A Little Plane Pr0n…

…from the Hill Aerospace Museum. I spent over three hours at this fine aerospace museum on Hill AFB yesterday and took 63 photos during my visit. It was a great good day out!

While the HAM doesn’t compare…can’t compare…to our nation’s flagship aerospace museums, it is a well-done museum chock-full of well maintained and immaculately restored aircraft, aircraft power plants, uniforms, and other various and sundry artifacts of our country’s aerial military history. The museum is staffed with volunteer docents, most of which are older, retired USAF-types, but there are a few younger docents, as well. One of the better parts of my visit were the extended conversations I had with some of these old guys…it’s always fun to share war stories, bases, and places you’ve been with other guys from your era and guys from eras well before your time (in some cases). Informed, knowledgeable, and dedicated docents can make all the difference between a good museum and a great one. I’d put the Hill museum in the “great” category.

I only have two criticisms of the museum. First, they need larger facilities. The aircraft are crowded together in a very small space relative to their size. The number of aircraft on display is actually amazing…I’d love to see how they maneuvered some of the larger airframes, such as the B-17 and B-24, into place.

My second criticism is the lighting could be better. You’ll note the interior photo I’m posting today is quite dark, and subsequent photos I plan to post over the course of the next few days will be quite dark, as well.

All that said…the Hill Aerospace Museum is an excellent facility. If you’re an aviation buff and you happen to be in Salt Lake City area, it’s worth your time. More than worth your time!