Years ago when Tony and I spent a few days in Tucson, we visited the Pima Air & Space Museum, and thought it would be something my dad would love to see. How fun it was for us to hear about his knowledge, gained from a lifetime interest in aviation and decades of reading Flying magazine, of the aircraft displayed here.

Today was a gorgeous January day where we took the tram around the plane yard and walked up close to these machines as well as toured three of the six exhibit hangars on the property. This was a pleasant contrast to the 100+ degree day that Tony and I endured during the summer almost a decade ago. Flight enthusiasts should get the two-day pass to see it all.

The featured speaker here today is an amazing 102-year-old B-17 pilot and commander, Col. Richard Bushong. He is still going strong and telling his story to lucky visitors on Thursdays as he sits beneath the B-17 that is the centerpiece of this hangar. It is incredible to hear about a twenty-year-old who graduated from pilot school in Texas in July of 1943 and went on to fly 28 missions with the 390th Bombardment Group stationed in Framlingham, Suffolk, England. The original quota was 25 missions to earn a ticket back home; then in a “morale boosting” move, the Air Force increased it to 30, but said those already flying could count their deal done at 28. Every flight meant coming back with bullet holes in the planes. As soon as they crossed over the English Channel there were anti-aircraft guns shooting at them as well as enemy aircraft trying to prevent the bombers from getting to the factories that were their targets. The colonel mentioned adding pieces of sheet metal to his seat for further protection and carrying a small, plated Bible from his mother in his flight suit. “It never took a bullet, but then neither did I.”

The men who piloted these planes and manned the guns were incredibly brave. They all knew there was a ten percent chance of getting shot down. The plane was not insulated or comfortable. The electric “bunny suits” (precursor of the electric blanket) they wore under their flight suits could short out and cause burns or allow frostbite. The gunner positions were very uncomfortable with the tail turret gunner on his knees and the ball turret gunner curled up in a very small, vulnerable space protecting the B-17’s underside.

We enjoyed lunch in the museum’s cafe which has a big menu and vegetarian options. After lunch, my favorite part of the day was walking the plane yard with my dad while he explained what he knew about certain planes or reminisced about being onboard some of them. It was perfect weather for wandering amongst the samples on display.

The B-36 seemed to take up the most space with a long wing span needed to house six engines with rear-facing propellers and four jet engines. It was designed to travel to Europe for bombing raids without refueling because the army was worried we’d lose access to British bases during WWII, but then it served as nuclear deterrence during the Cold War. So much history here!

Dad remembers the jet trainer pictured above being used to “test” the RADAR groups during the mid-1960s. He was stationed at Hastings Air Force Station and said these T-33 jets would fly in a loop to several RADAR groups from other bases such as Omaha, with the RADAR groups’ scores being competitive across the bases involved.

One eager volunteer took a picture of Tony and me in front of an Earth-rise shot taken by Apollo 17 astronauts just as the Space Gallery was closing. We did one final walk through the first Hangar to see the spy planes, including the impressive SR-71 Blackbird before having to leave for the day.