Warbird Information Exchange

For those of you lucky enough to be able to volunteer at air museums, just how much access do you have to the aircraft either displayed or in restoration? ... I'm not talking actual work on the restorations or maintaining the exhibits, I guess I'm asking, can you actually climb on the aircraft and access the cockpits? etc ... are there limitations to what you can and cannot do? .... for those of you who volunteer at museums where the aircraft fly, without being a pilot, are you able to warm up and possibly taxi aircraft? ... are you assigned a particular aircraft that you are the sole maintainer of such things as washing, cleaning and basic maintainance tasks?

NMUSAF comes to mind

At the NMUSAF we have a company that does nothing but cleans the exterior of the aircraft every day. They rotate which aircraft they hit daily. The NMUSAF does have open cockpit weekends every once in a while for the volunteers. THey just had one a few weeks ago. Oher than that, the only time we get in the aircraft is special occassions. Now we do have great access to going over the barriers and getting great pics that most people don't get. If a veteran comes to the NMUSAf that flew our aircraft or something of that nature, and it is possible, we try to get them in the aircraft, we just ask that they call first so things are set up. At the Air Zoo, it seems to be a little more laid back, but my volunteer time has nt started there yet. Now at Air Heritage (flying museum) we chose a crew we wanted to be on. That aircraft was your primary duty everyday, but that is not saying that you would not help on other things. I was on the C-123 crew at Air Heritage, and then was a crew member on the L-21.

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Chris Henry
EAA Aviation Museum Director

Hi mustangdriver, I was expecting you ... , does NMUSAF fire up some of their aircraft? Just to keep things working?, or are all the aircraft strictly set up for non-flyable status?

At Lone Star in Galveston how far and how much you get to do is pretty much up to you. Anyone showing a true interest and willingness to do whatever jobs are necessary ( and not just the fun ones) can usually end up getting a chance to fly to a show on one of the aircraft. In addition you can be actively involved in the maintenance and restoration of the aircraft under the supervision of the staff mechanics. If that is not your cup of tea than you are always welcome in the curatorial department.
They also have a plane captain program in which you can be assigned to a specific aircraft and are responsible for keeping it looking good (IE - clean the oil after it has been running).

Personally I started as a volunteer about 8 years ago with no hands on experience and the only goal to sit in the cockpit of something. Well by putting in a little hard work (which was fun at the same time) and being patient I was fortunate enough to work my way up to a Crew Chief position on Thunderbird as well as Ramp Boss (which Elroy has taken over and done a great job since I left Texas) for the annual shows.

Of course with the stakes invloved and the rarity of some of the aircraft no one is given immdediate and unlimited access to things, but over time as you prove yourself (a lot of folks come in thinking they are going to get an immediate ride or a chance to fly in something) your oppurtunitys increase.

As far as taxiing and flying - that is resereved for the pilots with the appropriate FAA type ratings - no compromise there for safety and legal reasons.

Hope this helps.

Steve S
"Keep Em Flying"

Many of the aircraft that we have were flown in to the museum, but if you see them on display, then they have been preserved, and can not be just pushed outside and ran. The tires are filled with a preservative, so are the fuel, oil, and other lines. The engines are sealed, and the tanks are steamed dry. Alot of this has to do with preservation, and some of it has to do with fire safety in the museum.

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Chris Henry
EAA Aviation Museum Director

Now that's interesting, so does this mean that the particular aircraft in question could and would never fly again?

Shoo Shoo babay have this procedure as well?

Steve S knows from what he talks....Like the U.S. Army slogan says "You can be all you can be" which is true, at least with Lone Star...You just need to put in the effort. I've enjoyed the fruits of my labors albeit not as much as Steve's but none the less I've always felt you receive more than you volunteer for...I just wish I could contribute more...Tom

Yankee is much the same. If you're willing to put in the effort, you can do just about anything you are capable of doing. I started just futzing with the computer stuff a couple years ago, and have been able to earn the trust and (hopefully) respect of people in other parts of the museum, which in turn has afforded me tons of other interesting opportunities.

