The Membership Newsletter for The Military Aviation Museum August 2019

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Bell P-39 ‘Airacobra’ 2

Fieseler Fi 156 ‘Storch’ 3

New Museum Staff, Part I 3

Thomas-Morse S-4 ‘Scout’ 4

Expanded Summer Camp 5

New Museum Staff, Part II 5

Warbirds Recap 7

Summer of Flight Wrap-Up 7

Flying Proms in Review 8

All American Air Show 8

Military Aviation Museum www.MilitaryAviationMuseum.org

Virginia Beach Airport www.VBairport.com

Fighter Factory www.FighterFactory.com

Biplanes and Brewswww.BiplanesandBrews.com

Brewing Passion for History, One Flight at a Time

Experience this unique WWI air show spectacle showcasing the Military Aviation Museum’s expansive WWI aircraft collection. Watch the skies with your family as historic biplanes and triplanes soar overhead with live vintage musical performances filling the air. For adults, sample the many craft beers from across the state and region from some of Virginia’s finest local breweries. You can even experience the thrill of flight yourself, with rides offered on the museum’s two open cockpit biplanes.

Vintage WWI air show, live music and entertainment, free on-site parking, food trucks, re-enactors and more await you at Biplanes & Brews. q

www.BIPLANESANDBREWS.com

Join us October 5th - 6th

Get Your Tickets

PAGE 2 VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3

Returning to American soil for the first time in almost 78 years is the newest aircraft for the museum, a Bell P-39 in the livery as 42-20341, a Bell P-39Q ‘Airacobra’. It has been under restoration for many years. The restoration to airworthiness first began at the late Murray Griffith’s Precision Aerospace workshop in Wangaratta, Australia back in the early 2000s. A report stated that at that time the airframe was thought to have been a “Q” model that served in Russia and this is where it received the paint with the serial number (s/n) 42-20341. This paint scheme probably created the confusion over its actual identity for many years.

Following Murray Griffith’s death in May 2015, the project moved on to Pioneer Aero Ltd. It turns out that this airframe was actually a Bell P-39F-1-BE, 41-7215 (msn 15-554), which was flown by 36th Fighter

Squadron, 8th Fighter Group, US Army Air Force (USAAF). On the 1st of May 1942, it was being flown by Lieutenant Walter Harvey and was one of a flight of six that crash landed in Australia.

Now that all of the actual history of the aircraft has been mapped out, with a data plate to confirm it, it is indeed an F model. Even though the true history is now known, its livery will remain as P-39Q, 42-20341. The aircraft’s first post-restoration flight was on the afternoon of the 26th of February 2019. Frank Parker took the fighter up for a 14 minutes flight. After a few following check flights, it was released to be shipped to the United States. It now resides in our Army hangar. It is reported to be one of only three airworthy P-39s in the world. q

The Bell P-39Q-5-BE ‘Airacobra’ is back in America

New Arrivals

Top: Bell P-39F Airacobra fuselage emerging from the trailer; Above: Airacobra in the hangar ready for flight

"Returning to American soil for the first time in almost 78 years is the newest aircraft for the museum, a Bell P-39 in the livery as 42-20341, a

Bell P-39Q ‘Airacobra’."

Compiled By Felix Usis

Top: Fieseler Fi-156 Storch; Middle: Storch fuselage emerging from its shipping container; Bottom: Storch wings being unloaded from the trailer

VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3 PAGE 3

Just days before this year’s Warbirds Over the Beach Air Show, a surprise package arrived. A Fieseler Fi 156 ‘Storch’ suddenly appeared in a box.

In 1935, the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM), Reich Aviation Ministry issued a request for a new Luftwaffe aircraft suitable for liaison, army co-operation (Forward Air Control), and medical evacuation. To meet this request, Fieseler designed the Fi-156 Storch (Stork). The first Storch prototype flew in 24 May 1936 and was accepted for use, with the first production aircraft going into service in mid-1937.

The Storch achieved incredible short take-off and landing (STOL) performance by using a fixed slat over the leading edge of the wing and full length slotted camber-changing flaps along the trailing edge. In a light breeze, the Storch could take off in just 200 feet and land in about 66 feet.

