NMUSAF not a top-ten museum?

old iron · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:14 am

TripAdvisor has recently published a list of top ten aviation museums (see http://www.kold.com/Global/story.asp?S=12928143). The list does not include the NMUSAF. List follows. Any thoughts?

1. National Air and Space Museum, Washington, DC

2. Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, New York, NY

3. Wright Brothers National Memorial, Kill Devil Hills, NC

4. National Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola, FL

5. Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA

6. Pima Air & Space Museum, Tucson, AZ

7. Boeing Aircraft Factory Tour, Everett, WA

8. Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, HI

9. Gravelly Point Park, Arlington, VA

10. Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum, McMinnville, OR

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:47 am

I'm sure the guys in Dayton are all broken up over what Trip Advisor has to say.

Ztex · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 9:59 am

Well...it seems to me that they have two non museums on the list...

Gravelly Point Park? no museum..not even a building..it's noted spot for plane spotters..

Boeing Plant tour...very cool but again not a Museum...

hmmm.

rreis · **Joined:** Tue Aug 04, 2009 4:42 pm **Posts:** 441

"top ten" in the US, right? just checking :twisted:

are the selection criteria public?

Django · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 10:25 am

That's ridiculous. Of course it is.

Django · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 10:40 am

It's from August, and it's listed as "attractions" not musuems, but Seriously they omitted NMUSAF??

http://multivu.prnewswire.com/mnr/tripadvisor/42925/

lmritger · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 11:07 am

Ok, I'll say it... that's retarded. Despite my personal feelings about how it's been run recently, the NMUSAF is EASILY one of the five top aviation museums in the US, if not the world, in terms of both quantity and quality of displays. It is an AMAZING place.

Lynn

Holedigger · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 11:50 am

Lists like this can come up with funny results. Variables like, WHO does the survey, WHO fills to the survey and WHERE, HOW the questions are phrased or asked, and the order questions are asked, are repeat "Votes" allowed (small entities can campaign to get votes WAY beyond the reality of their popularity). List sounds just a bit suspect to me! Was there an agenda by the folks who did the Survey? :shock:

k5083 · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 11:53 am

TripAdvisor's rankings are compiled from the feedback of users/travelers. In other words, ordinary vacationers. Not aviation/military buffs. So the places being ranked are ranked more as travel destinations than solely for their qualifications as air museums.

For that reason, note that most entries on the list are in or near places where someone would actually want to travel.

The NMUSAF is located in DAYTON, OHIO. Ordinary vacationers don't visit that area if they can help it. Two kinds of people go to NMUSAF: (1) locals, who wouldn't be ranking it on TripAdvisor; and (2) traveling aviation/military buffs, who are not numerous enough to make much of an impact on TripAdvisor's survey.

This survey says something valid about "top" aviation museums. It just doesn't use the same criteria that we here on the forum would. It is worth considering, when a museum claims to be educating the public about aviation history, whether the location of that museum means that the "public" being educated consists mainly of local folks and already-educated enthusiasts, versus a broader cross-section of people who happen to be traveling through the area. This is why the NASM is the greatest aviation museum showcase in the world.

August

daveymac82c · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 12:30 pm

I just gotta add my two cents about this.

With regards to top ten lists, etc.... Vancouver, BC... My home town seems to always get voted most liveable city in the world, or best city in the place to live. I live in Vancouver and I can tell you there are a lot of things that many other cities in the world do a heck of a lot better than Vancouver. Transportation being one, homelessness being another, garbage collection/recycling, the list goes on.

I don't know how they compile these lists, but in my mind Vancouver is a great city, but by (Very) far not the best. From an outsiders perspective I'm sure Vancouver looks absolutely wonderful... but if you live here it's a different story. Again, it's not an awful place to live, but there's no way it could be the best.

That being said, I don't think you should give too much weight to the TripAdvisor rankings. It could simply be the fact of an oversight, or that the survey didn't really tap into a group of people that knew what they were talking about.

It could also have to do with location. It seems every museum (attraction) on that list is in a vacation hot spot, and there are probably more Average Joes that went to those attractions because they were already touring the area, as compared to people taking a vacation to Dayton, and then just so happen to go to the NMUSAF. I have never been to the NMUSAF, nor have I ever been to Dayton. I don't mean any disrespect, but probably the only reason I would find myself in Ohio would be to visit the NMUSAF. Since not everyone is an airplane nut like us, I kind of get the feeling that most people wouldn't even bother visiting Dayton when they could instead visit San Francisco, or Seattle, or New York, or Pensacola, or Honolulu.

Perhaps someone could give me other reasons to visit Dayton, because I'm all for learning new things and I have a great respect and interest for anything historical. Perhaps I should plan a visit to Dayton sooner rather than later if there is indeed more to it than just the NMUSAF.

Sorry, it seems my two cents multiplied into a hand full of nickels.

Peace,

David

airknocker · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:06 pm

Maybe time to write a WIX Top Ten?

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:52 pm

August, the NASM is awesome. I would never argue with that. The greatest? Depends on what you are looking for.

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:53 pm

airknocker wrote:

Maybe time to write a WIX Top Ten?

I like it

rreis · **Joined:** Tue Aug 04, 2009 4:42 pm **Posts:** 441

mustangdriver wrote:

airknocker wrote:

Maybe time to write a WIX Top Ten?

I like it

worldwide? maybe not top ten but the WiiX worldguide guide to travel ?

daveymac82c · **Posted:** Thu Nov 11, 2010 2:09 pm

A WIX top 10 is a terrific idea. Perhaps a TOP 10 of the USA, and Canada, UK, Australia, etc, etc.

Maybe there could be a new function of WIX, perhaps a new site, listing museums by region, and maybe ranking them.

The only harm I see in ranking is the possibility of highlighting the already great museums, and not giving enough credit to the smaller and at times more unique museums.

Peace,

David

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NMUSAF not a top-ten museum?

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