A (Canadian) Idiot Abroad: Day 52 - I can see them fighter planes

A first visit to Tuscon isn't complete without a trip to the Pima Air & Space Museum. So, I hopped on the moto and headed over. The main building is not that big, but it's the outdoor exhibits that make the tour worth while.

Let's start indoors though.

Pratt & Whitney R985 "Wasp Junior" engine.

Built since the 1930's, it was used to power smaller planes & helicopters.

The Starr Bumble Bee.

Took the record in 1984 for smallest plane ever flown.

It measures 9'4" long and has a wingspan of just 6'6"

Didn't get the info on this one, but it's a great looking bi-plane

Bede Aircraft BD-5J "Microjet.

Built in 1973, it still holds the record as the world's smallest jet aircraft.

17' wingspan and could reach 320mph

Monstrosity of a chopper....or a piece of art. Your call.

This one looks familiar

Hey, they stole our plane!!!

They even "stole" from Poland.

The Russian built MiGs are ugly, but deadly. This one is a MiG 15.

Martin PBM-5A "Mariner"

Only 5 of these now exist

They were used for cargo, reconnaissance, warfare, and search & rescue.

Lockheed SR-71"Blackbird"

First operational aircraft built around stealth design & materials.

Capable of mach 3.3

Left side view

You then exit the rear of the main building to find a hundred or so aircraft of various sizes.

Some of you may recognise this one

It's a British Aerospace AV-8C "Harrier"

Capable of taking off and landing vertically

One was used in the Swarchenegger film "True Lies"

Convair B-36J "Peacemaker"

Of course, it's a bomber.

Plane used by a former vice-president

Aero Spacelines B-377SG "Super Guppy"

Used as a cargo plane from 1965 - 1995

Douglas C-124 "Globemaster"

Another cargo plane

I recognised this plane immediately.

The "NASA" markings on the tail confirmed it.

Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker Tanker. AKA the "Vomit Comet"

Not for the faint of stomach

Grumman E-1B "Tracer"

Recon & early warning aircraft

Cessna T-37B "Tweet"

Largely used as a training aircraft

Business end of a Lockheed F-94C "Starfire"

Bomb from a Northrop F-89J "Scorpion"

Convair B-58A "Hustler" bomber

Check-out the beak on this guy

And bring on the MiGs

Another MiG 15.

This one was built BY Poland FOR North Korea under license from Russia.

Side view

MiG 21PF "Fishbed-D"

MiG 29 "Fulcrum A" Interceptor

A shot of all the MiGs side-by-side

Next is the choppers

Bell UH-1H "Iroquois"

AKA the Huey

You'll see these in every movie about the Vietnam war

And of course the space shuttle

Sikorsky CH-54A "Tarhe (Skycrane)"

A heavy lift and transport chopper.

And one VERY cool looking ride

The "Space" part of the museum consisted of two aircraft (pictured above) and a small building of memorabilia and science exhibits. I didn't get any good pictures in the building, and quite honestly it wasn't all that exciting. The highlight was likely the Apollo 13 space capsule. It was interesting to see how small it actually was.

The other major draw of Pima is "The Boneyard". It consists of two separate fields of aircraft and aircraft parts. We started on the side with serviceable aircraft. There was a wing upgrade currently in progress, so thousands of individual wings were lined up waiting to be modified and installed.

This is a bus tour through a high security facility; you are not allowed off the bus at any time. These are the best pictures I could get through the bus windows.

Not much to say here, the pictures speak for themselves.

We then come to the tourist part of the Boneyard. Individual planes on each side of the road with identifying signs in front of each. Our docent went through each one and had a story for all.

Side note. Our docent, call-sign "Capi", flew in the US Navy. Some of his squad were imprisoned at the "Hanoi Hilton" along-side Senator John McCain.