In flight, the long main landing gear hung down, giving the aircraft the appearance of a very long-legged, big-winged bird, hence its nickname, Storch. Because of the unique flight qualities of the Fieseler Storch, this aircraft was found on every front throughout the European and North African theaters of operation in the Second World War.

In April 1942, the French company, Morane-Saulnier, now operating under German control, began to manufacture a number of German aircraft types. The Morane-Saulnier plant at Puteaux, in the suburbs of Paris, France, was directed to build the Storch. In October 1943, the Fieseler Werke in Kassel, Germany started producing the Folke Wulf FW-190 and production of all Storch types were shifted to France. At the same time, production was commenced at Leichtbau Budweis in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia (better known as Czechoslovakia). Leichtbau Budweis built one Storch in 1943 and 72 the following year, before production was transferred to another Czech firm, Benes-Mraz in Chozen, where it was built under the name K-65 Cap. Some 141 aircraft were built before the end of the Second World War, and a total of 925 aircraft were built before the end of the production by Morane-Saulnier in 1965. q

The Fieseler Fi 156 ‘Storch’ has Landed at the Museum Compiled By Felix Usis

If you haven’t been to the museum lately let’s update you on the latest changes with our staff.

First, an update on the Director’s position… it has been filled!! Current Director Jarod Hoogland will stay with the museum and work with staff and volunteers to continue expanding the museum’s projects, programs and visitation.

Please welcome our new Education Coordinator, Ms. Abigail “Abby” Fulton, who recently arrived from Yuma Arizona. She spent the last 4 years teaching a Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM) based curriculum at the Crane School Dist. Abby arrived just in time to help conduct our first session of the Warbirds Aviation Summer Camp, and the newest addition to our education curriculum, Ace Drone Camp. Abby will be expanding our education outreach, field trip experiences, educational exhibits, summer camps and all things education. Her teaching expertise has already had an impact here and her infectious smile around the kids and staff has made her a welcome addition to the museum.

New Things are Happening at the Museum, Part 1

Director Jarod Hoogland with Volunteer Joe King Abby Fulton works with a camper on his drone skills

PAGE 4 VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3

When the United States declared war on Germany in April 1917, the US Army lacked a practical scout plane to span the gap between primary trainers, the Curtiss JN-4 and front-line fighters like the Sopwith, Spad, and Nieuports. That deficiency and the need for a practical American-made fighter served as the primary motivation for the development and fast-tracked production of the Thomas-Morse S-4 Scout. The Scout was designed to fill the void. The Scout was the standard single-seat advanced-trainer used by the US Air Service (USAS) during the Great War (1914-1918). Dubbed the "Tommy" by pilots who flew it, the aircraft became the favorite single-seat training airplane produced in the U.S. during World War I.

The museum’s Thomas-Morse S-4C was likely built in early 1918 with plate number 481. It has been restored to its original form as an S-4C pursuit trainer with an 80 horsepower Le Rhône 9-C 9-cylinder rotary engine. It is now in an airworthy condition with a tail number of N38663. It has been painted in what is believed to be its original colors as USAS 38663. Its flight history is still being researched. When it was declared surplus at Rockwell Field, in San Diego, it had only 29 hours and 32 minutes of flight time. According to previous owner Roger Freeman, this “Tommy” was first acquired by his father, Ernest M. Freeman and others. They began restoration about 1955, finishing it 17 years later. “All the Tommy stuff he had was passed on to me upon his [Ernest’s] death, and I was able to piece together this complete original airframe from the parts he had left over," said Freeman. q

Thomas-Morse S-4 ‘Scout’ is Ready to Fly at the WWI Air Show

Above: A close up of the Thomas-Morse 'Scout' by artist Terry Jones. Get your copy of the painting at our Biplanes

and Brews Air Show; Left: The Thomas-Morse 'Scout' hanging out in the museum's

WWI Hangar

Compiled By Felix Usis

VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3 PAGE 5

Top: Abby Fulton works with campers on their drone programming; Left: Flight Nurse Denise shows off

Nightingale medevac helo; Above: Future B-25 Pilot

The 8th year of the youth summer camp has been dramatically expanded with new, as well as traditional, classes. This year’s camp, for both boys and girls, featured three separate focus topics conducted among one of the largest private collections of flying vintage and reproduction aircraft in the world.

