MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Share #1 Posted September 13, 2011 After 11 years of living in the area and 5 years of really being a military enthusiast, I finally visited the Harold F. Pitcairn Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum located at: 1155 Easton Road Horsham, PA 19044 USA Phone - 215-672-2277 The museum is located on the Willow Grove Naval Air Base and is part of the Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Society. The Museum was started in 2000 however the airbase itself has been around since 1926. The airbase, previously called Pitcairn Field, was originally a hangar and grass airstrip constructed by Harold Pitcairn. Harold Pitcairn used the site to construct and test a number of aircraft, most notably the Autogyro and Mailwing. Amelia Earhart visited the field in the early 30’s and set a world’s altitude record for the Autgyro, which still stands to this day, for flying Pitcairn’s Autgyro at 18,415 feet. In 1942, shortly after the US entered into WWII, Pitcairn sold the airfield and hangar to the US Navy. The field was commissioned the United States Naval Air Station in 1943. Sadly, activities at the airbase have been winding down for a few years now and it will close officially on September, 15th 2011. PAANG will take possession of a portion of the base thereafter and the majority of the land will be turned over to Horsham Township for redevelopment. Despite the closure of the airbase, the museum will remain intact and onsite to preserve the history of this base and those who served here. There is no fee to visit as they operate on donations alone. The tour guides are all US veterans. We toured the museum without a guide, but on occasion, one of the vets would come up and add a little bit of information. The vets spanned from WWII to Vietnam, and it was nice as they would include a bit of their experience if the display was relevant to their service. If you're ever in the area, I would highly recommend visiting. The museum isn't big by any standard; however they have managed to fit tons of history into it, both living and not. More information on the airbase and the museum can be found at the following links: Wings of Freedom Museum Willow Grove Naval Airbase Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #2 Posted September 13, 2011 We visited on 9/11 and the flag was of course flying at half-mast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #3 Posted September 13, 2011 Shot of the entire museum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #4 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #5 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #6 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #7 Posted September 13, 2011 7/8 scale Fokker D VIII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #8 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #9 Posted September 13, 2011 Patent prototype of the Pitcairn Autogyro. The autogyro was not a commercial success however eventually Igor Sikorski purchased the patent and used them to develop the first helicopter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #10 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #11 Posted September 13, 2011 WWI Display :jeal0001: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #12 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #13 Posted September 13, 2011 Donated Grouping of Captain Samuel C. Flynn, Jr., USN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #14 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #15 Posted September 13, 2011 WWII Service Uniform Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #16 Posted September 13, 2011 Medal Display spanning WWI to Vietnam (Minus the CMOH) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #17 Posted September 13, 2011 R-1820 Radial Engine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #18 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #19 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #20 Posted September 13, 2011 My son and I. He’s my military enthusiast in training! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #21 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #22 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #23 Posted September 13, 2011 WWII Displays Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #24 Posted September 13, 2011 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MasonK Posted September 13, 2011 Author Share #25 Posted September 13, 2011 Tuskagee Airmen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now