While almost all nuclear sites you can find in European Countries once beyond the Iron Curtain are today totally abandoned and fairly unaccessible, there exists a perhaps unique exception. The Plokstine site in northwestern Lithuania has been selected around 2010 for complete refurbishment with the help of public money, and in 2012 it has opened its doors as a museum. Located in a beautiful natural setting crowded with hikers – namely Zemaitija National Park, a national recreation area around Plateliai lake – it has quickly grown to international fame, and is now recording several thousands visitors per year, with guided tours in multiple languages – including English – offered on a regular basis during the warm season.
What is today an intriguing tourist destination, used to be part of a large Soviet installation for launching ballistic missiles armed with nuclear warheads. It is worth mentioning that Lithuania was a ‘Soviet Socialist Republic’ in the realm of the USSR, i.e. not just a satellite country of the Soviet Union, but part of it. Actually, this small country on the shores of the Baltic Sea, on the extreme western border of Soviet territory, was an ideal location for deploying weapons to hit European targets from within the Union. Furthermore, the Plokstine forest was – and still is – a little populated area, where construction works for a large top-secret military facility for storing and operating offensive cutting-edge hi-tech warfare would go likely unnoticed.
The missile complex was completed in December 1962, in the years of Khrushchev and Kennedy. The Plokstine site comprises of four interred silos and an extensive underground command station in the middle – the ensemble constituted a so-called ‘Dvina’ launch complex.
The ‘Dvina’ site in Plokstine was actually the last part of the missile base to be built. Two more sister surface sites, with four launchpads each, had been completed one year before, just west of the nearby village of Saiteikiai. These surface sites were similar to those you can find in Latvia (see this post), a neighbor country where unfortunately the last remaining ‘Dvina’ site was demolished in 2017, but abundant traces of the Soviet presence can still be found.
All three launch complexes in this region were designed around the R-12 missile. The R-12U missile was actually used in the underground ‘Dvina’ complex, slightly different from the surface-launched R-12. This weapon was better known by its NATO designation – SS-4 Sandal – and was a 2.3 megaton, single warhead, single stage nuclear missile. It reached true international notoriety before the base in Plokstine was activated, for this was the type deployed to Cuba in the missile crisis of 1962. Coincidentally, part of the staff transferred to Cuba in the days preceding the crisis was from the same rocket regiment of the Red Army (the 79th) stationed in Plokstine. Sandal missiles from here were reportedly transferred in complete secrecy to Cuba, via the port town of Sevastopol in Crimea in that occasion.
The base remained operational until the last missile – by then obsolete – left in 1978.
The Baltics were the first republics to leave the dying Soviet Union, openly defying the military authority of neighbor Russia. After the collapse of the Union and the end of communism in Europe, these three states – which historically do not belong to Russian culture – quickly joined the NATO and European Union, to escape Russian influence as much as possible. Most Soviet military installations were shut down and abandoned, and have been for two decades an interesting destination for explorers and war historians (see this post for many examples). Later on, most sites have been slowly demolished or converted into something else. Really a few of them have been preserved for posterity.
In this post you can find photographs from the Cold War Museum now open in the former ‘Dvina’ site of Plokstine, from a visit in 2017. Close to the bottom, you can find a few further photographs from a previous visit made by appointment in 2009, before the site was selected for renovation – these may be more appealing for Soviet-aura lovers!
Sights
What can be visited today is all in the area of the old ‘Dvina’ complex. The complex is mainly composed of four interred silos, covered by heavy steel & concrete bulged covers, placed on the four corners of a square. These gigantic caps are the most prominent components of the site from the outside. Today, an observation deck has been erected on the south of the area. From there, you can appreciate the distinctive plan of the ‘Dvina’ complex, with an access road terminating in a loop touching all four armored silo covers.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
The weight of each cover is told to be around 100 tonnes, as it was armored to withstand a nuclear explosion. The covers would be pulled sideward with a sled mechanism, to open the silos before launch. Unmovable missile launch complexes, like the ‘Dvina’ site in Plokstine, were easy and attractive targets for western weapons, thus requiring a very strong defense barrier. Similar considerations led the design of the Titan missile sites in the US, which albeit more powerful and capable of a greater range, are roughly from the same era (see this post).
