Pacific Coast Air Museum facts for kids
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| Established | 1989 |
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| Location | Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport, Santa Rosa, California |
| Type | Aviation museum |
| Founder | Harrison Rued |
The Pacific Coast Air Museum is an exciting place for airplane lovers! Located at the Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport in Santa Rosa, California, the museum is home to more than 30 American military aircraft, including both propeller planes and jets.
Contents
Museum History
The museum was started in 1989 by a group of airplane enthusiasts. Sadly, the next year, three museum members died in a plane crash. Even with this loss, the museum kept growing.
Throughout the 1990s, it added many amazing aircraft to its collection. These included an F-14 Tomcat, an F-16N Fighting Falcon, and a UH-1H "Huey" helicopter. In 1999, the museum joined with another local history group to become even bigger.
A Famous F-15 Eagle
In 2010, the museum received a very special F-15 Eagle. This jet was one of the first fighter planes to fly over New York City during the September 11 attacks. The museum restored the plane so visitors can learn about its important role in American history.
The museum has plans to build a new, larger home at the airport to better display all its amazing aircraft.
Buildings and Sights
The main museum building was once a workshop for the Santa Rosa Army Airfield, where workers would cover airplane frames with fabric.
Next to the museum is a hangar that was used in the 1963 comedy movie, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. In a famous scene, a stunt pilot flew a Beech 18 plane right through the hangar. This was a difficult stunt because there was very little space between the plane's wings and the hangar walls. The hangar was built during World War II and is still used today.
Exhibits and Displays
Inside the museum, you can see detailed models and dioramas. A diorama is a 3D model that shows a scene. There are dioramas of what the local airfields looked like during World War II.
You can also see cool objects like a giant R-4360 engine, parts from a super-fast SR-71 spy plane, and the cockpits from an F-4N fighter and a DC-6 cargo plane.
Aircraft Collection
The museum has a large collection of aircraft on display.
Airplanes and Helicopters
- AgustaWestland AW109
- Beechcraft T-34B Mentor
- Bede BD-5J
- Bell UH-1H Iroquois
- Cessna T-37 Tweet
- Convair F-106A Delta Dart
- Douglas A-4E Skyhawk
- Douglas A-26C Invader
- Douglas C-118 Liftmaster
- General Dynamics F-16N Fighting Falcon
- Grumman A-6E Intruder
- Grumman C-1A Trader
- Grumman EA-6B Prowler
- Grumman F-14 Tomcat
- Grumman HU-16E Albatross
- Grumman S-2A Tracker
- Hawker Siddeley AV-8C Harrier
- Ilyushin Il-14
- Lockheed JetStar
- Lockheed T-33
- LTV A-7A Corsair II
- McDonnell F-4C Phantom II
- McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle
- McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornet
- North American F-86H Sabre
- North American RF-86F Sabre
- North American T-2C Buckeye
- North American T-28C Trojan
- Northrop F-5E Tiger II
- Northrop T-38 Talon
- Pitts S-1 Special
- Republic F-84F Thunderstreak
- Republic F-105F Thunderchief
- Sikorsky CH-34C Choctaw
- Sikorsky SH-60F Seahawk
- Stinson 108 Voyager
- Vought F-8C Crusader
Other Vehicles
- Lockheed D-21 (a high-speed drone)
Events and Programs
The museum hosts fun events for the community, like the "Wings and Wheels Car Show," where you can see classic cars alongside cool airplanes.
For students, the museum offers an aviation summer school. It also has a program for Boy Scouts to earn their aviation merit badge. A special team called the Flight Wing works to keep some of the museum's historic aircraft in flying condition.
