News Stories and Features
The mission of the National Museum of WWII Aviation is to provide unique educational experiences that promote a deeper understanding of the historical importance of American aviation in World War II and its role in shaping the world we live in today. It does this to preserve and strengthen the best traditions of the American aviation past and inspire new generations of leaders and innovators in the future.
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Today, the National Museum of World War II Aviation announced the return of its highly successful K-12 Education Program. As in the past, this one-of a kind education program will be offered by the Museum at no cost to
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History Presentation and P-47 Flight Demonstration Kearby’s Thunderbolts—The 348th Fighter Group Saturday, September 16 Doors Open at 8:00am Presentation at 9:00am At the outbreak of WWII Captain Neel Kearby was an experienced fighter pilot. He was soon promoted and given command of the 348th Fighter Group. The
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Avengers at Midway Saturday, August 19 Doors Open—0800 am Presentation Starts—0900 am The Battle of Midway was the first combat mission for the TBF/TBM Avenger torpedo bomber. After that, the Avenger was highly successful in every major air-sea battle of WW II.
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The 345th Bomb Group in the Pacific - B-25 Mitchell Low Level Attackers Saturday, July 22nd Doors Open at 8am - Presentation Starts at 9am In the early days of WWII General George Kenney’s 5th Air Force employed extraordinary tactics to blunt the Japanese advance
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In mid-1942 the continental territory of the U.S. was invaded by the Empire of Japan. Beginning with air attacks on June 3rd, a small Japanese force occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutian Islands chain in
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The Battle of the Philippine Sea on June 19th and 20th, 1944, was the last of the great carrier battles of the Pacific War. It eliminated the Japanese Navy’s ability to conduct large-scale offensive carrier actions.
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Sponsored By April 22, 2023 Doors Open at 8am Presentation at 9am Running continuously from 1939 to 1945, the Battle of the Atlantic was the longest continuous campaign of WWII. It pitted German submarines, warships and aircraft against Allied navies, air forces, and merchant shipping.
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The U.S. was thrust into WWII on December 7, 1941 with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Following this successful attack, the Japanese High Command began searching for their next step against the United States.
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The Battle of Wake Island pitted a small American force against a large Japanese force. The Japanese attacked the remote Pacific island outpost just hours after their surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Sixteen days later, Japanese
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The first American air strike against German targets in Europe in World War II took place on July 4, 1942. Flying six twin-engine A-20 light bombers, and joined by six other planes of the same type flown by British Royal
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The daughter of one of the pilots who flew in the Battle of Midway attended our June 5 presentation about the battle, which included a flight of our Douglas SBD Dauntless. Dona Sorenson is a daughter Don D. Adams (U.S, Navy,
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U.S. forces defeated a major attack by the Japanese Imperial Navy in the historic June 4-7, 1942, Battle of Midway, even though the Japanese fleet seemed to have every advantage. As docent John Lynch said in a presentation at the Museum
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Fleet Problem XXI was a U.S. Navy exercise conducted in the Pacific near the Hawaiian Islands in April and May of 1940. Like similar exercises going back to 1923, it tested ideas of offensive and defensive naval warfare. Several earlier
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When our rare Douglas SBD-4 Dauntless flew for the public Saturday during a presentation at the museum about the historic World War II Battle of Midway, Alan Wojciak was at the controls. The Dauntless, which played a significant role in the
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By Colonel Gene Pfeffer, USAF (Ret) This is the story of an American Army Air Forces pilot flying from England named Elwood Starkey and his role in Operation Overlord, the invasion of France in June, 1944. Starkey flew 36 B-24 combat
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The Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) were a brave and dedicated group of aviators who helped the U.S. win the WWII battles in the air. They did not participate in combat directly. But they did take the place of
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A group of World War II veterans told their stories to Museum visitors on Saturday in an event sponsored by the Southern Colorado Honor Flight. One vet donated what has become a rarity -- a 48-star American flag. Ted Langowski, 97,
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Close air support, like air power itself, came of age in World War II. Before the war, air power theorists generally focused on bombers, whose long range and heavy payloads could threaten distant enemy industrial centers. They might even win
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A key component of the Royal Air Force's success in the Battle of Britain during World War II was the Chain Home system of coastal radars, which gave early warning of German air attacks. The concept of operations of today's
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The American Volunteer Group (AVG), known as “The Flying Tigers”, was a group of American pilots and ground crew who served China in its war against Japan. Their entire combat history covers the seven months from December, 1941 through July,
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One of the many factors in the Allied victory in the Battle of the Atlantic during WWII was the development of small aircraft carriers, termed escort carriers. Initially they accompanied large convoys of merchant vessels across the Atlantic, providing protection
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On Saturday, March 20th, the National Museum of World War II Aviation hosted the first in a series of history seminars that will be presented at the museum over the coming year. Some of these events will include flight demonstrations
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The Battle of Midway has been described as the turning point of World War II in the Pacific. Sources differ, but Gordon Prange’s “Miracle at Midway” says Japanese losses were about 2,500 casualties, 4 carriers (Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hiryu), 1
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February 10, 2021 Colorado Springs—Dan Massett, Champion Aerospace Business Development Manager—Piston and Power, visited the National Museum of World War II Aviation on Tuesday, February 9th. This was the Dan’s first visit since joining the Champion Aerospace team in November 2020. Champion
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Two individuals connected to the National Museum of World War II Aviation are featured in a new documentary honoring the Tuskegee Airmen that premiers on The History® Channel February 10, 6 p.m. MST. The late Frank Macon, Tuskegee Airman, lifelong aviator
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February 2, 2021—Last week, museum volunteers completed work on a replica of a Northwest Airlines hangar facing. The new display was built by an all-volunteer team to provide context for one of the museum’s oldest and rarest aircraft, a Waco
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The Museum has received a donation from the Soaring Eagles Foundation of a CG-4A Glider project. Randy & Pam Rothe of Colorado Springs not only made this great project available to the Museum, but delivered it from California with the