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
To get near the silos or get access to the museum, you need to pay a ticket and join a guided tour. The visit includes a tour of the Cold War Museum, which has been prepared inside the rooms of the former control center. The tour will start from the visitor center, a new modern building. You will soon go through a specimen of the original fences which ran around the ‘Dvina’ complex, and which included barbed wire and high-voltage electrified lines. Close by, you can find traces of original unarmored constructions, likely service buildings. The missile site was operated by more than 300 troops stationing in a number of smaller centers in the area around the complex.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
The guide will lead you along a walk around the surface part of the complex, where you can see the construction of the caps from very close. The metal part is very rusty, but the concrete cover has been refurbished and looks like new – a pretty unusual sight, for connoisseurs of Soviet military relics!
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Access to the underground missile service and control center is via a small metal door, right in the middle of the square formed by the four silos.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
A few rooms in the control center today host the exhibitions of the Cold War Museum. A room displays a quick time-line of the Cold War, since the end of WWII to the end of the USSR. In the adjoining rooms you can find propaganda items
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Another room is about defense against nuclear threat. This is interesting, with many artifacts like dosimeters and medical tools, plus easily readable instructions of ‘dos and don’ts’ in case of nuclear attack.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Another room is about the evolution of weapons over the Cold War decades, with original material from the time, including heavier tactical weapons.
The exhibition is modern, small but not superficial, and may appeal to any public, including children. Besides the exhibits, you can appreciate the relatively small size of all rooms and connecting corridors in the former control center.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
As you are driven next to the missile operation part, you can find a scale model of the ‘Dvina’ complex and a cut-out of a R-12U silo, together with a map of the relatively few missile sites in Lithuania – from the map, it can be argued that, for some reason, many more sites were prepared in nearby Latvia.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Resting quarters for the troops and a communication station with original electronic gear have been reconstructed based on original footage and pics. Communication with the military headquarters was clearly an essential task – it was the only way an order to launch could be issued – and the serviceman on duty was responsible for assuring a permanent link with the chain of command. In other words, he was instructed not to leave his headphones under any circumstances, during a several hours-long shift!
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
On the sides of the corridors you can see holes for the extensive network of cables and pipes. Further on, you meet the most ‘hardware’ part of the exhibition. First, the original diesel-fueled power generator has been refurbished and is standing in its original room. The underground complex was designed not only to withstand a nuclear blast, but also to provide shelter for all servicemen for several days following an attack. This meant air filters, food, water, technical supplies and of course electrical power, were all essential assets. Oil for the generator was stored in a container in an adjoining room.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Finally, you get access to one of the four silos. You need to go through a tight door opened on the wall of the concrete structure of the control center. Writings in Cyrillic can be spotted on the walls in this area. From there, you will see the cylindrical shape of the metal structure of the silo from the side. This metal canister is really big, the ‘Dvina’ silos featured a much greater diameter than the SS-4 missile they were built for. This was somewhat different from their US counterpart (see this post), where the missile diameter fits the size of the silo without much margin.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
You can get access to the silo via the original hatch, cut in the metal wall close to the rim on top of the silo, just beneath the external cap. Going through this hatch is incredibly difficult – it is extremely narrow, much longer than the size of a human step, and tilted upwards! It is hard to understand why the Soviets built it in a size so small – this applies to the control center too, for all corridors are really narrow and the ceiling in the rooms is so low you may easily need to bend forward! For those who don’t want to try the original entry to the silo, there is now a non-original door cut in the side of the canister.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War
The inside of the silo can be observed from an original service deck, immediately under the external cover. From here you can clearly appreciate the size of the construction – the missile was more than 70 ft long, and sat here in a vertical position. The SS-4 was among the first missiles to make use of a storable liquid propellant, which allowed it to stay in almost-launch-ready conditions for a prolonged time, if resting in a silo. Nonetheless, the time for opening the armored caps was about 30 minutes, which meant this was not exactly quick to launch. The understructure of the armored caps can be clearly appreciated from inside the silo.
Photographs Before Restoration Works – Ghost Base
When I visited this site for the first time in 2009, it was open only by appointment. Unfortunately, I had only a compact camera at the time, and the very low light inside plus a rainy day outside, meant I could take only a few acceptable pictures.
However, they provide an idea of the state of the ‘Dvina’ complex before it was decided to reconfigure it as a museum.