In the first session of camp held in June, campers explored the science of flight by learning to code and fly their very own drone! Twenty-one campers learned about the forces of flight and the basics of block coding to program their drones to fly in specific patterns and through obstacle courses. The week ended with a programmed air show created by the campers.

Guest pilots visited to demonstrate real world applications of drone technology to the classes. The campers learned about how drones help sell houses in the real estate market. They saw how drones help protect members of the armed forces while on patrol in hostile areas. Virginia Beach Fire Department brought their drone to show the kids how cameras attached to larger drones can help direct fire-fighting efforts on structure fires, forest fires and large multi-story structures. They demonstrated how infrared camera settings can see hot spots behind walls and doors and how people can be found in rooms through thick smoke with the use of various camera features. The firefighter took the kids outside and flew his 4 ft. drone, skillfully maneuvering around the trees and water tower.

By the end of that week, we had some very talented drone pilots that could maneuver around the obstacle course, flip drones and land on a spot.

July’s camp was a twist on our previous year’s single camp and focused on pilot skills. The campers were introduced to aviation and piloting through progressive flight simulators; they began by learning how to fly gliders and ended the week by planning and flying a flight originating here at the Virginia Beach Airport. Campers enjoyed the opportunity to fly various planes from our collection on the simulator!

Campers had the opportunity to learn about the principles of flight and the history of aviation through exploring the hangars, spending time in the cockpits of some of our warbirds, building and helping launch huge gliders, and learning about careers in aviation. They listened to guests speaks about various piloting opportunities such as military pilots, airline pilots, corporate pilots, general aviation and sport piloting, soaring and professional piloting in the fields of law enforcement, medical and news gathering.

A highlight of the week was the morning spent with the Experimental Aviation Association. As part of the EAA’s Young Eagles program, campers were able to take a flight (and in some cases, the controls!) in a general aviation aircraft alongside a pilot. q

Expanded Warbirds Summer Camp

With the rapid expansion of summer camp programming this year, the museum welcomed longtime volunteer Stan Bialas as a seasonal Summer Camp Coordinator for 2019. With more than double the number of campers, nearly 80 children learned about and experienced piloting, drones and aircraft handling.

The Gift Shop has added two new part-time staff to help during the summer tourist bustle. Say “hi” to Donna and Jessica the next time you stop in. Donna is a full time grandmother and has lived in the area for many years. Jessica is a full-time student studying accounting. Both look forward to helping you at either the admissions counter or shopping for that special gift in the store.

The Events team added another member when our Volunteer Sean Jolly joined the staff helping out on the Events Support Staff. Sean is an Eagle Scout and rising Senior at Cox High School.

Mitchell Welch, once a longtime volunteer and the Events Coordinator for the last several years, has been promoted to Director of Operations. As the museum rapidly expands, this role will serve to facilitate growing programs, projects and events.

The Military Aviation Museum continues to grow at an ever accelerating pace, and there’s lots of new things for visitors to experience on our campus. The coming year holds more excitement, with new professional staff, exhibits and programs on the horizon. Stay tuned for all the exciting new changes!

New Things are Happening at the Museum, Part 2

Stan Bialas greets the pilots from WAVY News Chopper 10 during Warbirds Summer Camp in July

Mitchell Welch introduces the guest speaker at a recent Summer of Flight

It was a beautiful weekend for Warbirds Over The Beach in 2019, with a crowd of nearly 4,000 out to see the Military Aviation Museum’s historic WWII aircraft collection. The great weather brought lots of flying, with the majority of the museum’s aircraft fleet taking to the skies in front of an awestruck crowd. One of the newest features of the show isn’t something you’d normally think of, but resulted in an incredible view. While the FAA designated flight path for Warbirds Over The Beach normally runs a diagonal pattern over the cross runway, this year the museum received permission to fly lengthwise, parallel with the main grass strip. The result was an unprecedented view of the museum’s flying aircraft all the way down the length of the runway, a real treat for the true and new warbird lover alike. We hope to bring this format back for 2020.

