Day 8 - Strategic Air Command

 

 

 

Strategic Air & Space Museum

The Strategic Air & Space Museum, located between Lincoln and Omaha near Interstate 80, utilizes over 300,000 square feet of exhibit, education, and event space to educate, inspire, and entertain its guests who come from Nebraska, across the country, and around the world.  The museum first opened in 1959 with the mission to commemorate the aircraft of the Strategic Air Command (SAC).  The museum became well-known by giving the public the opportunity to visit an impressive array of aircraft that helped SAC preserve the peace during the Cold War.

In a natural extension of the Omaha community’s civic pride and longstanding support for Offutt Air Force Base, community leaders began a campaign to develop a new state-of-the-art facility that would not only house SAC aircraft and artifacts, but also provide a venue for the restoration of aircraft, preservation and display of historical artifacts, and the education of future generations in the areas of history, technology, and science. The museum moved to its current location in 1998 upon completion of an impressive new indoor facility. While its name was officially changed to the Strategic Air & Space Museum in 2002 to reflect the institution’s evolving mission, the museum is still fondly called the SAC Museum by those who recall their family and school trips to visit the aircraft when they were parked at Offutt.

The museum has recently embarked on a multi-faceted effort to make full and best use of its facility.  In recognition and appreciation of its heritage as the keeper of the Strategic Air Command’s history, the museum is exploring ways to better display its SAC artifacts and more effectively tell the story of SAC’s efforts to preserve the peace during the Cold War.  Few, if any, museums are as well positioned to tell the story about this critical time in America’s history.

The SAC story, however, is about far more than the conflict that simmered between the US and the Soviet Union between the end of World War II and the dissolution of the Soviet regime.  The SAC story is also about scientific exploration, technological innovation, and a genuine commitment to the rigorous education and training of Americans to preserve our nation’s security and enhance its prosperity.  In this regard, the museum is recommitting itself to building on the significant scientific and technological contributions of those Americans who served in SAC or supported its mission. As part of this commitment to education, the museum has recently established a partnership with the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Office of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Education to provide cutting-edge educational opportunities for students, teachers, families, and adult learners.  Temporary exhibits, permanent exhibits, and a variety of special events will provide additional unique experiences for the museum’s members and visitors.
The Strategic Air & Space Museum is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The museum does not receive direct government funding and relies on the generosity of civic minded individuals and corporations to support its programs.

 

 

View of one of the hangers with aircraft on display

 

SAC Aircraft & Missiles

SR-71A "Blackbird"

 

Aircraft Type: Lockheed SR-71A, S/N 61-7964, “Blackbird”
Mission: High speed, high altitude strategic reconnaissance
Number built: 32
Power plant: Two Pratt & Whitney JT11D-20B continuous bleed, afterburning turbojets, 34,000 lbs. thrust
Weight: Empty 60,000 pounds, Maximum takeoff weight 170,000 pounds
Dimensions: Wingspan 55’7″, Length 107’5″, Height 18’6″
Performance: Exact maximum speed is still classified, Cruising speed 1,320 MPH, Service Ceiling 80,000+ feet, Range 3,000 miles
Significance of Type: The SR-71 Blackbird is still considered the world’s fastest aircraft, and still holds several speed and altitude records; record speed over a 15-mile course (2,193 MPH), maximum sustained height (85,069 feet), speed record from New York to London (one hour, 55 minutes), and London to Los Angeles (three hours, 47 minutes). An SR-71 crew consists of a pilot and a reconnaissance systems officer.
The development of the SR-71 by the USAF and the CIA was shrouded in secrecy, and came into service as a result of a decision by the CIA to acquire an aircraft with a higher service ceiling and a greater maximum speed than the U-2 aircraft. Constructed largely of titanium, it is coated with high-heat emissive black paint and used precious metals (such as gold) components to help retard the 1,100 F degree skin temperature of sustained supersonic flight.
Designed as a strategic reconnaissance aircraft, equipment included electronic intelligence collection and radar surveillance systems plus photographic equipment capable of surveying 100,000 square miles of the earth’s surface in an hour.
About our SR-71A: This SR-71 was delivered to the USAF on May 27, 1966, and has the third highest flight hours of the fleet. It was delivered to the Strategic Air & Space Museum on March 20, 1990.

