Airline History Museum facts for kids
The museum hangar with the Lockheed Constellation on the ramp
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| Former name | National Airline History Museum |
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| Established | 1986 |
| Location | Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport, Kansas City, Missouri |
| Type | Aviation museum |
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The Airline History Museum is a cool place in Kansas City, Missouri, right at the Kansas City Downtown Airport. It's an aviation museum that teaches you all about the amazing history of airlines in the United States.
Contents
History of the Museum
The Airline History Museum started in 1986. It was founded by two airplane fans, Larry A. Brown and Dick McMahon. At first, it was called Save-A-Connie. Many other people who loved airplanes joined them, including people who worked for TWA.
The museum first thought about building a hangar for their Lockheed Constellation airplane. But in 2000, they made a deal to use Hangar 9 at Kansas City Downtown Airport.
In January 2011, the museum celebrated its 25th birthday. They announced a plan to meet high standards set by the American Alliance of Museums. This plan included changing their name, making a new website, and updating their exhibits.
In March 2011, the museum changed its name to the National Airline History Museum. This new name helped them get grants and funding from across the country. They also teamed up with Roasterie Coffee Shop in Kansas City. The coffee brand even featured the museum's DC-3 airplane on its products.
In 2013, the museum announced exciting plans to get its Lockheed Constellation flying again. In 2014, they got a Douglas DC-8 airplane. They tried to bring it to the museum, but they couldn't find a place to store it outside the hangar.
In 2016, the museum got a Boeing 727 from Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington. Sadly, they couldn't move it, so it was taken apart in 2021. That same year, the museum planned to work with the owner of a Northrop Delta to restore it. Around this time, the museum's name went back to the Airline History Museum.
In 2020, the museum got a Ryan PT-22 Recruit airplane. This plane once belonged to the famous actor Harrison Ford.
The museum faced challenges with its hangar in recent years. In 2023, they were locked out of their hangar. In 2024, the museum sold its Constellation airplane to actor John Travolta.
Amazing Aircraft Exhibits
The museum has several aircraft on display. Some of them can still fly, and others are being fixed up. There's also a cool model of a corporate plane.
Martin 4-0-4
Only 103 Martin 4-0-4 airplanes were ever built. TWA used 40 of these planes along the U.S. east coast. Another airline, Eastern Airlines, had the most 4-0-4s, with 60 planes flying along the eastern seaboard.
The museum's Martin 4-0-4 has not flown for many years. In 2011, experts checked the plane to see if it could fly again. They found that it was in good shape, and plans are being made to get it back in the air.
Douglas DC-3
The museum's DC-3 is currently being made ready to fly. One of its two engines has been fixed, and the other is still being rebuilt. The outside and inside of the plane are almost completely restored. New carpet and fixed seats have been put in.
This Douglas DC-3 was built in California in February 1941. It was delivered to Transcontinental and Western Airlines in Kansas City on March 4, 1941. Now, it's back in its original home city!
Lockheed Super "G" Constellation
The Lockheed Super "G" Constellation, also called the "Super-Connie," was the first Constellation to be fully restored to flying condition. It was given to Save-A-Connie in 1986. The museum worked hard to keep it in good shape, hoping to get it flying again.
This Constellation, nicknamed "Star of America," appeared in movies and TV shows. It was in the Arts and Entertainment documentary First Flights, narrated by Astronaut Neil Armstrong. It also appeared in the 1992 movie Voyager. The inside of the Connie was used in scenes for the 1995 movie Ace Ventura When Nature Calls, starring Jim Carrey. It was also featured in the 2004 movie The Aviator, directed by Martin Scorsese. That movie was about the early life of famous aviator Howard Hughes.
TWA's Corporate "Moonliner II" Replica
In 1956, TWA became a sponsor for Disneyland's TWA Moonliner attraction in Anaheim, CA. Howard Hughes then added a 22-foot-tall copy of Disney's Moonliner, called the TWA Moonliner II. It was placed on top of the TWA Corporate Headquarters' Building in Kansas City.
Disneyland's Moonliner was a model of what a TWA atomic-powered spaceship might look like in the future. When Hughes and Disney stopped working together in 1962, TWA sold the Moonliner II. It was bought by a company called SpaceCraft.
The Moonliner II moved to Concordia, Missouri, in 1970. It sat by Interstate 70 for over 25 years. In 1997, a lawyer from Columbia who collected Disney items bought the Moonliner II. He carefully restored it to look like it did in 1956, with its original red and white TWA colors. Today, it is on loan to the museum for everyone to see.
Lockheed L-1011 TriStar
In April 2009, the museum announced it was getting one of the last six working Lockheed L-1011 Tristar airplanes in the U.S. This plane was given to the museum by Paul Pristo.
The plane flew safely from Roswell, New Mexico, to Kansas City, Missouri, on January 30, 2010. This aircraft first flew in 1972 for TWA, the hometown airline. Because it is so big, it is parked outside the museum's hangar at Wheeler Airport. The plane is slowly being restored.
The engines were sold before the museum got the TriStar, so it currently sits without them. The museum hopes to find new engines so the plane can be complete. It might even fly again one day, but keeping it in flying condition takes a lot of time and money. You can easily see the TriStar from outside, but it's only open for special events.
Flight Simulators
The museum has some cool flight simulators.
Lockheed L-1011 TriStar Cockpit Trainer
The museum has a special trainer for the cockpit of the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar. This trainer originally belonged to Trans World Airlines.
General Purpose Flight Simulator
There is also a custom-built flight simulator in the main entrance area of the museum. It lets visitors experience what it's like to fly a plane.
See also