We also saw a record number of reenactors out this year, filling the field with living histories of Allied and Axis troops. As part of the show, reenactors staged a reimagining of the Market Garden speech from the balcony of the Goxhill Control Tower. The tower, while having been completed in 2017, has been newly furnished with historic artifacts as part of a years long effort to recreate the WWII Goxhill Experience. Carol Atkins, a longtime supporter of the museum and UK native, diligently scoured the British Isles for items that would have been used in these historic towers, shipping them across the Atlantic for use in our museum. Our team of volunteers went to work staging the tower with these artifacts, and visitors at the air show were the very first to experience Goxhill as it was intended to be experienced. While there is yet more work to be done, we are just that much closer to a full historic trip back in time.

2019 was clearly a successful year for Warbirds Over The Beach, and everywhere we heard guests talk about how much they enjoyed it. We’re excited for another big year in 2020, and hope to fly the newest additions to the museum’s collection of aircraft, the Storch and Airacobra! q

PAGE 6 VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3

MUSEUM EVENT WRAP UP

Our annual Summer of Flight continues this year to strong crowds of enthusiastic audiences! Each Saturday this summer, through September 28th, the Military Aviation Museum showcases select warbirds, provides a brief conversation on the aircraft followed by a flight demonstration.

Our guests and Museum members have really embraced the weekly event. The highlight each week has clearly been the flight demonstrations flown by our museum Volunteer Pilots, followed closely by our handpicked subject experts, whether museum volunteers or guest speakers presenting stories about these warbirds.

Make sure to come on out and experience Summer of Flight at the museum! q

Warm Weather Brings Cool Events to the Museum

Summer of Flight - Year TwoWarbirds Over the Beach Air Show

Counterclockwise: Spitfire pilot, Pappy Mazza greets an enthusiastic visitor following his flight; Capt. John Lavra, Navy Skyraider pilot, swaps aviator stories with museum pilots Boom Powell and John

Mazza; Powell's postflight wrap-up on the Curtiss Pusher; Capt John Lavra is welcomed before speaking about flying the AD-4 Skyraider in combat

It was a beautiful evening for an outdoor concert at the 2019 Flying Proms Symphony Air Show, with a record size audience enjoying this fun British tradition. The Proms concept, originally based on a centuries old British concert series, fully took shape in 1997 when the Shuttleworth Collection, a prominent aviation museum in Bedfordshire, England, created the Flying Proms. Inspired by this aeronautical musical spectacle, the founder of the Military Aviation Museum, Gerald Yagen, brought the concept to Virginia and thus the Flying Proms Symphony Air Show came to be. For the second year, the Virginia Wind Symphony provided the musical backdrop to an epic evening, creating a unique marriage of music and machine that honored the role of military aircraft set to the scores of films with captivated audiences.

The symphony welcomed soloist Christina Bartholomew who added an angelic voice to many of the selections. The narrator of the original English Flying Proms, Mark Whall,

joined us as he has before, lending his authentic experience and voice in narrating our version of this event. Ever since first visiting the museum in 2011, Mark has been a loyal supporter and friend by narrating the museum’s air shows and the Flying Proms. The VIP experience, now in its second year, was second to none. Hosted by Atlantic Shores, diners experienced a first class gourmet meal from Executive Chef Kyle Pafford. New this year, Tarnished Truth Distilling Company joined us, occupying the museum’s historic Nissen Hut and serving a variety of our locally created bourbons and whiskeys. This incredible evening was then punctuated by a grand fireworks display from Zambelli Fireworks while the symphony played on, a perfect end to a magical evening.

