TheTh Membership Newsletter for The Military Aviation Museum Fall 2013 Now Boarding: Planes, Trains, and Santa By Jonathan R. Lichtenstein, Museum Event Coordinator As in yearsye past, the Military Aviation Museum will once mighty S and O gauges, to the more modest HO and againagain hostho its holiday favorite, “Planes, Trains, and San- N, and even Lego, members of the Tidewater Division ta,” withwith the expert assistance of someone who knows of the National Model Railroad Association have given more aboutabou the fl ight characteristics of reindeer than any of their time to assemble an elaborate miniature winter man in history.hist St. Nicholas will rejoin the patrons of the wonderland at the Military Aviation Museum. Amateur MuseumMuseum onon the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, engineers are welcome. All aboard for a full weekend of bringingbrb in along an early dose of holiday cheer. fi ne model railroading! We also hope to welcome mem- bers of the Virginia Beach Police Department’s Crime MilitaryMilitary AviationAvi Museum Our Boeing Stearman will be landing at 11:00 am Prevention Unit, featuring McGruff the Crime Dog and www.MilitaryAviationMuseum.org on both days, Santa’s elves will assist the venerable the Police Explorers, among other guests, in the course toymaker in his task of taking down each and every of the three-day event. Don’t forget to bring your gift Virginia Beach Airport child’s wish for Christmas. He’ll even pose for pic- and support the local Toys for Tots Campaign. www.VBairport.com tures with the tiny tots. As a backdrop, as befi ts the pro- Join in the excitement as we welcome San- ta Claus on Friday and Saturday, with the Fighter Factory prietor of the world’s fi nest toyshop, inside our hangars entire weekend devoted to our displays of www.FighterFactory.com you will fi nd special displays model trains, as provided by the National to warm hearts both young Model Railroad Association. and old. General admission prices are applicable. Inside this Issue: A large assembly of train en- Children aged 12 and under receive free thusiasts will be on hand to admission all weekend! Hucks Starter Repair 2 demonstrate models of all November 29-30: 9:00am – 5:00pm Whirlwind Tour 2 shapes and sizes. From the December 1: 9:00am – 3:00pm Museum Visitors 3 US Navy Attack Squadron Commonwealth ChalleNGe 1940’s Valentine’s Hangar Dance Youth Academy Bush Supply Offi cers Saturday, February 15th, 2014 Join us at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach Experience the Thrill 4 1940’s Valentine’s Hangar Dance at for our 6th annual 1940s Valentine’s Hangar Dance. Feb- Wings & Wheels Car Show 4 the Military Aviation Museum! ruary 15th will be a night to remember! Come dressed 6-10pm $40 per ticket (table discounts available) in your 1940s-vintage attire as we transform one of our 2nd Annual Radio Control hangars into a dance fl oor, in celebration of Valentine’s Dawn Patrol 5 Day. There will be fabulous prizes for the “Best Dressed Lady,” “Best Dressed Man” and “Best Dressed Couple.” Aerostar Owners Terry Chesson’s Big Band will again play all your favorite Association 5 period hits. Dance the night away with members of the What’s New on Display 6 Swing Virginia Swing Dance Club. Need dance lessons beforehand? Check out SwingVirginia.com. And don’t Hangar Happenings 7 forget Echoes-of-Time.com for your period appropriate costume rentals in Hampton Roads. Seating is limited. In Event Calendar 8 fact, we sold out early last year. Tickets will soon be avail- able for purchase, so check our web site often for updates on ordering information: http://www.militaryaviationmu- seum.org/events. PAGE 2 VOLUME 6, ISSUE 4 Car Club Members Repair the Whirlwind Tour Museum’s 1919 Hucks Starter By Jonathan R. Lichtenstein By Sam Kern The morning of 21 September, 2013, saw About three weeks before our 40th An- The repair team consisted of Tyler Gim- a unique group of visitors alight at the niversary Meet, to be held at the Military bert and Sam Kern, assisted by Terry Bond Military Aviation Museum. Descending in Aviation Museum, the museum’s director, donating parts and providing technical ad- a formation of four, carrying 40 members David Hunt, asked if the Antique Automo- vice, Mickey McChesney did the abrasive of the 2-224th Assault Helicopter Battal- bile Car Club of America (AACA), Tide- blasting and Ken Talley completed assem- ion, personnel of the U.S. Army National water chapter could repair its 1919 Model bling the cooling system on the day before Guard disembarked from their Sikorsky TT Hucks Starter in time for the show. The our meet. UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, for a tour