Kick Off the New Year at Planes of Fame

We’ve got another great line-up of presentations and a fantastic “Flying Demo” scheduled for this Saturday – January 4, 2025 at Planes of Fame.

Doors to the Museum will open at 9:00am.  Regular admission prices are in effect and Museum Members always get in free!

Plus, as an added treat to all our younger visitors, we’re hosting a series of “FREE” Junior Modeler Workshops!  We have three fun-filled sessions scheduled and all kids 7 thru 17 are able to attend on a first-come, first-served basis.

For the “Flying Demo” we’re featuring our World War II combat-veteran dive-bomber, the Douglas SBD “Dauntless.”  This aircraft is always a fan-favorite and there’s nothing like the sound of a radial aircraft engine flying overhead to get the New Year off to a roaring start!

Hangar Talk Begins at 10:30am

We’ve got some fascinating subject matter for our first “Hangar Talk” of the year.  

From Birds to Flying Machines: History Takes Flight

Stephanie Tsai of our Youth Programs group has a wonderful presentation that looks at our how birds have always been the basis of human flight.  Stephanie will take us on a journey that explores how birds and other creatures fly and how this in turn led to our early attempts through the construction of man-made gliders.  This is a fun and educational look at the role that gliders have played in aviation history.

TECH TALK – Those Amazing Whirlybirds”

The Museum’s Ken Saltgaver will provide another in his series of “Tech Notes” – this time looking at the amazing rotary wing aircraft – the helicopter.  Ken will pick up where Stephanie left off by showing that nature’s helicopter, the Hummingbird, was the inspiration of a number of early aviation pioneers to create an aircraft capable of up and down, side to side, and forward and backward flight.  Ken will show us how this is achieved by the helicopter’s rotars and engines.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower Returns for “The Final Push”

We’re kicking off a theme that we’ll return to throughout the coming months – a look back eighty years to 1945.  The Museum’s David Michaels returns to the podium in the persona of Supreme Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower to walk us through some of the final months of the war in Europe.  Joining David will be the president of the Historical Unit of Southern California (HUSC) Daniel Bermudez who will give us a ground level look at some of the fighting in the early months of 1945.  This presentation will provide a foundation for upcoming presentations, including our May “Wings, Tracks, and Wheels” event focused on Victory in Europe.

Ted TALK – Music Inspires: Music That Moved the Greatest Generation

The Museum’s Ted Mount has something special in store for us as he takes us on a musical tour of the songs that helped to shape World War II.  From Big Band classics to swinging songs, Ted will show us the relationships between music and our troops in a way that inspired most.  We’ll hear a selection of popular songs from the era and see how they kept soldiers and airmen rooted.

FREE JUNIOR MODELERS’ WORKSHOPS

The Museum’s Model Room team is presenting three workshops for our Junior Modelers (anyone age seven to seventeen is invited to attend).  The Junior Modeler program introduces young people to the fascinating world of scale model building.  Today, we’re presenting three workshops (9:30am, 12:30am, and 1:30am) open to all kids free of charge.  The focus is on the role that aircraft recognition played during World War II.  The workshops will teach a system of identification known was W.E.F.T.U.P. (Wings, Engines, Fuselage, Tail, Undercarriage, Peculiarities) and then put it to work as each child gets to build and take home their own recognition model.  Seating is limited and guests are encouraged to visit the Model Room upon entry to the Museum to sign up.

Flying Demo of the Douglas SBD “Dauntless”

At 12:15pm, we present the “Flying Demo” of the Douglas SBD (Scout, Bomber, Douglas Aircraft) “Dauntless,” the Museum’s World War II combat veteran.  We’ll talk briefly about the development and use of the SBD in World War II and present the unique history of the Museum’s aircraft.

Following a brief presentation, our pilot John Kerpa will fire up the 1,200 horsepower Wright Cyclone radial engine directly in front of the crowd.  After John taxis the aircraft away, we’ll hold our Member’s Only Raffle Drawing for some great prizes, including a flight in one of the Museum’s training aircraft.  Then John will delight us with an aerial demonstration of the “Dauntless” through a flight over the Museum for twenty minutes.  Upon return, guests may meet and ask questions of John and learn first-hand what it’s like to fly this historical wonder. 

In addition to all of the above, we’ll have food trucks on hand, our Museum Guides will tell you the stories of the Museum and its world-renowned collection, they’ll be fun for the kids, and our B-17 will be open for visitors to tour the inside.  A great way to kick off the New Year with a day at Planes of Fame!