I first heard about the museum while researching things to do in Santa
Rosa.
After the Charles Schulz Museum, it was an activity I was most looking
forward to doing.
We went there
on a Monday as we scheduled, but it turns out they are closed on Monday.
So we
tried the next day and thankfully, it was open. From the outside, the building
doesn't look like much, not impressive in the least – just a small building
with a small sign and a door. No paved parking, just dirt and gravel.
An old warrior
mans the front counter and accepts your admission of $10 (or in my case, $7 for
being a senior citizen with I.D.). He off-handedly waved away my I.D. with a
little grunt that I interpreted as "no need." Guess I look old and
retired.
Off to the
left is a room filled with glass cases filled with models of historic war
planes, black-and-white and faded color photographs, airport dioramas, and
plane parts. The walls are festooned with war posters and news articles, and
familiar war planes hang from the ceiling. Squint your eyes and you can almost
hear them screaming in attack dives on the enemy.
Then, you step
through a door and enter another world outside, where dozens of real aircraft
are parked in formation. It's an impressive display of wartime air power: prop
fighters, jet fighters, helicopters, bombers, spy planes – all real-life
versions of the model airplanes I used to put together when I was a
youngster.
 |
| F-105 Thunderbird |
 |
| Sikorsky H-34 |
Again, squint
your eyes and you can imagine yourself flying into battle, tracer bullets
streaking all around you in a deadly dogfight.
 |
| Grumman F-14A Tomcat |
 |
| Northrup T-38A Talon |
 |
| IIlyushin IL-14 |
 |
| F-SE Tiger II Tactical Fighter |
 |
| UH-1H Iroquois (Huey) |
 |
| McDonnell Douglas A-4E Skyhawk |
Step back
inside through a different door and you're in the gift shop, the old vet
sitting at the counter, wondering if you're going to buy anything, and thanking
you kindly when you step outside to return to the real world.
I would be
remiss if I didn't mention that everything in the exhibit room and the outside
display area is identified, accompanied by little descriptions of the
aircrafts' histories. Not all of the nonprofit group's planes are displayed.
There are quite a number parked in covered "garages" beyond the fence.
For
information on the museum's special events, you should visit their
website: http://pacificcoastairmuseum.org.
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