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

Guided tours of the 4th building, normally scheduled at 3:00 p.m. daily, are canceled through May 28.

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 June 5, 2025.

First Automatic Airplane Landing

The first automatic airplane landing occurred on Aug. 23, 1937. A Fokker C-14B took off from Wright Field and after its automatic equipment was switched on, it turned toward Patterson Field several miles away, gradually descended and landed using a ground radio system consisting of five transmitting beacons. This was a low-budget project and succeeded only because of the persistence of the few pioneers involved in adapting old equipment no longer needed for other projects, and in some instances, even buying materials with their own money.

Click here to return to the Strengthening the Air Corps Overview.