restored vehicle had neither been started of our facilities. nor driven in over two years. When muse- The job proved to be a lot more extensive um staff discovered the cylinder head to be than just replacing the head gasket: we had A battalion with combat experience, the leaking badly, staff turned to the Tidewater to remove and replace a threaded insert in 2-224th brought some of its latest class of Club for help get it running again, in time one of the cylinder head bolt holes. reservists to Virginia Beach for a peace- to be prominently displayed along with the ful exercise in career development. As a Museum’s other cars and planes on meet During the repair process, the Saturday be- museum dedicated to the fi rst 50 years of day. Several Tidewater volunteers jumped fore our meet, Terry briefed members of a manned fl ight, such an impressive display in and took on the task. Richmond-area Boy Scout troop of the his- of contemporary rotary-winged aviation tory of the vehicle and what we were doing was a welcome surprise for patrons and The Hucks Starter was conceived by Mr. to bring it back to operational condition. volunteers alike. With so many veterans B.C. Hucks, chief test pilot for the Aircraft The Boy Scouts were camped at the mu- among our ranks, the enthusiasm of our Manufacturing Company which later be- seum’s WWI hangar and were studying for visitors rekindled memories of past nation- came the de Havilland Aircraft Company their Automobile & Aviation Merit Badge. al service. The appearance of U.S. Army of England. The fi rst one was built on a helicopters at the Virginia Beach Airport 1916 Model T truck chassis and its purpose On meet day, the engine fi red right up also served to put a smile on the faces of was to eliminate the need for a person to when Tyler cranked the engine’s starter. more than a few of the museum’s younger pull on a propeller to start a plane’s engine. Following judging on meet day, at about patrons. For some years Hucks Starters were used 1:00 pm, Tyler took us and some museum in both military and civilian applications. staff members on a tour of the AACA show The history and lineage of the Museum’s fi eld on the Hucks Starter. Heads turned, 1919 is very sketchy, other than when it faces smiled and many watched in amaze- was acquired about three years ago. Its ment and wonderment. The moment epito- condition was very seriously degraded. mized the joy, satisfaction of accomplish- The Museum thoroughly restored it to its ment, and sheer fun that are integral parts present cosmetic and operational condition of our hobby. and keeps it on display in the WWI hangar where it draws lots of interest with people asking “what is this thing?” The 2-224th Assault Helicopter Battalion is stationed at Richmond International Air- port, Sandston, VA, and east of downtown Richmond. Adherence to a strict fl ight schedule dictated a timely afternoon de- parture from our airfi eld. Under the guid- ance of museum ground control, the whine of their GE engines increasing, their rotors whipping up a gale, the four Black Hawks were soon hovering again, above the mu- seum’s ramp. With an adjustment in pitch, the helicopters of the 2-224th headed east, before making a turn to the north, home- From left to right: Terry Bond, Ken Talley, Sam Kern, Don Siemieniak, ward bound. Tyler Gimbert, Jonathan Lichtenstein and David Hunt VOLUME 6, ISSUE 4 PAGE 3 Museum Visitors U.S. Navy Attack Squadron Commonwealth By Kenneth Craig On September 18, 2013, the Bluehawks of two attack carriers, USS Independence and ChalleNGe Youth U.S. Navy Attack Squadron Seventy-Two USS Franklin D. Roosevelt. In a period of Academy (VA-72) visited the Military Aviation Mu- intense prosecution of aerial warfare over By Lieutenant Commander Rich Guzman seum enjoying a very warm reception and North Vietnam, the pilots of VA-72 benefi t- a fantastic educational experience. They ed from the great support of their wives, on On August 24th and 25th, the cadets from enjoyed a catered lunch in the museum and the home front. Of the many notable targets the Virginia National Guard’s Common- a wonderful tour by very dedicated and struck, VA-72 was the fi rst to destroy a SA-2 wealth ChalleNGe Youth Academy vis- knowledgeable docents. During Vietnam (surface to air) missile site. Included in this ited the Military Aviation Museum. With cruises in 1965 and 1966, this group of at- visiting group was Capt. Al Carpenter, USN this educational fi eld trip, the cadets had tack pilots fl ew the A4E Skyhawk from (ret) who was shot down over Haiphong the opportunity to have a guided tour of HHarbor and endured over 7 years of vintage aircraft from WWI and WWII as bbrutal captivity as a POW.