Chanute Air Museum

[Nathan]

C-97 getting scrapped is BS!! Cold war aircraft are getting cut up left and right anymore. In 30 years everyone will wonder why more weren't saved. Just like all the ww2 planes after the war!


sick, mad, depressed............

[JohnB]

Quite. The NMUSAF should be in the business of protecting aeroplanes, not thinking of excuses to scrap them.
These aircraft should be given to interested parties if the NMUSAF doesn't want/need them.

Failing that, they should be moved by the museum to storage.
They will be wanted eventually by somebody.
But once they're cut up and sent to China, they're not coming back.

[cooper9411]

The NMUSAF is actively searching for homes for aircraft on loan to people/organizations that can no longer maintain them. But any new parties wanting aircraft are responsible for the move of the aircraft as well as maintenance. Unfortunately all of them can't be saved.

[JohnB]

I know the way the NMUSAF works about finding new homes.
But it should (in an ideal world) take those back that don't find a home until someone does wants/needs them.
Eventually, someone will need them.

[mustangdriver]

Sure thing. Who wants to donate. Transporting, and storing these aircraft costs a ton of money. I agree saving them is important. I just don't see a line of museums waiting to get their hands on some of this stuff. I hate to see anything cut up, but with some airframes there seem to be more saved than people are willing to support. We talk about the B-17 situation. There are B-17's outdoors that we would like to see indoors. SO would NMUSAF. Where are all of the museums willing to come forward and house them?

[flightsimer]

The NMUSAF is actively searching for homes for aircraft on loan to people/organizations that can no longer maintain them. But any new parties wanting aircraft are responsible for the move of the aircraft as well as maintenance. Unfortunately all of them can't be saved.

Maybe they need to drop their requirement of having a full time paid employee and they would find multiple museums for a lot of aircraft...

[mustangdriver]

I think that having at least one full time employee as a requirement is a reasonable request.

[Django]

I am also surprised that the Mustang is not going to Dayton.

It's pretty sad that any of them are going to be scrapped.

[Nathan]

You need a full time person to take care of these airplane?? I don't quite understand.


Time the USAFM start giving these airplanes to people that will at least save them without all the red tape and requirements. It's so easy to solve all the USAFM problems a caveman can do it!

[mustangdriver]

It's pretty common sense.

[Spectre_I]

Many missing the main issue at hand. It's money, plain and simple. These aircraft do not fly. That means they have to be dissasembled, moved via truck or train, and reassembled. Depending on the size of the aircraft this can cost in excess off $200K just for the move! That is A LOT of money.

Most museums are not taxpayer funded. They are 501(c)3 charities. Most museums do not have a couple hundred grand laying around to pick up an airplane. I know we (Castle) would love a couple of 'em, however it is simply cost prohibitive. Money can be raised, but it takes months or years depending on the amount.

The NMUSAF will not foot the bill. Period. So, without a bunch of wealthy people who have nothing better to do with their money than move an airplane, museums are kinda stuck :/

[Warbirdnerd]

The date Chanute is closing has been moved up a month:
http://www.illinoishomepage.net/news/hi ... s-new-home

[Nathan]

I know lot of people find it hard to find an interest in cold war aircraft, not even the American Legion will recognize cold war vets. (Funny how the cold war is the only war we have won since ww2. I can introduce you to a ex B-47 pilot who has the same feelings). All these aircraft are cool in the sense of the machines they were designed into being. Also you can't pass up looking at something like a huge airplane like a C-97, B-47, and C-121 and not just feel the awesome power that aircraft once had when it graced the sky. I was born too late to see many of these types fly. The only chance I have is to see them on a static level and daydream about what they sounded liked and looked like when they were active. The more these aircraft are scrapped the less chance I get to experience that.

[4RG.I.'S]

I've been letting other things take priority but we're running thin on time! Hoping to make it this weekend, maybe head down Fri. night so I can have a relaxed Sat. in the museum. Anybody know of any other attractions, restaurants, etc. things to see in the area?

[JohnB]

(Funny how the cold war is the only war we have won since ww2. I can introduce you to a ex B-47 pilot who has the same feelings).

I didn't know being a ex-B-47 pilot made one an expert on history/foreign policy.
If all it takes is being a vet to prove/legitimize an opinion...well, I'm sure there are plenty with dissimilar views.
Some say that militarily, we won Vietnam...and Korea. And the coalition certainly won Gulf War I.

At any rate, you can argue the Cold War was the post WWII conflict that truly mattered.
If we lost that, it would have been as bad as, or worse than losing WWII.