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Quonset Air Museum
MIG-17 on display at Quonset Air Museum, Rhode Island.jpg
MiG-17 on display at the Quonset Air Museum.
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Established 1992
Dissolved 2015
Location North Kingstown, Rhode Island
Type Aviation museum
Founder William E. Sheridan, Larry Webster

The Quonset Air Museum was a special place that used to show off amazing planes and space items. It was located in the Quonset Point Business Park in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.

This museum had a cool collection of things. It included different types of missiles, many aircraft (planes and helicopters), and over 5,000 smaller items related to flying. They also had a huge collection of old magazines, repair guides, photos, and special drawings called blueprints.

Some of the most interesting planes at the museum were very unique. One was the very last Curtiss XF15C. This plane was a special test model that used two different kinds of engines to fly! Another cool plane was a C-1A Trader with a special "twin tail" (two tail fins) and a big nose cone called a radome. This plane was used to test how a new electronic spy plane would fly. It was also the very last plane to fly from the Naval Air Station Quonset Point when it closed in 1974. The museum also had several planes from the Vietnam War and a famous Grumman F-14 Tomcat fighter jet. Most of the planes and smaller items were on loan from the U.S. Navy Heritage Center in Pensacola, Florida.

A Look Back: The Museum's Story

The Quonset Air Museum had an interesting history.

Finding a Lost Plane

On December 4, 1993, the museum found an old Grumman F6F Hellcat plane near Martha's Vineyard. This plane had been lost for a long time. The U.S. Navy said the museum took the plane without asking. After some discussion, they agreed that the museum could keep the plane on loan from the Navy. This meant the museum could show it off to visitors.

Changes and Challenges

In 2004, a large Antonov An-2 plane that was at the museum was given to the Antonov Foundation. The next year, in 2005, David H. Payne Sr. became the new president of the museum.

The museum was located in a very old building called Painting Hangar #488. This hangar was part of what used to be the Naval Air Station Quonset Point. It was a huge building, about 50,000 square feet! It was also special because it was one of only three hangars like it built during World War II.

The Museum's Closure

In March 2015, a very heavy snowfall caused part of the hangar's roof to collapse. Because of the damage, the building was declared unsafe. This meant the museum could no longer use it.

In January 2016, there were plans to open a new museum. The museum was supposed to move its items by April 2, but they got more time. Later, in June, the museum tried to get $4 million from the state to help build a new home, but this money did not come through. Finally, on December 16, 2016, it was announced that the Quonset Air Museum would not reopen. Many of the planes from its collection were moved to other museums. However, one very large plane, a P2V, was too big to move and had to be taken apart in May 2018.

Planes and Vehicles Once on Display

Here are some of the cool planes and vehicles that were once shown at the Quonset Air Museum:

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