A MAP SHOWING THE AIRCRAFT ON DISPLAY AT THE MUSEUM.

B-17G “Flying Fortress”

Aircraft Type: B-17P(DB), S/N 44-83559, Flying Fortress, Boeing (Douglas)

Mission: Heavy Bomber

Number Built : A total of 12,731 Flying Fortresses were produced in the period 1935-1945. Of this total, Boeing built 6,981, Douglas Aircraft built 3,000 and Vega (Lockheed) built 2,750.

Break Down by Model: 1 Boeing model 299, 13 Y1B-17s, 1 Y1B-17A, 39 B-17Bs, 38 B-17Cs, 42 B-17Ds, 512 B-17Es, 3,405 B-17Fs (2,300 Boeing, 605 Douglas and 500 Vega), and 6,430 B-17Gs (4,035 Boeing, 2395 Douglas and 2250 Vega). Contracts for 730 B-17Gs expired at the end of the war (600 Douglas and 130 Vega). Approximately 4,750 B-17s were lost on combat missions.

Power plant: Wright R-1820-97 Cyclone, 9-cylinder radial, air-cooled engines, 1,200 horsepower each.

Weight: 36,135 lbs. empty, 55,000 lbs. loaded, Maximum takeoff weight 72,100 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 103’9″, Length 74’4″, Height 19’1″.

Performance: Maximum speed 287 MPH at 25,000 feet, Cruising speed 182 MPH, Range 3,400 miles.

Significance of Type : On September 26, 1934 the United States Army Corps allocated $275,000 to Boeing to design and produce a four-engine bomber. Within eight months the Boeing Project 299 produced the first B-17 Flying Fortress.  The inaugural flight took place on July 25, 1935.  Exactly one month later the B-17 flew from California to Wright Field in Ohio, covering a distance of over 2,000 miles in nine hours (averaging 233 MPH).  The Army Air Corps officers called the plane “Boeing’s Aerial Battle cruiser.” Later, it was officially designated the XB-17.

The B-17 Flying Fortress effectively operated in all theaters of operation during World War II. In addition to the American Air Corps, the Royal Air Force used a number of XB-17s during WWII.  The German Luftwaffe even used captured XB-17s to drop spies into Britain. After World War II, the Army Air Corps distributed several B-17s to nations including Israel, Sweden, and a number of countries in South America. Later, the United States Air Force utilized retired B-17s as targets for remote controlled drone target planes. 

 

B-29TB “Superfortress”

  

Aircraft Type: B-29(TB), S/N 44-84076, Super Fortress, Boeing (Bell)

Mission: Heavy Bomber

Number Built: The Army Air Force accepted a grand total of 3,960 B-29s: 3,943 B-29s, 3 XB-29s (including the experimental plane which crashed before delivery), and 14 B-29 prototypes. Actually, B-29, B-29As, and B-29Bs made up the production total. The B-29 and B-29A were alike and barely differed from the B-29B. The B-model was about 2,000 pounds lighter than the A, had an extra 150 feet in service ceiling, and a slightly longer range.

Power plant: Four supercharged Wright R-3550-W57 Double Cyclone radial, air-cooled engines; 2,200 horsepower each.

Weight: Maximum 133,500 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 141’3″, length 99′, height 27’9″

Performance: Maximum speed 357 MPH, Cruising speed 220 MPH. Range 3,700 miles. Service Ceiling 33,600 feet.

Significance of Type : The Boeing B-29 Superfortress was the most advanced bomber aircraft to see operation service in World War II. The Army Air Force used it in low-level, night incendiary attacks against Japan. The aircraft also successfully aerial-mined the waters surrounding the Japanese mainland during WWII.  The Enola Gay, arguably the most famous B-29, dropped the world’s first nuclear bomb on Hiroshima.  Three days later, on August 9, 1945 another B-29 named Bockscar dropped a second atomic bomb on Nagasaki.

When SAC was established in 1946 it exclusively used B-29s. They were used in the conventional bombing role during the Korean War (1950-1953). B-29s flew their final bomber mission in 1954 , thereafter serving SAC in specialized roles such as reconnaissance and as tanker aircraft.