As you can see, the armored silo caps were in a worse shape than today, yet not heavily damaged. The barbed wire fence around the four silos was probably original Soviet.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Inside, the control rooms were basically empty, except for some communist emblems and flags. Green wall paint and Cyrillic writings could be found even at the time, so what you see today is likely original. The generator, whilst in bad shape, was there.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
The silo could be accessed only via the original hatch, and except for the partial darkness, its appearance is similar today.
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
Dvina Plokstine SS-4 Sandal Soviet Missile Base Lithuania Cold War Old Before Restoration
It is out of doubt that the ‘Soviet ghost aura’ of the base was somewhat lost in the restoration process, yet credit must be given to the effort of the local government in preserving a rare and relevant trace of military history through an expensive restoration process.
Getting there and moving around
The Cold War Museum (Šaltojo karo muziejus in the local idiom) is located in the Zemaitija National Park, northwestern Lithuania, east of lake Plateliai. Access is via the road 2302. The place is totally accessible and well advertised locally. Visiting the outside of the armored caps and inside is possible only with a guided tour, offered in many languages including English, and lasting about 50 minutes. No fee is required for climbing on top of the observation deck. Full information through the official website here.
The immense state of Texas is in the foreground of the panorama of historical aviation, thanks especially to the CAF – the Commemorative Air Force (website here) – which maintains and operates some of the Nation’s finest airworthy warbirds. This privately financed, non-profit organization feeds the programs of many airshows everywhere in the US, and carries out an invaluable function in preserving the legacy of many aircraft designers, manufacturers and military servicemen especially from WWII and early Cold War years.
The birth of the CAF in Texas is not just by chance. The Lone Star State bolsters an extremely long and rich tradition in aviation. Training airfields were established in Texas earlier and in a number greater than any other State during WWI. Fort Worth was the birthplace of one of todays few surviving major airlines in the US – American Airlines – back in the early 1930s.
Aircraft manufacturers associated with Texas include Consolidated – most of the iconic WWII B-24 Liberator bombers were manufactured in Fort Worth – and North American. Consolidated later merged into Convair, owned by General Dynamics since the Fifties. Many aircraft of the Cold War era were actually manufactured in Fort Worth, including the record-breaking B-36 Peacemaker and B-58 Hustler, or the highly successful F-16 Fighting Falcon, still in service today in many air forces of the world, as well as a good deal of other types. As of today, Lockheed Martin and Bell Helicopters are both headquartered in Fort Worth.
Needless to recall, Houston has been one of the major focal points of world astronautics since the beginning of the space age.
In such a cultural setting, and considering the general financial wealth and the abundance of oil typical of Texas, it is not surprising that warbirds, even though fuel-thirsty and expensive to maintain, are present here in an exceptional concentration. Where possible, they are maintained in airworthy conditions, otherwise they are kept in great consideration in world-class air museums.
This post covers only four rich collections out of the many you can find in Texas. Two of them are ‘airworthy collections’, whereas in the other two warbirds are preserved for static display. Considered together, these four sites are probably already a good reason for an aviation-themed trip to Texas!
Photographs are from an extremely hot August 2018.
This renowned collection just west of downtown Dallas is split between a big group of exceptionally well-kept and airworthy prop-driven aircraft, and a number of warbirds on static display, some of them jet-powered. Website here.
The museum occupies a few hangars on a very busy general aviation airport (Addison Airport), where executive jets, helicopters and smaller propeller-driven aircraft operate all around the clock.
The collection is hosted in four hangars and on an external apron where you can walk around freely. Not all aircraft are around here at any time, some having been flown out to some airshow, or for maintenance. In the first hangar you can find a handful of perfect airworthy replicas of WWI fighters from both sides of the front line.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Just besides are a North American B-25J-NC Mitchell, a ground strafing version of the famous medium-range bomber, and a veteran of WWII.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mitchell
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mitchell
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mitchell
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
There are also a Vultee SNV-2 Valiant, a De Havilland Tiger Moth, a Ryan PT-22, all training planes from the Forties. In a corner you can see also a Piper L-4J, the military version of the J-3 Cub, and a Stinson L-5E, similar to the former in shape and mission type.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Ryan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Tiger Moth
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Cub
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Valiant
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Pitts
A Pitts Special aerobatic biplane is hanging from the ceiling in an inverted attitude.
