Today started out very grey and cloudy with showers and hail off & on.
After a hailstorm accompanied by high winds, we set off for Pima Air & Space Museum.
www.pimaair.org
Among the displays was the Starr Bumble Bee, credited in the Guinness Book of World Records as the smallest aircraft ever flown, January 1984. The plane is 9' 4" long, 4' 1" high, with a wingspan of 6' 6". It's maximum speed was 180 mph and could fly 20 miles.
Marcel even tried flying a plane! Couldn't get off the ground, however.
In contrast, the Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird "spy plane" has a wingspan of 55' 7", is 107' 5" long and 16' 6" high. It's maximum speed was 2,193 mph (Mach 3+) with a range of 3,200 miles.
After touring planes in 3 hangars, we boarded a bus for the AMARG Tour (Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group), otherwise known as the 'Aircraft Boneyard'
There are acres of planes & parts - some planes will fly again, others are used for parts.
Next, we visited the Space Gallery, which houses a full-scale mock-up of the Apollo capsule. Apollos were flown by NASA from 1967 through 1972 when the project was cancelled. This mockup was utilized by Tom Hanks in the movie "Apollo 13".
The Gallery was a fascinating display of space & aviation history.
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