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
 

Fact Sheet Alphabetical List

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  • Origins of the U-2

    In the early 1950s, Soviet military and economic developments were a mystery to the United States because the USSR was a secretive, closed society. Americans feared a rising threat from a nation they knew was developing long-range nuclear missiles and bombers. Before reconnaissance satellites were

  • Dragon Lady: The U-2 and Early Cold War Reconnaissance

    For more than 50 years, Lockheed Martin's U-2 has played a vital role in American strategic intelligence. The unique high-flying reconnaissance jet was designed early in the Cold War to overfly and photograph military activities in the Soviet Union and other communist nations. The U-2, nicknamed

  • RB-47H Shot Down

    In the summer of 1960, the Soviet Union remained on high alert for overflights following the shoot down in May 1960 of a U-2 flown by Francis Gary Powers of the CIA. On July 1, 1960, a Strategic Air Command (SAC) RB-47H crew was flying in international airspace over the Arctic, north of the USSR,

  • Y-4 Horizontal Periscopic Bombsight

    Unlike previous USAF medium bombers, the B-47 carried a combination bombing and navigation system operated by a bombardier-navigator. By automating many functions, this system reduced crew size by eliminating the need for a separate bombardier and navigator. The bombardment part of the system

  • MD-3 Ground Power Unit

    This unit was designed to provide 28-volt DC 1500 amp, 115/220-volt AC three-phase electrical power for B-47 aircraft for ground operation and start. It also can be used with other aircraft (such as the T-33) that have power requirements compatible with its output. It uses a Continental 180-hp

  • "Boston Camera"

    This camera, manufactured for the U.S. Air Force by Boston University in 1951, is the largest aerial camera ever built. Initially, it was installed in an RB-36D. Later it was used in a C-97 aircraft flying along the air corridor through communist East Germany to Berlin, but a 10,000-foot altitude

  • MHU-7/M Bomb Lift Trailer

    The MHU-7/M Bomb Lift Trailer is used to transport bombs from a storage site to an aircraft. Shown here are training versions of MK 28RI thermonuclear bombs secured to a "clip-in" assembly. The assembly is mounted on a cradle transported by the MHU-7/M. After being moved into position beside the

  • Tactical Air Command in the 1970s

    In the 1970s, Tactical Air Command (TAC) continued its modernization program with the addition of the F-15, F-16 and A-10. It was assigned operational control of all the USAF drones and remotely-piloted vehicles in 1976, and a year later received its first E-3A Airborne Warning and Control System

  • Tactical Air Command in the Mid-1960s

    In the mid-1960s, Tactical Air Command (TAC) experienced a period of rapid growth. As a result of the increasing importance of tactical air power, plus the impact of the Vietnam Conflict, it practically doubled in size and strength. In the late 1960s, the Composite Air Strike Force (CSAF) was

  • Tactical Air Command and the Berlin Crisis

    In the fall of 1961, Tactical Air Command was again called into action, this time to provide men and planes to Europe because of the Berlin Crisis. Numerous USAF Reserve and Air National Guard units were mobilized to increase TAC's combat strength, and in November TAC deployed more than 200