Cavanaugh Flight Museum facts for kids
| Established | 1993 |
|---|---|
| Location | 4572 Claire Chennault St Addison, Texas 75001 |
| Type | aviation museum |
| Visitors | 33,000 (2006) |
| Founder | Jim Cavanaugh |
| Public transit access | Dallas Area Rapid Transit bus route 341 |
The Cavanaugh Flight Museum was a special place that showed off amazing airplanes. It was an aviation museum located at Addison Airport in Addison, Texas. Sadly, the museum closed its doors for good on January 1, 2024.
Contents
What the Museum Was All About
The Cavanaugh Flight Museum had an important goal. It wanted to teach people about flying and the history of airplanes in America. The museum worked hard to fix up old planes. It also displayed many historic aircraft, some of which could still fly! They even had a collection of cool aviation artwork.
A Look Back at the Museum's History
The museum started with one person's passion for planes. Jim Cavanaugh, a businessman, began collecting aircraft. His first plane was a part-share in a 1939 Piper J-3 Cub, which he bought in 1980. His collection grew, and the museum officially opened in October 1993.
In late 2023, the museum announced it would close. This happened because the land it was on was needed for new airport buildings. The museum shared that its planes would move to North Texas Regional Airport in Denison, Texas. However, it was not clear if the public would be able to see the collection again.
Amazing Planes and Art at the Museum
The Cavanaugh Flight Museum had a fantastic art gallery. It featured aviation art from famous artists. These artists included Keith Ferris, Roy Grinnell, and Robert Taylor. Their paintings showed incredible scenes of planes in action.
The B-29 "FiFi" Project
One very special project at the museum involved a huge plane called FiFi. This was a B-29 Superfortress, a famous bomber from World War II. In 2008, the museum helped fund a big project to get FiFi's engines fixed. Because of this help, FiFi was able to fly again!
For a while, FiFi was based at the Cavanaugh Flight Museum. It was kept and maintained there for six months each year. Later, in 2013, FiFi moved to the Vintage Flying Museum in Fort Worth.
A Glimpse at the Aircraft Collection
The museum had a large collection of planes from different time periods. Here are some of the types of aircraft that were part of its collection:
World War I Aircraft
World War II Aircraft
| Manufacturer | Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| de Havilland | Tiger Moth | |
| Aeronca | L-3B | |
| Boeing-Stearman | N2S-4 Kaydet | |
| Boeing-Stearman | PT-13C Stearman Kaydet | |
| Curtiss | P-40N Warhawk | |
| Douglas | A-26C Invader | Hard to Get |
| Fairchild | PT-19A Cornell | |
| General Motors | FM-2 Wildcat | |
| General Motors | TBM-3E Avenger | |
| Goodyear | FG-1D Corsair | |
| Heinkel | CASA 2.111(He 111) | Spanish-built version of He 111. |
| Hispano | HA-1112-M1L | |
| North American | AT-6/SNJ Texan | |
| North American | B-25J Mitchell | How ‘Boot That! |
| North American | B-25H Mitchell | Barbie III |
| North American | P-51D Mustang | |
| Piper | L-4J | |
| Ryan | PT-22 Recruit | |
| Supermarine | Spitfire Mk. VIII | |
| Vultee | SNV-2/BT-13 Valiant | |
| Yak | Yak-3M |
Korean War Aircraft
| Manufacturer | Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beachcraft | T-34A Mentor | |
| Bell | OH-13D Sioux | |
| Douglas | A-1H Skyraider | |
| Douglas | EA-1E Skyraider | |
| Grumman | F9F-2B Panther | |
| Grumman | S2F-1 Tracker | |
| Lockheed | F-104A Starfighter | |
| Mikoyan Gurevich | MiG-15 UTI | |
| North American/Canadair | F-86 Sabre Mk. IV | |
| Panstwowe Zaklady Lotnicze (PZL) | TS-11 Iskra | |
| Sikorsky | UH-34D Seahorse |
Vietnam War Aircraft
| Manufacturer | Model | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bell | AH-1J Sea Cobra | |
| Bell | UH-1B Iroquois | |
| Cessna | T-41B Mescalero | |
| Hughes | OH-6A Cayuse | |
| LTV | A-7E Corsair II | |
| McDonnell-Douglas | F-4C Phantom II | |
| Mikoyan Gurevich | MiG-17F | |
| Mikoyan Gurevich | MiG-21US | |
| Republic | F-105F Thunderchief |
Civilian Aircraft
- Christen Eagle II
- Piper J-3 Cub
- Pitts Special
- Travel Air 4000
Learn More About Aviation Museums
- List of aerospace museums