The museum would like to thank its major sponsors of the Flying Proms: Atlantic Shores, Best Western Plus Oceanfront and Cavalier Ford Lincoln. q

Flying Proms Symphony Air Show

Sunshine, country music, American heroes, Father’s Day and warbirds… that all adds up to a great afternoon this past June at the museum. The inaugural concert featured three regional bands, Whiskey Rebellion, Brooke McBride Band and Buckshot who played in salute to our national heroes in the audience. The roar of the engines of American military might soared overhead throughout the show, including iconic American warbirds such as the P-51 Mustang and P-40 Warhawk. Heroes of American military aviation demonstrated the vast technological advances made all in the name of freedom. Mark your calendars for next year’s concert Father's Day weekend. q

VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3 PAGE 7

All American Air Show

Top: Flying Proms hosts large crowd; Center: Guests mingle in the WWI hangar during VIP Dinner; Above: Child gets a boast in order to look inside the Spitfire

ELECTRONIC SERVICE REQUESTED

NONPROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDVIRGINIA BEACH, VA

PERMIT NO. 235

Membership Newsletter for the Military Aviation Museum

1341 Princess Anne RoadVirginia Beach, VA 23457

(757) 721-PROP

Open Daily 9:00 am - 5:00 p.m.

PAGE 8 VOLUME 12, ISSUE 3

Yakovlev Yak-3M

9/11 Heroes Run The 9/11 Heroes Run 5k +1M fun run/walk welcomes

runners, ruckers, and walkers of all ages. Events take place all over the world, on or near September 11th, and are 100%

organized by local community volunteers. Come out and thank your local veterans, their families, and first responders

in an annual, fun, and family friendly environment!

Biplanes and Brews Air ShowJoin us for the annual Biplanes and Brews Air Show.

Celebrate the centenary of WWI, satisfy your hunger at our food vendors, or shop for memorabilia. Enjoy continuous musical

entertainment, from 10:00am on Saturday and Sunday. All five of our hangars will be open for guided tours.

Out of the Darkness WalkWhen you walk, you'll join the hundreds of thousands of people that raise awareness and funds for the American Foundation for

Suicide Prevention (AFSP) to invest in new research, educational programs, advocacy for public policy, and support survivors of suicide

loss. Check-in/registration time is 8:00am. Walk begins at 9:00am and ends at 11:30am. Register/donate at www.afsp.org/vabeach

September 7

OCTOBER 5 - 6

9th Air and Auto Classic Show off your pride and joy, check out the fabulous aviation museum and its collection of vintage aircraft, and contribute to some great charitable organizations. Open to foreign and

domestic, vintage, street rods, muscle cars, race cars, sports cars, and late model cars/trucks of all makes and models. Come out from 11:00am to 4:00pm and enjoy live music, vintage aircraft,

camaraderie and some friendly car show competition.

Joggin' for Frogmen 5kThe Navy SEAL Foundation’s Joggin’ for Frogmen Race

Series brings communities and families together to jog in honor of the Naval Special Warfare community and their families. All participants age 7 and older will run in the 5k. Following

the 5k is a “Tadpole Trot” for kids ages 6 and under. www.jogginforfrogmen.com/virginiabeachva/

October 12 | 11 AM - 4 PM

Wings and Wheels 2019The Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA), Tidewater Region, will host its 46th-Annual meet at

the museum. Join us the last Saturday of the month from 8:00am to 4:00pm for this

fantastic car show.

Mid-Atlantic Dawn PatrolJoin the Mid-Atlantic Dawn Patrol as military

model aircraft from WWI to before WWII take off from the museum’s grass runways. Featuring full scale aircraft

flying demos, overnight storage in the aircraft hangar and Virginia Beach oceanfront nearby. The entrance fee includes

dinner on Friday night. Check details on FLYTRC.com

September 28 OCTOBER 2 - 6

October 19 October 26

EAA Young Eagles Flight Rally This free plane ride event for kids 8-17 is created to interest

young people in aviation. Registration opens at 9:30am. Free admission to the museum for kids taking a flight.

Women Can Fly DaySupport this newly formed volunteer organization

with a mission to promote women of all ages to fly. Women and girls ages 8 and up will have the opportunity to experience a flight in a private plane with a volunteer pilot. Online registration

is open at www.womencanfly.com/events/mam

September 7 September 21 | 10 AM -3 PM