In support of an official event 

The Museum will be closed Sunday, May 25
In addition, the Fourth Hangar will be closed Saturday, May 24

Access to the Presidential Gallery will be limited from May 15 to June 5

Effective immediately, the William E. Boeing Presidential Gallery will have limited guest access due to scheduled event preparations. The only accessible exhibits during this time include: Douglas VC-54 Sacred Cow, Flying the President Exhibit, USAF Established Artifact.
We anticipate full gallery access will resume by 5 June 2025.

Fact Sheet Alphabetical List

Fact Sheet Search

  • The Eight Who Were Captured

    Following the Tokyo Raid, the crews of two planes remained unaccounted for. On Aug. 15, 1942, it was learned from the Swiss consulate general in Shanghai that the Japanese had eight American flyers at police headquarters in that city. On Oct. 19, 1942, the Japanese broadcast that they had tried two

  • Lt. Jack A. Sims Uniform Items

    Knapsack, knife and sheath, ammo clips with case for .45-cal Colt pistol, first aid kit, helmet and goggles, parachute "D" ring, Mae West life vest, canteen and A-2 flying jacket worn or carried by Lt. Jack A. Sims on the Tokyo Raid. Sims later wore the A-2 jacket during a combat tour in North

  • Doolittle Raid Crews

    Sixteen B-25s left the USS Hornet to participate in the Doolittle Raid. Click on the arrows next to the photos above to navigate through crew photos and names.Click here to return to the Doolittle Raid Overview.

  • America Hits Back: The Doolittle Tokyo Raiders

    In the spring of 1942, America's morale slumped from numerous Japanese successes, and the country desperately needed a victory. Capt. Francis S. Low, a U.S. Navy submariner, suggested an attack against the heart of Japan using U.S. Army Air Forces medium bombers flown from a U.S. Navy aircraft

  • Maj. Gen. Claire Chennault

    Claire Chennault led the famed Flying Tigers and the U.S. 14th Air Force against the Japanese in China and Burma during World War II. He was a charismatic airpower theorist and a controversial leader who at times disagreed with official doctrine and his superiors. Chennault learned to fly in the

  • 14th Air Force in China: From Volunteers to Regulars

    The great value of the American Volunteer Group (AVG or Flying Tigers) was psychological and diplomatic: Americans and Chinese hailed them as heroes during the early period of World War II when Japan had the upper hand. The Flying Tigers raised public hopes for eventual victory while Allied forces,

  • Corregidor Recaptured

    American forces landed on Mindoro on Dec. 15, 1944, and on Jan. 9, 1945, U.S. troops invaded Luzon. By this time, Allied airpower had gained aerial supremacy. Except for suicide attacks on ships by Kamikaze aircraft and other sporadic air attacks, little enemy opposition in the air was encountered

  • Return to the Philippines

    As a prelude to the long-anticipated campaign to retake the Philippines, AAF air power carried out maximum-range air strikes against petroleum facilities in the Netherlands East Indies. The Allies invaded the Palau Islands and Morotai to gain airfield facilities, and targets in the Philippines were

  • America's Top Two Aces

     The Pacific Theater of Operations produced the two highest scoring aces in American history, Maj. Richard I. Bong and Maj. Thomas B. McGuire Jr. Both men flew P-38 Lightnings in the Southwest Pacific, and each received the Medal of Honor in recognition of his courage and accomplishments. Maj.

  • Johnny Got a Zero

    Not many fliers have had a popular song written about them, but an exception was a soft-spoken USAAF enlisted man, John D. Foley. As a skilled typist, Foley was assigned to duty as a company clerk en route to the Southwest Pacific in December 1941. Eager for combat, he secured orders -- some rumored