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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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Stateside Training Experiences
Despite the Army's reluctance, thousands of blacks entered the AAF, and of the 157 EABs that saw duty in World War II, 48 were segregated black units. All of those units received uneven training, but the black units faced additional difficulties arising from segregation. These troops often had substandard living and recreational facilities, and
Sperry S-1 Bombsight
The Sperry S-1 precision bombsight was developed in the 1930s. It was designated as "standard" equipment in March 1941 and was used in some U.S. Army Air Forces bombers early in World War II; however, all contracts for production of the Sperry sight were ordered canceled in late 1943. Use of the better-known Norden M-1 bombsight continued
Strategic Bombing: Victory Through Air Power
To avoid another long and bloody war like World War I, the U.S. Army Air Forces' leaders in the 1930s planned to use strategic bombing to destroy the enemy's factories, power supplies and transportation facilities. Without weapons, the enemy could not fight, and the war would be ended quickly.During the 1930s, American military aviators adopted the
Shooting the Sun: Navigators
Following preflight training, navigation cadets went to flying school, where they spent from 15-20 weeks. Emphasis was placed on precision dead-reckoning navigation with basic proficiency in radio and celestial navigation. A navigation cadet logged approximately 100 hours in the air and about 500 hours in the classroom. Upon completion of training,
Slave Labor Built V-Weapons
Germany did not have enough skilled labor to produce as many V-weapons as quickly as it wanted. Therefore, the Nazis used skilled prisoners as forced labor to build V-1s and V-2s. Most of this work was done in a huge underground complex known as the Mittelwerk, which the Nazis set up after Allied bombing disrupted V-2 operations at Peenemunde. The
Shuttle Raids to Russia
Early in 1944, the U.S. persuaded Stalin to permit AAF heavy bombers to fly shuttle missions to Russia to bomb enemy targets in eastern Germany and the Balkans without having to fly back to England and Italy. The Soviets made three airfields available near Kiev and the U.S. devoted months preparing them to receive its planes.The first mission flew
Strategic Bombing Resumed
On June 20, the AAF's heavy bombers returned to strategic operations to destroy Germany's war production industries. Throughout the summer, they waged their campaign, halting only long enough during the latter part of July to join tactical air units in assisting the ground forces in breaking out of the Normandy beachhead. By the fall of 1944, enemy
Saga of B-17 PN9E
The most remarkable Arctic rescue of World War II involved B-17 PN9E, which was reported missing somewhere in southeastern Greenland on Nov. 9, 1942. An air search was launched and on Nov. 24, the plane finally was discovered by Col. Bernt Balchen 40 miles inland from the Greenland coast. Thus began a rescue operation that lasted nearly five
Steadfast to the End: 1st Lt. Raymond L. Knight
Note: This exhibit has temporarily been removed from display. In April 1945 1st Lt. Raymond Knight was a P-47 fighter-bomber pilot with the 350th Fighter Group based out of Piso, Italy. Knight had already completed more than 80 combat missions, received the Distinguished Flying Cross and five Air Medals, and been wounded twice since joining the
Softening Up for the Normandy Invasion
Before D-Day, 9th Air Force medium bombers and fighter-bombers attacked Luftwaffe (German air force) airfields, V-1 launching sites, coastal batteries, key bridges and railroad marshaling yards in the Normandy region. Ninth Air Force aircrews also flew many missions against the Pas de Calais to support the deception that the Allies intended to land