Planes of Fame Museum, Chino, California

Founded by Ed Mahoney in January 1957, the Planes of Fame Museum in Chino claims to be the oldest aviation museum west of the Rocky Mountains. It is also one of the most famous aviation museums in the world, due both to the depth of its collection (over 175 aircraft at the main museum and the Grand Canyon satellite facility) and the excellence of their flying restorations. The collection paints a broad picture of the history of flight, with special emphasis on certain themes, such as air racers, early jets, experimental planes, and Second World War aircraft.

Of particular note is the Planes of Fame's collection of Second World War Japanese aircraft, which they claim is the largest in the world (the National Air and Space Museum is the only place I can think of that would come close). Among the unique pieces here are the only Mitsubishi J2M Raiden (AKA Jack) left in the world, the only J8M1 Shusui (Japanese version of the Me-163 Komet) left anywhere, the biggest pieces of a G4M Betty I've seen, and the only flyable A6M Zero in the world (a Zeke 52) with an original Japanese engine. A Type 21 Zero was under restoration while I was there as well. The Germans are not neglected in the collection either: aside from a Me-163 Komet, there is a He-162 Volksjager (that is slated to be restored to flying condition), a beautiful Horten flying wing glider, and replicas of the Bachem Ba-349 Natter and the Heinkel He-100 fighter. The Grand Canyon facility has a genuine Bf-109G-10.

The centrepieces of the Planes of Fame's collection are its magnificent flying restorations. Some of the planes, like the recently completed and absolutely gorgeous Curtiss Hawk 75A, took my breath away. Planes that one would only dream of seeing in flight, like the P-26A Peashooter, the Grumman F3F, and the Type 52 Zero, are all here and take to the skies regularly. The museum is currently raising funds to restore its B-17G Flying Fortress to flying condition. If you've got the bucks, you can go for a ride in several of the planes in the museum's collection!

I was quite surprised at how many classic (1940s and 1950s) jets that the museum had in its collection. Aside from F-86s, T-33s, and the He-162 mentioned earlier, the museum has a Bell P-59 Airacomet that it is restoring to flying condition, a Ryan FR-1 Fireball mixed-propulsion fighter, a rare F9F-5P Panther reconaissance plane, a number of MiGs (-15, -17, and -21), and such British types as Vampires, a Gnat, and a Meteor F.IV. Later types, including a FJ-3 Fury, F-8U-1 Crusader, F-100 Super Sabre, F-102 Delta Dagger, F-104 Starfighter, and F-14 Tomcat, help to bring the collection into the supersonic era. One of the more unique jets on display is an RF-84K Thunderflash, a modified RF-84 designed to be carried aloft by the huge Convair RB-36 Peacemaker.

As one might expect, most of the classic piston-engined fighters. There are P-51s (both Allison engined and P-51Ds), A P-39, a P-40, P-47s, three Spitfires, a Hurricane, and a number of more exotic types. There are also such classic interwar types as the P-26 Peashooter and Boeing F4B-3 biplane (actually a P-12E painted in USN colours, but who's being picky?).

I love experimental planes, and this collection has a number of them. Pride of place, of course, has to go to the Northrop N-9M flying wing, a prototype built as a proof of concept plane for the huge B-35 bomber. Having both a Northrop and Horten flying wing in the same museum allows one to make interesting comparisons. One of the Douglas D-558-II rocket planes, the first manned aircraft to break Mach 2, is also there. Outside are more exotic types, including an X-7 Kingfisher ramjet-powered missile and the fueslage of the Boeing B-50 Lucky Lady II, the first plane in history to fly non-stop around the world.

There is a real focus on Naval Aviation in the collection. This includes a protion of one building devoted to the USS Enterprise (CV-6) and its aircraft. Additionally, ther museum has a large collection of Grumman "Cats." Aside from a pair of F3Fs, there are Wildcats, Hellcats, a Tigercat, Bearcat, Panther, Tiger (at Grand Canyon), and Tomcat. Throw in a Cougar and you've almost got a complete set! A Duck and an Avenger round out the Grumman portion of the collection.

One of the more unusual focuses of the museum is racing planes. While a number (including several Schneider Cup floatplanes, including a Curtiss R3C-2, Macchi M-39, and Supermarine S.6B, and a Gee Bee) are represented by replicas, there are quite a few real racers from both the 1930s and the 1940s.

This review really just scratches the surface of this museum's collection. The Planes of Fame Museum is a must-see for aviation enthusiasts, and provides a great excuse (as if you need one!) to visit southern California. I highly recommend it, and look forward to one day going back again (if I win the lottery, it will be to go for a ride in the P-38!).