Museum of Aviation

This museum is next to Robins AFB. We visited there during the airshow in Robins AFB. The admission is free. The light was not very good in the museum buildings for a photographer having a small flash like me. The airplanes were displayed as dioramas and were enclosed. There were also many warbirds outside the buildings without fences.

BAe Lightning

The UK Royal Air Force Lightning is the only all-British supersonic aircraft so far, and also the RAF's first supersonic aircraft in level flight. Twin engines are installed in a unique way of minimizing the drag. I would like to see over-wing fuel tanks. I suppose that they reduce the lift from the wings significantly. Moreover, the separation of the over-wing fuel tanks looks very dangerous.

The engine intake at the nose was covered with a red board and the engines were removed.

SR-71 Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird

This is a picture taken in the cockpit of an SR-71 Blackbird. The SR-71 was designed to achieve supersonic flights at high altitudes. The sight from the cockpit was very bad. After takeoff, the pilots probably did not need to worry about other airplanes because the SR-71 flied at high altitude. The SR-71 was retired in 1990. However, the USAF still kept a few SR-71s in operation up until 1998, after a few were brought back to service in 1995.

The outside of the airplane is black as its name declares. It was difficult to take a good picture in the crepuscular building.

O-2A Cessna O-2A Skymaster

This military version is derived from Cessna Model 337.