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Mask Policy:
In accordance with the updated guidance released by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Defense (DoD) and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force will require all visitors to wear face masks indoors effective July 30, 2021 until further notice.

Visitors ages three and up will be required to wear masks while indoors at the museum. This policy applies to all visitors, staff and volunteers regardless of vaccination status. Visitors may wear their own masks or a free paper mask will be provided. Cloth masks will also be available for purchase in the Museum Store.
Additional information available here.

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Reaction Motors XLR99 Rocket
The XLR99 powered the record-breaking X-15 on its fastest flights at nearly seven times the speed of sound. It was the first large, throttleable, restartable liquid propellant rocket engine to be used in a piloted vehicle. The engine was used only in the X-15 program, which rocketed humans to the edge of space. The X-15A-2 in this gallery has an
Reaction Motors XLR11 Rocket
The XLR11 was the first liquid-fuel rocket engine developed in the United States for use on airplanes, and it had a long career powering important research aircraft. An XLR11 engine powered the first airplane to break the speed of sound, the Bell X-1, in 1947, and also powered other X-1 models. XLR11s also flew in the X-24A and X-24B lifting bodies
Aerojet-General LR87 Liquid Rocket
The LR87 is a liquid-fueled rocket engine first used on Titan Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). LR87 variants also powered the first stages of Titan space boosters in the Gemini manned spaceflight program and various Titan space launch vehicles. Though this powerful engine is in reality two engines working together, it is considered a
Rocketdyne LR79
The LR79 rocket engine was a reliable workhorse for U.S. Air Force space and missile launches between 1958 and 1980. Variants of this liquid-fueled engine powered Jupiter and Thor Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles (IRBMs), Juno II satellite boosters, and Saturn I and IB rockets used in the Apollo, Skylab, and Apollo-Soyuz programs. The LR79 was
Teal Ruby
Experimental Early Warning SensorThis satellite, known as spacecraft P80-1, carried an experimental infrared telescope code named “Teal Ruby.” Designed to detect heat, Teal Ruby was meant to give early warning of enemy aircraft crossing the polar region toward the United States during the Cold War.The Teal Ruby telescope is inside the white
HEXAGON KH-9 Reconnaissance Satellite
HEXAGON KH-9 reconnaissance satellites were the largest and last U.S. intelligence satellites to return photographic film to earth. During the Cold War, 19 HEXAGON missions imaged 877 million square miles of the Earth’s surface between 1971-1986.HEXAGON’s main purpose was wide-area search. Analysts pored over HEXAGON’s photos of large areas, then
HEXAGON KH-9 Film Recovery Vehicle
HEXAGON KH-9 reconnaissance satellites featured four recovery vehicles or “buckets” that dropped back to earth from orbit carrying exposed reconnaissance camera film for processing. A mapping camera attached for some missions at the front of the satellite added a fifth, smaller bucket. U.S. Air Force aircraft snatched the parachuting buckets in
GAMBIT 3 KH-8 Reconnaissance Satellite
The GAMBIT 3 KH-8 photo reconnaissance satellite improved on the GAMBIT 1 KH-7 by providing much better image resolution. GAMBIT 3’s stereoscopic cameras focused on details in small target areas, while other satellites searched wide areas. GAMBIT 3 satellites completed 54 missions from 1966 to 1984.The most notable improvement from GAMBIT 1 to
GAMBIT 1 KH-7 Film Recovery Vehicle
GAMBIT reconnaissance satellites returned exposed film to earth in re-entry vehicles or “buckets” that separated from the satellite, fell through the atmosphere, and descended by parachute. US Air Force aircraft plucked the buckets from the sky at around 15,000 feet. This GAMBIT 1 return capsule’s parts are separated to show its inner
GAMBIT 1 KH-7 Reconnaissance Satellite
The GAMBIT 1 KH-7 satellite was the first American space reconnaissance system to consistently return high-resolution photographs. GAMBIT 1 vehicles flew from 1963-1967 and were the first satellites to feature stereo cameras. Their most significant targets included Soviet missile silos. Of 38 total missions in four years, 36 satellites achieved