The National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force is a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

organization with a museum facility located in

Pooler, Georgia Pooler is a city in Chatham County, Georgia, United States. According to the official 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 25,711, up 34.3% from the 2010 population of 19,140. Pooler is located northwest of Savannah along Interstates 95 and 16 ...

, in the western suburbs of

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...

. It educates visitors through the use of exhibits, artifacts, archival materials, and stories, most of which are dedicated to the history of the

Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Force ...

of the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

that served in the European Theatre during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Among the many World War II exhibits are aircraft including a

B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

bomber that can be viewed while being restored, a model of a

Messerschmitt Bf 109G Due to the Messerschmitt Bf 109's versatility and time in service with the German and foreign air forces, numerous variants were produced in Germany to serve for over eight years with the Luftwaffe. Additional variants were produced abroad tot ...

fighter, and a 3/4-scale model of a

P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

fighter. Aircraft on display outside include the

B-47 Stratojet The Boeing B-47 Stratojet (Boeing company designation Model 450) is a retired American long-range, six-engined, turbojet-powered strategic bomber designed to fly at high subsonic speed and at high altitude to avoid enemy interceptor aircraft ...

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 w ...

, and

F-4 Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...

from the post-WWII

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

era.

History

Planning for a museum dedicated to the Eighth Air Force began in 1983. Thirteen years later, on 14 May 1996, the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum opened to the public. A 2003 statute named the museum as the official State of Georgia center for character education. The museum received a B-17 project from the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...

in January 2009. In February 2011, a fire truck that was used at

Hunter Army Airfield Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia. Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet (3,468 m) long and an aircr ...

during World War II was donated to the museum.

Areas

*Major General Lewis E. Lyle Rotunda *Colonial Group, Inc. Art Gallery *Miss Sophie's Restaurant *Museum Gift Store *Memorial Garden

Aircraft on display

Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

* Boeing NTB-47B Stratojet * Boeing-Stearman N2S-3 Kaydet *

McDonnell Douglas F-4C Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...

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 w ...

Photos

File:F4 Phantom at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, F-4 Phantom II in front of the museum File:MiG 17 at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, MiG-17 in front of the museum File:Boeing B-47 at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, Boeing B-47 File:B-17 at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, B-17 being restored File:B-17 tail at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, Tail of B-17 being restored File:B-17 tail at Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, B-17 tail view File:B-24 nose art at Mighty 8th Air Force Museum, Pooler, GA, US.jpg, B-24 nose art File:B-47.JPG, The B-47 before being repainted File:SAC logo on B-47.jpg, Strategic Air Command logo on the B-47

References

External links