I've been aircrew on all three of our major flyable aircraft (in one season no less), I've been able to assist in some maintenance operations, either as a glorified flashlight holder up to helping remount the prop dome on the B-25 (Man those things are heavy). I've also learned how to handle flex booking for our B-17 while on the road. Not to mention I'm probably the only IT guy in the world who's familiar with tow bar & tug operations.

Effort is one thing, being able to work with people is another. Being the "kid" in some of those situations has probably made me more likely to bite my tongue and let things slide. I can definitely see how some guys would get burned by the way longer tenured volunteers act in different situations.

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Phil K.
Yankee Air Museum
Systems Admin / Ramp Crew / Professional Photo Ruiner

Yeas, Shoo Shoo baby had this done as well. If Shoo Shoo would ever fly again, it would take a good bit of work. I don't think we are going to see that anytime soon. Besides, there has been no official word on SSB leaving the museum from the NMUSAF.

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Chris Henry
EAA Aviation Museum Director

I'm not sure about most of you, but I had the great fortune last year at the POF airshow in Chino CA to sit in a Hellcat, Corsair and P-38 cockpit .... for a price of course, (not complaining) ... but I could have sat there for hours by myself just looking at the instruments and daydreaming of flying these planes. I kick myself for not pursuing some sort of a plan to fly these type of airplanes long ago. I think I'm too old now to even think of the idea of training, costs, etc, involved in flying high performance warbirds. Which leads to the question:

Could someone with a moderate amount of private pilot flight time in Cessna's and a small amount of time in taildraggers .. Globe Swift. learn to fly high performance warbirds? ... In other words the REAL question is .... Is there a cut off age for beginning the process of flight training in these type aircraft? .... This is all assuming you have the financial resources and someone with the proper aircraft to train you. If you were in your 50's would the idea be unreasonable? ... I believe these aircraft were designed with young pilots in mind, they seem to be a lot of work in your hands to fly.

Yankee is a wonderful place to be if you want to be able to do pretty much whatever you feel like. As for getting to drool and fondle the airplanes, as long as no one is looking go for it. I love going out there to volunteer and screw off on Saturdays. Good fun is had by all. Soon the first ever flying M5 Bomb trailer will finish its extensive restoration! Ok, it won't fly but, It will be one of the nicest around thats for sure.

Kyle

Most CAF Wings are the same as described for LSFM and other "flying" museums. The more involved you want to be, the more involved you can be. At the DFW wing at least, the more you help out, the more fun things you get to do. Believe me, I never thought I'd have fun cleaning all the soot and oil from under the R4D last year, but I did. I've had fun doing all the little stuff from mowing the acre or so of grass to sweeping the floor to taking out the trash, and finally getting to the "glamorous" stuff of flying to the airshows and working on the planes.

What an interesting post. This is one thread that could really stay alive forever…

At Planes of Fame our volunteers have various responsibilities. We have a group of people who are responsible for aircraft detailing (aka cleaning the planes), our docent group, the motor pool, and of course all the special projects.
We do not encourage our volunteers to climb in or on the aircraft (static or flying) without a specific reason. And for the airworthy planes, we strongly urge our volunteers to ask permission before climbing on the planes.
Those people who do climb on the planes or sit in the cockpit have very specific tasks they are responsible for that require them to be in/on the planes. As a general rule though, our volunteers stay on the ground.
As for the flying aircraft, we have specific crew members/volunteers that fire up, taxi and fly our aircraft. If you're not on that list, don't expect to perform these functions!
We have a relatively new program we've launched that allows a volunteer to be a 'crew chief' on a particular plane. This typically starts with our aircraft detailing program so that a volunteer can be trained on proper cleaning and maintenance. Once they've been trained on static planes, they move on to airworthy aircraft (if approved), and finally, have the opportunity to become a 'crew chief'
If you have additional questions about our volunteer programs, please feel free to PM me.
Cindy
POF Volunteer - Aircraft detailing trainer/lead

Our volunteers usually stay out for a week or two get fly between cities, work the PX, and gate. Wiping oil is also part of the duty. It is truely a hands on experience not for the weak at heart ;P

JimH