CAF Rocky Mountain Wing Museum facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
CAF Rocky Mountain Wing Museum

Established	1981
Location	780 Heritage Way Grand Junction, Colorado
Type	Aviation museum

The CAF Rocky Mountain Wing (RMW) Museum is part of a larger group called the Commemorative Air Force (CAF). This group is a non-profit organization that loves aviation. Their main goal is to remember and honor American military planes. They do this by flying old planes, showing them in museums, and sharing their stories.

You can find the museum at the Grand Junction Regional Airport in Colorado. Inside, you will see many cool items and displays. These exhibits tell stories from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

The museum also has two special airplanes that are part of the CAF's collection. The CAF has over 170 vintage "warbirds" (old military planes). The two planes at this museum are quite unique. One is a Grumman TBF Avenger, which was one of the largest single-engine planes used by the U.S. during World War II. The other is a Piper J-3 Grasshopper, which was one of the smallest.

You can get up close to these planes at the museum. Sometimes, you can even schedule a ride as a passenger! They also take these planes to airshows for people to see. The museum first opened in 1981, and its main building was finished in 2000.

Amazing Airplanes You Can See

The TBM Avenger Plane: N53503

The TBM Avenger Aircraft N53503 is a special plane. It is a Torpedo Bomber M model from World War II. This plane can still fly today! It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2017. The Avenger is about 40 feet (12 m) long. Its wingspan is 52 feet (16 m), but the wings can fold to 16 feet (4.9 m).

The museum has the original records for this TBM Avenger, which is called BuNo 53503. The U.S. Navy received it on June 1, 1945. It was first sent to the VT-75 Squadron, known as the "Fish Hawks." In 1947, it moved to the VT-82 Squadron, called the "Devil's Diplomats." It was also used for Naval Air Reserve training in California.

In 1950, the plane was loaned to the Royal Canadian Navy. At that time, it had only flown 546 hours. This TBM 53503 flew with the RCN 881 Squadron. It flew from the aircraft carrier HMCS Magnificent (CVL 21) and helped hunt for submarines.

After its military service ended in 1958, the TBM 53503 had a new job. From 1963 to 1970, it sprayed insecticide from the air. The CAF bought the plane in 1970. They painted it to look like "white 82" from the VT-10 squadron. This was a tri-color Navy design for the CV-10 Yorktown. However, it still did not have its special dorsal gun turret.

The plane flew with the CAF Ghost Squadron until 1981. During this time, it even appeared in a movie! You can see it in the first few minutes of the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, directed by Steven Spielberg.

From 1981 to 1985, the Avenger was stored outside in Arizona. It needed many repairs and maintenance. On January 17, 1985, the TBM 53503 was officially given to the CAF Rocky Mountain Wing.

By July 1989, the plane was ready to fly again! It now had its dorsal gun turret installed. It also had a new paint job. It was painted to look like a TBM from the VT-84 squadron, also known as the "Wolf Gang" squadron. This squadron flew from the USS Bunker Hill (CV-17). This squadron was the first to attack Tokyo on February 16 and 17, 1945. They painted the front of the plane (the cowling) bright yellow. This helped other planes easily see them as "friendly" when they returned from their missions.

The Piper J-3 Grasshopper

This amazing airplane was first called the Taylor Cub in 1930. Later, it became famous as the Piper J-3 Cub. It became the most popular training plane in the world. Over 14,000 civilian versions were built. Also, 5,703 were made for military use.

The military version was known as the "Grasshopper." The Army Air Corps called it the L-4. The Navy called it the NE-1. Besides being used for basic flight training, the Grasshopper had many other military jobs. It was used for scouting, connecting with other units, patrolling coastlines, and even helping transport injured people.

More Aviation Museums to Explore

• Colorado Aviation Historical Society in Denver, Colorado
• Peterson Air and Space Museum at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum at Pueblo Airport, Pueblo, Colorado
• Spirit of Flight Center in Lafayette, Colorado
• Vintage Aero Flying Museum at Platte Valley Airpark, Hudson, Colorado
• Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum at the Old Lowry Air Force Base Campus, Denver, Colorado