Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

This forum is to discuss aircraft and vessels, military or otherwise.

Moderators: Niner Delta, joseyclosey

User avatar
Niner
Site Admin
Posts: 11519
Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2003 1:00 pm
Location: Lower Alabama

Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner » Sat Nov 02, 2019 2:41 pm

I visited the US Navy Air museum at Pensacola a few weeks ago. Great experience....and it is free to the public. Only thing is ..it's on a Navy base and you can get to it only from one gate and you have to have your ID with you. In another year you will be expected to have the new Star ID that goes into effect for airline passengers and people going into government official buildings. The online site is here: https://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/

Lots of interesting aircraft and their tie in with the Navy. There is also a section devoted to the Coast Guard as well. Among the planes there are relics from a hundred years ago as well as WWII planes including a P40 Flying Tigar and a German jet fighter and a Jap Zero. There is even a helicopter used by Nixon.

Pensacola is home to the Blue Angels flying stunt team. One of the older planes is the blue one in the attached.
Attachments
DSC01240.jpg
DSC01239.jpg
DSC01238.jpg
DSC01233.jpg
DSC01232.jpg
User avatar
Niner
Site Admin
Posts: 11519
Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2003 1:00 pm
Location: Lower Alabama

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner » Sat Nov 02, 2019 2:46 pm

Here are a few more images.
Attachments
DSC01257.jpg
DSC01258.jpg
DSC01256.jpg
DSC01252.jpg
DSC01248.jpg
DSC01246.jpg
User avatar
Niner
Site Admin
Posts: 11519
Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2003 1:00 pm
Location: Lower Alabama

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner » Sat Nov 02, 2019 2:54 pm

DSC01283.jpg
Now that I'm on a roll......
Attachments
DSC01282.jpg
DSC01272.jpg
DSC01271.jpg
DSC01266.jpg
DSC01265.jpg
User avatar
Niner
Site Admin
Posts: 11519
Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2003 1:00 pm
Location: Lower Alabama

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner » Sat Nov 02, 2019 2:59 pm

One last batch:

DSC01279.jpg
Attachments
DSC01313.jpg
DSC01296.jpg
DSC01290.jpg
DSC01293.jpg
DSC01289.jpg
DSC01286.jpg
DSC01287.jpg
DSC01278.jpg
DSC01280.jpg
DSC01278.jpg
User avatar
Niner Delta
Global Moderator Sponsor 2011-2017
Posts: 4866
Joined: Fri Apr 09, 2004 10:51 pm
Location: Sequim, WA

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner Delta » Sat Nov 02, 2019 7:10 pm

So great to see the site back up, there are some photos I wanted to post...... :mrgreen:

That is a great collection of aviation..... everything from a 1941 Ford Tudor to a
Consolidated PB2Y Coronado. If only it wasn't literally at the other end of the
country from me.
I haven't been back to the Smithsonian collection in 50 years, maybe next summer
I'll take a road trip back east to see some of these things. But more likely I won't... :(

.
:USA:

Peace is that brief, quiet moment in history.......... when everybody stands around reloading.
User avatar
joseyclosey
Moderator
Posts: 3916
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2003 2:48 pm
Location: UK

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by joseyclosey » Sun Nov 03, 2019 10:07 am

Now that looks like my kind of museum. :D
Reese Williams
Regular visitor
Posts: 74
Joined: Tue Mar 14, 2006 1:05 pm

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Reese Williams » Sat Nov 23, 2019 8:58 pm

I work at NAS Pensacola so I'm no stranger to the museum. I've been to the Air and Space in Washington DC, both the old one downtown and the new one out by Dulles. While the National Museum of Naval Aviation doesn't have the breadth of the Smithsonian collection since it is limited to Navy and Marine Corps it is certainly of equal or better quality to the Air and Space Museum. There are constantly new planes being added to the display. The museum has a restoration facility manned by a number of volunteers. Most of them were aviation maintenance rates in the Navy, power plant mechanic, airframe mechanics, metal smiths etc. so the restorations are first rate. They have a few "only know example extant" aircraft as well as some whose surviving numbers can be counted on one hand.

After seeing the museum you can also tour the pre-Civil War Fort Barrancas and the Pensacola lighthouse. The Pensacola Navy Yard was established in 1831 and has been an operating Navy base since. Pensacola was originally founded by the Spanish in 1859, before St. Augustine but because the first three settlements were wiped out by hurricane St. Augustine claims to be older. We know better. Pensacola has been governed by the Spanish, French, British, Confederate and US governments giving the city its motto "City of Five Flags".

If you are in the western tip of the Florida panhandle the Naval Aviation Museum is definitely worth a stop. About an hour's drive away is the Air Force Armaments Museum located near Eglin Air Force Base. Eglin has been an Air Force weapons development and testing center since before WWII. Not as big or as nice as the Naval Museum the Air Force Museum here is worth a look. The big Air Force museum is in Dayton, Ohio.
Last edited by Reese Williams on Sun Nov 24, 2019 9:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Niner
Site Admin
Posts: 11519
Joined: Sat Mar 15, 2003 1:00 pm
Location: Lower Alabama

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by Niner » Sat Nov 23, 2019 9:21 pm

Reese, glad you found the site back in business. We attempted to visit Fort Barrancas but the day we went it was closed.
Attachments
Barrancas.jpg
User avatar
ArchFluffy
Moderator
Posts: 306
Joined: Sat Jul 02, 2005 8:19 am

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by ArchFluffy » Sat Nov 30, 2019 1:35 pm

Wow! Great pics!

I really should check the place out. It's not so far from an uncle of mine.

And a fort too!

-ArchFluffy
User avatar
DuncaninFrance
Global Moderator Sponsor 2011-2017
Posts: 10934
Joined: Fri Oct 06, 2006 3:08 pm
Location: S.W.France
Contact:

Re: Navy Air Museum in Pensacola Florida

Post by DuncaninFrance » Sun Dec 01, 2019 3:50 am

Don't forget to wear your Orange kit Arch, don't want you getting shot by a fighter plane :shock: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Duncan

What contemptible scoundrel has stolen the cork to my lunch? -- W.C. Fields
"Many of those who enjoy freedom know little of its price."
You can't fix Stupid, but you can occasionally head it off before it hurts something.
Post Reply