One of the primary elements of American victory in WWII was the use of heavy bombers. The Strategic Air and Space museum commemorates one of the most productive heavy bomber plants, the Martin Bomber Plant, at what is now Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska. It was here that both atomic bombers Enola Gay and Bockscar were manufactured.

Mascot art work on some aircraft



B-25N “Mitchell”

Aircraft Type: B-25N(JTB), S/N 44-30363, Mitchell, North American

Mission: Medium Bomber

Number Built: Nearly 11,000 were built between 1940 and 1945, of which the USAAF received 9,816. The break down is as follows: 24 B-25s, 40 B-25As, 120 B-25Bs, 1,619 B-25Cs, 2,290 B-25Ds, 405 B-25Gs, 1,000 B-25Hs and 4,318 B-25Js. Because so many Mitchells were supplied to other Air Forces, the USAAF inventory never exceeded 2,700 at any one time during the War.

Power plant: 2 Wright R-2600-9 Cyclone, 14-cylinder radial, air-cooled engines; 1,700 horsepower each.

Weight: Empty 21,100 lbs., Loaded 33,500 lbs., Maximum takeoff weight 35,000 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 67’7″, Length 52’11″, Height 15’9″.

Significance of Type: The B-25 Mitchell was the most adaptable of any medium bomber for the Allies during World War II. The basic design allowed it to be converted into a gunship with no major airframe redesign. A 75mm cannon could easily be mounted in a cradle beneath the pilot seat. This space was originally a crawl-way for the bombardier. Having proved to be more versatile than the Martin B-26 Marauder, the B-25 was given the role in the Pacific as an attack bomber and strafing aircraft. The B-25J remained first line equipment for several countries into the 1960s, including: Bolivia, Chile, Indonesia, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

 

Doolittle’s Tokyo Raiders

This exhibit celebrates the memory of lifelong Lincoln, NE native, Richard Joyce, who took part in the 1942 attack on Tokyo, led by Jimmy Doolittle. After the disastrous events of December 7, 1941, at Pearl Harbor, the United States military pushed for a retaliatory strike on Tokyo. Though many said it could not be done, Lt Col. Doolittle managed to devise a plan that took 16 Army Air Force B-25 bombers from the deck of the USS Hornet.

 

 FB-111A “Aardvark”

Please read below as this aircraft last served in Plattsburgh, NY

Aircraft Type: FB-111A, S/N 68-0267, General Dynamics

Mission: Medium Range Bomber

Number Built : The Air Force accepted 562 F-111s, consisting of 159 F-111As (18 of them RDT&E aircraft); 7 F-111Bs for the Navy (5 RDT&E and 2 productions); 24 F-111Cs; 96 F-111Ds; 94 F-111Es; 106 F-111Fs; and 76 FB-111As, all other models of the F-111s were reconfigured from production models.

Power plant: Two Pratt & Whitney TF-30-P7 afterburning turbofan engines, 20,350 lbs. thrust each.

Weight: Empty 50,000 lbs., Loaded 114,300 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 70′ (fully extended wings), 34′ (fully swept wings), Length 75’6″, Height 17’2″.

Performance: Maximum speed 1672 MPH (Mach 2.2), Cruising speed 571 MPH, Service ceiling 60,000 feet.

Significance of Type : The General Dynamics FB-111 was SAC’s medium-range bomber, capable of flying supersonic speeds at 200 feet above the ground and twice the speed of sound above 35,000 feet. It was the strategic/theater bomber version of the F-111 multi-purpose aircraft. It differs from the tactical strike variants by having different engines, a 3 1/2-ft extension on each wingtip, strengthened landing gear and fuselage, greater fuel capacity, and improved avionics. The FB-111 wing’s low minimum sweep angle of 16 degrees and a high maximum sweep angle of 72.5 degrees allow relatively low take-off, landing, and stall speeds as well as supersonic, low-altitude penetration flight.

About Our F-111A, S/N 68-0267 : SAC Museum’s F-111 was accepted by the USAF in 1970. Below are the unit assignments of this aircraft:

November 11, 1970- To 340th Bomb Group, Carswell AFB, Texas

January 21, 1971- To 509th Bomb Wing (Medium), Pease AFB, New Hampshire

March 3, 1988- To 380th Bomb Wing (Medium), Plattsburgh AFB, New York

July 10, 1991- Dropped from inventory by transfer to the Strategic Air & Space Museum. FB-111A, S/N 68-0267 was one of the last four FB-111s taking off from Plattsburgh AFB, New York on that date, thus ending their careers with SAC.