The second hangar hosts a Fairchild PT-19 Cornell, an ubiquitous US military trainer from the Forties, in a distinctive light blue colorway with a yellow fin. Together with a yellow Stearman N2S-4 Kaydet biplane and a North American T-6 Texan, both good old trainers, they share the scene with a handful of stunningly preserved icons from WWII.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Texan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Stearman
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Stearman
These include a Grumman F-4 Wildcat and a massive Grumman TBF Avenger – both in the dark blue colorway of the US Navy.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Avenger
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Wildcat
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Wildcat
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Yak-3
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Messerschmitt
Just besides are a licensed version of the Messerschmitt Bf-109G of Nazi Germany built by Hispano Aircraft in Spain, and a nice replica of a Soviet Yakovlev Yak-3M.
Cross the apron, you can find some more great classics from the Forties. There are an immaculate Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, and two North American T-28 Trojan trainers in the colors of the Navy. In the background you can spot a sizable Heinkel He-111 twin, a licensed version manufactured by CASA in Spain.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Warhawk
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Trojan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Trojan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Trojan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Trojan
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Heinkel 111
The last hangar shelters an aggressive Douglas A-1H Skyraider in the colors of the USAF. This version of the massive single-prop features a single seat and is especially reinforced for increased bomb load to carry on ground attack missions.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Sabre
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Sabre
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Phantom
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Panther
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Panther
This is surrounded by a series of pretty famous jet attack aircraft, including a McDonnell-Douglas F-4C Phantom II, a North American F-86 Sabre and a Grumman F-9F-2B Panther with foldable wings and the distinctive blue and red colors of the Navy.
There are also two classic fighters from WWII, a Supermarine Spitfire Mk.VIII and a North American P-51D Mustang. The latter is so polished that you can clearly see your image reflected in its skin panels!
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Spitfire
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Mustang
On the outside apron you can see parked three Soviet-made jets from WWII – a MiG-15 UTI and a MiG-17 in the colors of the Red Army, and a more recent MiG-21 in the colors of the North Vietnamese Air Force. Close by, a PZL Iskra trainer, once ubiquitous in the former Soviet bloc.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-15
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-15
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-15
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-17
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Iskra
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-17
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-21
Cavanaugh Flight Museum MiG-21
There are also a Lockheed F-104A Starfighter, a Grumman S-2F-1 Tracker patrol aircraft of the Navy with folded wings, a Republic F-105 Thunderchief awaiting restoration, and a Vought A-7 Corsair II.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Tracker
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Corsair
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Starfighter
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Thunderchief
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Corsair
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Thunderchief
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Tracker
Scattered around the museum are also a few helicopters, and even a Sherman tank.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Sherman
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
During my visit I could see two movements of aircraft taxiing out for take-off. The first was a Cessna O-2 Skymaster, a model extensively used in Vietnam for FAC missions. This has been refurbished with fake underwing rockets. You can see it in the vid below.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skymaster
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
Cavanaugh Flight Museum
The second was a Douglas EA-1E Skyraider in gray Navy colors. This is the early warning version, designed for a crew of three and originally mounting a dedicated radar platform. You can watch (and hear!) the difficult startup of the huge Wright radial engine – it was around 100°F outside! – and the aircraft taxiing with folded wings. Unfolding starts only seconds before the aircraft gets out of sight.
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Cavanaugh Flight Museum Skyraider
Forth Worth Aviation Museum, Fort Worth, TX
This museum hosts a little but highly valuable collection of US aircraft on static display. The museum is totally volunteer-run. These folks are doing an exceptional job preserving their aircraft. As you can see from the pictures, there are many exemplars being actively refurbished in a hangar to the back. The museum is located on the southeast corner of Fort Worth Meacham general aviation airport. Website here.
All aircraft are preserved outside, but you get access to the museum grounds through a lounge, stacked with wonderful memorabilia, technical specimens, paintings and rare pictures.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
A showcase is devoted to the Convair B-58 Hustler, a record-setting Mach 2 bomber from the Fifties, produced in slightly more than 100 exemplars, which were all manufactured in Fort Worth. This iconic delta wing, four-engined jet was exceptional for the number of ‘firsts’. Among them, it was the first aircraft with a computerized flight control system and an integrated navigation platform. You can spot part of this analog computer, a bulky stack of black metal parts.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
There are scale models of the Cessna O-2 Skymaster, and based on the themes of the merchandise in the museum shop there is actually a predilection for that aircraft and the Rockwell OV-10 Bronco, which had a similar mission, i.e. observation, reconnaissance and forward air controller (FAC).
