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Museum Month

Very cool reading your account of this trip. In 2014, I took a road trip from MI to the East Coast and included the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum as a waypoint. I've been following the restoration of the Black Widow online for many years and it was a thrill to see it in person!
 
Air Victory Museum closed

December flying weather was surprisingly good in the North East. But I wasn't very lucky on my second museum visit. I knew on the way to South Jersey Regional airport something is not right :D









Parked, had a breakfast and headed toward the museum hangar.











How come? Today is only December the 19th and weather is shining but closed?!









All right then there will be always another year. Time to go flying!
 
Merry xmas and happy New Year!











Some stills from this route :D





A quarry.





Delaware Water Gap.





An abandoned Pennsylvania Railroad viaduct.





New Hope PA.







An industrial zone by Trenton NJ.





Only one museum visited vs five last year. :)
 
It's amazing that in that lengthy and exhaustive list of amazing museums they missed the Strategic Air Command Museum just west of Omaha. Dozens of aircraft including an SR71, a B-36, ICBMs... And how many Avro Vulcans are there in the US?
 
Air Victory Museum open

Initially I planned to reach Air Heritage Museum at Beaver County airport KBVI. Launched early.

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On the way received a report from the Red Barn that weather conditions are marginal.

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I had tons of time and kept pressing toward Pittsburgh PA. There was some chop, a gusty 40 on the nose and after two hours of bouncing I quit. A wall of ice just formed 30 miles from my destination. I don't like ice in the sky I prefer it on Alton Bay or Mooselookmeguntic Lake.

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Turned around, climbed on top of the scattered layer and activated Plan B. Sneaked under Philladelphia Class Bravo and landed at South Jersey Regional KVAY. It took me only 3.2 hours to get to an airport which normally takes 15 minutes. :)


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Air Victory Museum was open.


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I was the only visitor and spent couple hours at the Museum. Never knew there was a flying aircraft carrier.


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There is a very nice WW2 exhibition with unique artifacts.

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The diameter of the propellers on this Enola Gay model is two inches. The electric propeller below pushed B-36 Peacemaker and is 19 feet in diameter.


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Well presented Cold War era and modern jet age.


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It was a great day of flying with an immersion into aviation history in the middle of it.


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Bob - the Ghost writer

Vlad could make a killing writing a book about great daytrips in an RV (or any other airplane).

Bob - you are the writer - you should write the Vlad book! And YES it would be fantastic. A series, in fact.

Book I "Day Tripper"

Book II: "Images in the sky"

Book III: "See the U S A , the RV Way" like the tune . . .

Book IV: "Vlad's Oddities from the Air"

Get going Bob, you need a release schedule to keep the marketing guys busy, ya know - - like the Harry Potter series.
 
and finally reached Air Heritage Museum

It took me five tries over two years to reach Air Heritage Museum at Beaver County airport, Pennsylvania. I departed early morning the temperatures were below freezing. I preheated, warmed up, droplets of condensation somehow gathered on the cowling and froze while airborne. They didn't melt they were progressively wearing out for about an hour.

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I made a stop midway at Mifflin County airport where they serve very nice breakfast every second Saturday of the month. Met and chatted with fellow RVators Brian, Art, Jim, Dave12. It was relatively windy and cold, a lot of pilots didn't show up. These are the bravest who flew in.


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Dense breakfast and I am pushing farther west. A valley full of snow.


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I decided to gain some altitude and whistle over a ridge on top 8.5K was enough. I remember last time I couldn't go under the deck. After about an hour of flight with 40 knots on the nose I picked up weather at KBVI Beaver County airport and started my descend. Friendly tower approved straight in RWY 28 and told me to report passed the river.

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Long landing became short I rolled via taxiway Charlie all the way to the Museum.


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Parked by these guys and went in through the back door.

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The Museum itself is not very big but has its magnetism. B-24 Panel.

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A Spitfire under construction.

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They are also restoring a DC3.

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I was lucky the chief restorator Dave Messershmith was around. He showed me the interior and snapped this picture. Did I mention that he also test flew couple RVs? :D


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It was a great visit! I promised to stop by next December to see the DC3 airworthy.


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Without Luck to Mack Truck

Some museums are hard to get into in December. Even if their website http://www.macktruckshistoricalmuseum.org says open it could be closed. I visited almost all aviation museums at airports nearby. This time I was targeting Mack Truck historical museum which is conveniently located near KXLL Queen City airport in PA. It's only 15 RV minutes straight flight but I managed to stretch it to 1.2 hours.
Checked if there is enough snow at a ski slope.

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Then flew by Poconos casino and airport.

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This windmill shorted and burned couple weeks ago. It's disassembled now and undergoing repairs.


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The Mack Truck Museum is located by the Queen City airport.

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Wind favoring RWY 25 and I made the first taxiway.

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Found myself a parking spot and started walking around the airport fence toward the museum.

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It's a nice 10 minute walk. Signs at every corner.

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Here is the main entrance where a nice security girl told me that the Museum is closed for renovations till February. I told her I will come next December and she approved.

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I had a ton of fuel to burn and was just flying around Tristate practicing turns around a point and emergency procedures.

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Merry Xmas all!
 
A year late...

Late summer in '97, myself and a couple other Marines spent 2 days pulling parts off this aircraft to return to the supply system, after our squadron flew it to the Museum. Kinda sad to see her looking like that...
 
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