 

 

 

 While the F-111 had an actual ejection pod that ejected both seats as a single pod. 

 Many earlier aircraft had individual ejection seats. 

 

  

 

 

B-52B “Stratofortress”

This is the Bombay of the B-52B

 

The Boeing Company

Aircraft Type: B-52B(RB), S/N 52-8711, Stratofortress, Boeing

Mission: Heavy Bomber

Number Built : The Air Force purchased 744 B-52s- prototype, test, and reconnaissance configurations included. Precisely, the B-52 program counted 1 XB-52, 1 YB-52 (first flown on April 15, 1952, almost 6 months ahead of the experimental B-52), 3 B-52As (restricted to testing), 50 B-52Bs (27 of which could also be used for reconnaissance), 35 B/RB-52Cs, 170 B-52Ds, 100 B-52Es, 89 B-52Fs, 193 B-52Gs, and 102 B-52Hs. Six years of development preceded the beginning of production which, after a slow start around 1953, did not end until October 1962.

Power plant: Eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-29W turbojet engines, 10,900 lbs. thrust each.

Weight: Empty 175,000 lbs., Loaded 420,000 lbs., Maximum takeoff weight 420,000 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 185′, Length 152’9″, Height 48’3″.

Performance: Maximum speed 612 MPH at 40,000 feet, cruising speed 565 MPH, service ceiling 47,000 feet.

Significance of Type: The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress has been the principal bomber of the Strategic Air Command since the 1950s. In 1990, it was operated by 12 of SAC’s 18 bomb wings. The B-52 was designed to provide a high-altitude strategic bomber with intercontinental ranges. However, the range goals were not met during design, and the B-52 gross weight was “frozen” at about 480,000 lbs, with in-flight refueling to permit long-range missions.

The B-52 is capable of both conventional free-fall bomb delivery and air-to-ground missile launch missions. B-52s were used in conventional bombing roles in the Vietnam War. Although originally designed as a nuclear bomber, the existing B-52 force may be deployed in various conventional missions, including show of force (as in Desert Storm), precision strikes, and defense suppression. The plane’s capabilities also include sea surveillance, surface ship air interdiction with anti-ship missiles, and aerial mining.

 

MIG-21F “Fishbed-C”

Aircraft Type: Mikoyan MiG-21F, S/N 60-2105, “Fishbed-C”

Mission: Single seat, multi-role fighter

Number built: 15,000

Power plant: One Tumanski TDR Mk R-37F afterburning turbojet, 12,500 lbs. thrust

Weight: Empty 13,500 pounds, Maximum takeoff weight 16,700 pounds

Dimensions: Wingspan 23’6″‘, Length 51’8″, Height 12′

Performance: Maximum speed 1,373 MPH, Cruising speed 284 MPH, Service Ceiling 30,000 feet, Range 1,400 miles with 4,000 pounds of ordnance

Significance of Type: One of the most extensively built and widely used aircraft in the world, the MiG-21 has served in the former Soviet Union Air Forces and more than twenty associate countries. The first MiG-21 prototype flew for the first time on February 14, 1955. The MiG21 was first seen by Western observers at the 1956 Aviation Day in Tushio, USSR, where it received the NATO designation of “Fishbed-C”. Various models of the MiG-21 were developed that featured improved powerplants, upgraded avionics and/or better armaments.

About our MiG-21F: This Soviet-built aircraft was delivered to the Strategic Air & Space Museum in 1990, and bears the markings of the North Vietnamese Air Force.

This aircraft was actually flown to the US by an officer who defected to the US.

F-101B “Voodoo”

Aircraft Type: F-101B, S/N 59-0462, VooDoo, McDonnell

Mission: All weather fighter-interceptor

Number Built: The Air Force bought a grand total of 807 F-101s: 2 experimental models (first known as XF-88s), 77 F-101As, 47 F-101Cs, 35 RF-101As, 166 RF-101Cs, and 480 F-101B and F-101F interceptors.