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Actually, among the first aircraft you meet outside there is a Cessna Skymaster. I was so lucky to visit on August 19th, the National Aviation Day, when the museum recruited many veterans to stay besides their respective aircraft and tell their story. I spent a little time with Doc Lambert, Nail 66, one of the pilots of FAC missions over Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, who allowed me to have a long look inside his Skymaster. Among the testimonies of his war operations, he told me some anecdotes. Most FAC missions were performed with only the pilot on board, which caused a pretty high workload. Furthermore, the aircraft was not equipped to counteract any weapon shooting up from the ground. This meant that a typical flight was an uninterrupted sequence of strong turns to avoid being hit from ground fire, something that also helped in searching for grounded crews, or enemies hiding in the jungle. As a result, you had to be accustomed to such way of flying, or a strong sense of nausea would come to disturb you pretty soon. This regularly happened with visiting high-ranking USAF staff on demonstration flights…
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
The museum owns another Skymaster, which was undergoing refurbishment in a black livery at the time of my visit, similarly to an operational USMC version of the OV-10 Bronco.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skymaster
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Bronco
Best preserved aircraft on the front row, which are clearly visible from the public road ahead of the museum, include a Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star training aircraft, and a Northrop F-5 Tiger II in a fake Soviet camouflage once used by aggressors in flight academies.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Shooting Star
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Shooting Star
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tiger
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tiger
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Shooting Star
On the same row you can spot a Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, a type in service since the early Sixties, and shown here painted in the colors of the Navy. The beautifully restored Vought A-7B Corsair II nearby was deployed to Vietnam three times with VA-25 on board USS Ticonderoga and USS Ranger.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Corsair
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skyhawk
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skyhawk
Next is a massive Republic F-105D Thunderchief, a very nice example of this Mach 2 fighter-bomber from the early Sixties. This very aircraft was stationed in Europe, tasked with carrying tactical nuclear ordnance. The roomy bomb bay designed for the scope can be observed from inside. After more than ten years in the USAF, this aircraft went on to serve with the Air National Guard in the Seventies, and was finally disposed of in 1983.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Thunderchief
Right besides the F-105 you find a McDonnell-Douglas F-4C Phantom II in the colors of the USMC Aviation. This very aircraft is a Vietnam veteran, and it was later converted into a target drone, but luckily never used in this role. The collection features another F-4, again a Vietnam veteran.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Phantom
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Phantom
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Phantom
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Phantom
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Phantom
Cutting edge technology from the late Seventies is represented by a Grumman F-14D Tomcat. This plane is a war veteran, it flew missions during Desert Storm and over Afghanistan, and it was often used on FAC missions and for training at home. It was retired in 2007.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tomcat
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tomcat
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tomcat
The Tomcat is sitting next to an imposing Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopter. This too is a Vietnam veteran, and suffered also some damage on combat duty. The avionics of this big helicopter are totally analog. Next to it you can find a Convair TF-102 Delta Dagger interceptor built for combat and training. This very aircraft was flown by President George W. Bush.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Sea Stallion
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Sea Stallion
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Delta Dagger
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Delta Dagger
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Sea Stallion
Other training aircraft on display from different ages include a Vultee BT-13 Valiant single-prop, a Cessna T-37B Tweet and a Douglas TA-4 Skyhawk. The latter was used extensively for training purposes on board USS Lexington.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Skyhawk
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Tweet
Two totally authentic Navy veterans are a Vought F-8 Crusader and a McDonnell-Douglas F/A 18 Hornet. The first spent its early career on board USS Lexington and USS Ranger in multiple cruises in the Western Pacific during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, being later assigned to several Naval Air Stations along its more than 20 years long career. The Hornet was deployed operationally from the late Eighties on board USS Midway and later on USS Independence, and spent its final years in the Blue Angels – of which you see the vivid livery today – being finally retired in 2009.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Hornet
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Hornet
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Crusader
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Crusader
A special feature of this museum is the only existing mock-up of the McDonnell-Douglas/General Dynamics A-12 Avenger II. Development of this attack aircraft was carried on in the Eighties and finally canceled by the Government. The flying wing configuration and the widespread adoption of composite materials made this platform unique, but also ahead of its times. This design was penalized by subsequent mass increases which caused its cancellation, but it represented a first chance to investigate concepts and technologies later adopted for operational aircraft flying today. The mock-up used to reside in the Fort Worth plant of General Dynamics, from where it made its way to the museum.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Avenger
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Avenger
Other Cold War planes include a General Dynamics F-111E Aardvark, built in Fort Worth and assigned to Japan and Europe along its long operational career spanning the years 1969-90, and a Rockwell OV-10 Bronco formerly in service with the USAF.
