during the 1930s and 1940s. It was originally developed by Empresa Aeronáutica Ypiranga (EAY) as an unlicensed copy of the Taylor Cub powered by a Sal ...

Paulistinha, , , , N-505, , Marinha , - , Nord 1203 Norecrin, , , , PP-EBE, , , - , Republic

P-47D Thunderbolt The P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945. Early designs XP-47 (AP-10) In response to a USAAC requirement for a new fighter aircraft, Republic Aviation engineer Alexander Kartveli p ...

, , , , 229265, , , - ,

Piper PA-12 The Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser is an American three-seat, high wing, single-engine conventional landing gear-equipped light aircraft that was produced by Piper Aircraft between 1946-48. The PA-12 was an upgraded and redesignated Piper J-5.Plan ...

Super Cruiser, , , , , , , - ,

IPE Quero Quero The KW-1b Quero Quero (Brazilian name for the southern lapwing bird) is a Glider (sailplane), sailplane that was produced in Brazil in the 1970s and 1980s. It is a conventional, single seat design of wooden construction. The undercarriage is a f ...

KW.1, , , , PT-PEI, , Sailplane , - ,

KW.1, , , , PT-PFJ, , Sailplane , - ,

RWD-13 The RWD 13 was a Polish touring plane of 1935, three-seater high-wing monoplane, designed by the RWD team. It was the biggest commercial success of the RWD. Development The RWD 13 was a touring plane, developed from a line of sports planes RWD ...

, , , , PT-LFY, , , - , Santos-Dumont 14-bis, , , , , , Replica , - ,

Santos-Dumont Demoiselle The Santos-Dumont ''Demoiselle'' was a series of aircraft built in France by world aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont. They were light-weight monoplanes with a wire-braced wing mounted above an open-framework fuselage built from bamboo. The ...

, , , , , , Replica , - ,

Savoia-Marchetti S.55 The Savoia-Marchetti S.55 was a double-hulled flying boat produced in Italy, beginning in 1924. Shortly after its introduction, it began setting records for speed, payload, altitude and range. Design and development The S.55 featured many in ...

, , , , I-BAUQ, , "Jahú" , - , Schneider Grunau Baby IIb , , , , , , Glider , - ,

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...

Mk.IX , , , , EN398, , , - ,

Vought F4U 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 ...

, , , , 17-F-13, ,

Gallery

File:Aeroncac3.JPG, Aeronca C-3 File:Cap4paulistinha.JPG, CAP-4 Paulistinha File:Bf109G2.jpg, Bf 109G-2 File:Americanfleaship.JPG, American Flea Ship File:Constellation L-049.jpg, Lockheed 049 Constellation File:Asasdeumsonho.JPG, Internal

Notes

References

* Ogden, Bob (2008). Aviation Museums and Collections of The Rest of the World. UK: Air-Britain. * Wikipedia Portuguese article

External links