Power plant: Two Pratt & Whitney J57-P-55 afterburning turbojet engines, 11,990 lbs. thrust- 14,990 in afterburner.

Weight: Loaded 39,900 lbs., Maximum takeoff weight 46,673 lbs.

Dimensions: Wingspan 39’8″, Length 67’5″, Height 18′.

Significance of Type: Designed to serve with the Strategic Air Command as a long-range escort and “penetration” fighter, the F-101 was developed subsequently for both tactical and air defense roles. At the time of its introduction into service, it was the heaviest single-seat fighter ever accepted by the USAF. McDonnell engineers began design studies of a penetration fighter in 1945, and detail design work started in June 1946. Two prototypes of this design were built as the XF-88 and XF-88A, flight trials started on October 20, 1948, but a change in tactical requirements and a shortage of funds led to cancellation of the project in 1950.

In 1951, a new USAF requirement for a long-range fighter to serve with SAC as a B-36 escort led to a revision of the original XF-88 design, which, with an additional fuselage bay for extra fuel, and J57 turbojets in place of J34s, and was designated as the F-101.

About Our F-101B, S/N 59-0462 : The Museum’s F-101 was accepted by the USAF on November 30, 1960. Below are the unit assignments of this aircraft:

December 12, 1960- 3204th M & S Group, Eglin AFB, Florida

July 29, 1968- To Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio

February, 1970- Dropped from inventory by transfer to the Strategic Air & Space Museum

While we were walking around the museum we noticed Link Flight Aviation Inc. 

  Joan had worked for Link Flight Simulation in 1979 thru 1986 when we lived outside of Binghamton, NY.

 

 

Ed Mauser

 a member of the

 "Band of Brothers"

Ed Mauser, a member of the "Band of Brothers" who fought in some of World War II's fiercest European battles, shunned the limelight and kept his service with the Army unit a secret, even from some of his family members.  As a condition to accepting a marriage proposal, Eds soon to be wife made him promise never to speak of the war.   She said she knew all she ever wanted to know about it.
His role came to light only after his brother-in-law got him a copy of the HBO miniseries "Band of Brothers," said Terry Zahn, who met Mauser during a 2009 Honor Flight trip to Washington, D.C., to see the World War II memorial.
Mauser told his family that some details in the miniseries, such as the locations of buildings, weren't quite what he remembered from being there in person.
Mauser died Friday in Omaha. He was 94 and had been fighting pancreatic cancer, said Zahn, president of the Midwest chapter of the 101st Airborne Division Assn. Mauser had been the oldest living member of Easy Company.
Born Dec. 18, 1916, in LaSalle, Ill., Mauser was drafted in 1942 and volunteered for the 101st Airborne Division.
He was assigned to Company E, 506th Regiment -- Easy Company -- which participated in the D-day invasion of France and the follow-up Operation Market Garden. The 101st also helped defend Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge.
Historian Stephen Ambrose interviewed Easy Company leader Dick Winters for the 1992 book "Band of Brothers," upon which the HBO miniseries was based. Winters died earlier this month at age 92. The miniseries followed Easy Company from its training in Georgia to the war's end in 1945.
Mauser was not among the soldiers portrayed in the miniseries.
Zahn said Mauser kept his service a secret, even from his relatives. After it became known, he reunited with some of his Army buddies and made a few public appearances. He preferred to stay out of the limelight.
"Don't call me a hero," Mauser told the Lincoln Journal Star in 2009. "I was just one of the boys. I did what I was told and let's leave it at that."

Associated Press January 22, 2011 |  5:52 pm

Items  Ed Mauser had secretly stored in a trunk now on display at the museum

 

 

The 25-foot tall by 33-foot wide flag was constructed from 686 squares of red and white fabric hand-painted by children from Millard Public Schools The Millard Public Schools is a school district in the southwest part of Omaha, Nebraska; the school district is named after the former city of Millard.  Each patriotic square depicts "What America means to me" as seen through the eyes of the children and seniors involved in the project. The art flag is currently on display at the Strategic Air and Space Museum.

 It's an inspirational collage of feelings and creativity that is truly remarkable.

After the events of 9-11, the art flag is a great reminder of what it means individually -- and collectively -- to be American.