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Bronco
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Bronco
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Aardvark
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Aardvark
Fort Worth Aviation Museum
Lone Star Flight Museum, Houston, TX
This stunning museum is located on the premises of the Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base. The installation is centered on a collection of mainly airworthy warbirds and classic planes.. It is really top quality, surely among the best displays of the kind in the Nation. Besides that, they offer a well-designed, recently-made, fresh presentation of the history of aviation in Texas, as well as didactic labs explaining the principles of flight through experiments and simulators. You can find their website here.
There are also meeting rooms and galleries for art exhibitions. Really a place to be for enthusiasts of ‘flying oldies’!
The collection is not huge, but it boasts a good number of notable aircraft still flying today. In the first hangar you can find many iconic designs from the Thirties and Forties. There are a North American T-6 Texan and two beautiful Stearman PT-17 Kaydet trainers.
Lone Star Flight Museum Texan
Lone Star Flight Museum Texan
Lone Star Flight Museum Stearman Kaydet
Lone Star Flight Museum Stearman Kaydet
Lone Star Flight Museum Stearman Kaydet
A centerpiece of the collection is an extraordinary Republic P-47 Thunderbolt – the fastest propeller driven aircraft ever – in a majestic colorway from WWII years.
Lone Star Flight Museum Thunderbolt
Lone Star Flight Museum Thunderbolt
Lone Star Flight Museum Thunderbolt
At the center of the hangar, much room is taken by an airworthy example of the mighty Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. Together with a few other models, this formed the backbone of the US bombing capacity during WWII. Stunningly restored, this aircraft can be booked for pleasure flights!
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Lone Star Flight Museum Flying Fortress
Further aircraft on display in this hangar are a Piper L-4H, its civil counterpart, the J-3 Cub, and a similarly looking Stinson OY-1 Sentinel in military colors.
Lone Star Flight Museum Piper Cub
Lone Star Flight Museum Piper Cub
Lone Star Flight Museum Stinson Sentinel
Lone Star Flight Museum Piper Cub
Lone Star Flight Museum Piper Cub
Lone Star Flight Museum Stinson Sentinel
Lone Star Flight Museum Stinson Sentinel
A true rarity is a stylish Beechcraft D-17 ‘Staggerwing’. This aircraft was conceived in the Thirties as one of the first ‘executive aircraft’, with good handling capabilities, and nice interiors to provide good comfort on board. Despite all efforts, visibility from the front windscreen is probably not very good…
Lone Star Flight Museum Staggerwing
Lone Star Flight Museum Staggerwing
Lone Star Flight Museum Staggerwing
A Grumman F-6F Hellcat, an authentic warbird from WWII, painted in the colors of the Navy, a Fairchild trainer and an ubiquitous general aviation Beechcraft Baron complete the exhibition in the first hangar.
Lone Star Flight Museum Hellcat
Lone Star Flight Museum Hellcat
Lone Star Flight Museum Hellcat
Lone Star Flight Museum Ryan
Lone Star Flight Museum Baron
The second hangar hosts both prop-driven and jet-driven aircraft, most of them airworthy or otherwise being restored. The most classic designs in this room are a North American B-25 Mitchell medium-range bomber, a Douglas DC-3, a Douglas SBD Dauntless and a Grumman TBM Avenger.
Interestingly, the Mitchell is the only in the world painted in the colors of the Doolittle Raiders. This very aircraft did not see action during WWII, but later being flown by the CIA on covert missions, it was involved in JFK’s failed attempt to invade Cuba, overflying the Bay of Pigs in the days of operations.
