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

Fact Sheet Search

  • WWI Snapshot Camera

    Note: This item is currently in storage.This camera was used by Lt. Robert Rutherford Nelson, an American who enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I. Lt. Nelson only began flight school in January 1918, so neither he nor his "Salamander" unit saw combat.Donated by Mr. John W.

  • World War II Rudder Control Trainer

    Note: This item is currently in storage.This pilot testing equipment was used at the School of Aviation Medicine, Randolph Field, Texas. The candidate would attempt to hold an unbalanced fuselage pointed at a light target lamp in front of them in order to test motor skills.Transferred from the

  • Wind Generator

    Note: This item is currently in storage. This is a Brevette type generator that was used on early aircraft to furnish power for radio operation. It was wind-driven and was most commonly mounted externally on the aircraft landing gear strut.Click here to return to the Featured Accessions index.

  • Warrior Airmen

    Warrior Airmen play an active and essential role in combat operations on the ground in the Global War on Terror. Some, known as Battlefield Airmen, operate independently of air bases, providing specialized skills to enhance or execute air and space power. Others, known as Expeditionary Combat

  • Wall Panels from Southwest Asia

    These graffiti-covered wall panels came from the Air Terminal Operations Center (ATOC) at Al Udeid Air Base, about 25 miles west of Doha, Qatar. Newly arriving personnel and aircrews who passed who passed through Al Udeid in support of Operations Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom,

  • Willys Quarter-ton Jeep

    "[The] equipment ... among the most vital to our success in Africa and Europe were the bulldozer, the jeep, the 2 1/2 ton truck and the C-47 airplane. Curiously enough, none of these is designed for combat." - Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower The jeep, first used by the U.S. military during World War II,

  • Williams International F107-WR-101 Turbofan

    The F107-WR-101 is an advanced, two-shaft turbofan engine that powers the USAF AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missile. The engine's design emphasizes light weight and compact size because of the limited space in the ALCM. The F107-WR-101 uses a special high-density aviation turbine fuel that has more

  • W53 Thermonuclear Bomb

    Based upon the Mk-53 "hydrogen" bomb, the W53 was modified to be carried by the Titan II Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). With a yield in the megaton range, the W53 fit into a Mk-6 re-entry vehicle installed on top of the Titan II.This artifact is on loan courtesy of the National Museum of

  • Wild Weasels and Linebacker Operations: The War Ends

    Operations Linebacker and Linebacker II initiated the end of the Southeast Asia War. During those offensives, U.S. airpower stopped the North Vietnamese ground offensive and B-52s vigorously bombed previously untouched targets in North Vietnam. The Wild Weasels challenged North Vietnamese defenses

  • Wild Weasel Flight Gear

    A Wild Weasel crewman wore a hard helmet and an oxygen mask with an integrated microphone. A survival vest held a first aid kit, escape map, survival kit and other items useful should he be shot down or forced to eject. Over the waist and legs is a g-suit, which fills with air during sharp turns to