Lone Star Flight Museum Mitchell
Lone Star Flight Museum Mitchell
Lone Star Flight Museum Mitchell
Lone Star Flight Museum Mitchell
The DC-3 flew extensively with American Airlines and later TransTexas Airways – later to be ingested by Continental, hence the livery – and is still airworthy today. Both the SBD and TBM on display are from WWII days, and are still flying today after restoration work.
Lone Star Flight Museum DC-3
Lone Star Flight Museum DC-3
Lone Star Flight Museum DC-3
Lone Star Flight Museum DC-3
Lone Star Flight Museum DC-3
While possibly disappearing in front of its illustrious colleagues in this hangar, an honest Cessna T-41 Mescalero represents here the training branch of the armed forces. This is basically the military version of the C-172, probably the aircraft manufactured in the highest numbers in history, and a platform where pilots of all sorts spend part of their training still today. The colors are very nice, and this aircraft is the cheapest you can rent for a ride at the Lone Star Flight Museum.
Lone Star Flight Museum Mescalero
Lone Star Flight Museum Mescalero
Lone Star Flight Museum Mescalero
Lone Star Flight Museum Dauntless
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
Lone Star Flight Museum Dauntless
Lone Star Flight Museum Dauntless
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
Lone Star Flight Museum Avenger
In the same hangar you can find also (slightly) more modern aircraft. There are three jet-powered aircraft from the early Cold War period. One is a Lockheed T-33A trainer, a very successful aircraft sold in high numbers in the late Forties. More impressing is an authentic Soviet MiG-15, which spent its years in service with the Chinese Air Force and saw action in Korea, opposing the F-86A in the first jet vs. jet campaign in history.
Lone Star Flight Museum Shooting Star
Lone Star Flight Museum Shooting Star
Lone Star Flight Museum MiG-15
Lone Star Flight Museum MiG-15
A Polish-built MiG-17 in an incredible ‘Red Banner’ celebration colorway completes the trio.
Lone Star Flight Museum MiG-17
Lone Star Flight Museum MiG-17
Lone Star Flight Museum MiG-17
Close to the exit you can find a beautifully restored Douglas A-1D Skyraider. This aircraft is airworthy, and is an authentic veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam war, where it reportedly sustained extensive damage but was not shot down.
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Skyraider
Lone Star Flight Museum Cobra
There are also a Sikorsky helicopter used for commuting to oil platforms off the coast of Texas, and a Cobra attack helicopter.
Outside, as a gate guardian on one of the access roads leading to the base, you can spot a NASA Boeing 707 used for zero-gravity flights on behalf of Johnson Space Center.
Lone Star Flight Museum
Lone Star Flight Museum Clipper Painting
Lone Star Flight Museum 707 NASA
Lone Star Flight Museum 707 NASA
Lone Star Flight Museum NASA 707
USS Lexington, Corpus Christi, TX
‘Lady Lex’ – as it was affectionately called by its crews along its illustrious career – is an Essex class WWII aircraft carrier, and with 40 years of active service is by far the one that enjoyed the longest service life. Since the late Sixties it operated as a training platform, where many pilots of the Navy learned how to perform a carrier landing.
Today this majestic vessel is permanently moored on the bay of Corpus Christi, where it is home to a fascinating history museum covering her long operational history. The corresponding website is here.
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
Highlights of the visit are first of all the ship’s bridge, from where you can also profit from a vantage view of the flight deck and of the bay – and of the thunderstorms afflicting the area in mid-August, of course.
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
Similarly interesting are the lower deck where aircraft used to be stored. This is huge, and some historic aircraft can be found here as part of a number of small exhibitions.
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
The forward compartments recall the attack of Pearl Harbor in 1941, and display also some artifacts from the time, including pieces of the ill-fated battleship Arizona, and a banner belonging to the older CV-2 Lexington – CV-16 being the number of this vessel in Navy inventory.
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
An unusual topic is movies – some great scenes of ‘Pearl Harbor’ Hollywood drama starring Ben Affleck and Alec Baldwin were shot on USS Lexington, including an apparently genuine take-off of a B-25 from the flight deck! Other motion pictures partly shot on board Lexington are ‘Midway’ and the series ‘War and remembrance’.
Part of the quarters of high-ranking staff can be visited, including a canteen. These were typically used only when the ship was moored.
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
USS Lexington
Interestingly, it is possible to walk along the side decks of the ship, where anti-aircraft guns can be found and closely inspected.
