Dayton AF Museum

[Paul H]

Hey!

Can anyone tell me how long it takes an average aircraft enthusiast at least, to watch and enjoy seeing every aircraft in the air force museum of Dayton?

[Doug Robertson]

Count on several days, not just one. You will also want to experience the incredible IMAX theater which has several shows to choose from and take time to eat lunch in the excellent cafeteria on the second floor. After EAA Airventure in 2008 on the last day (a Sunday) we departed from OSH about 1130 for Dayton KDAY (a 36 Bonanza with IO-550 300 Hp upgrade) refueled there and rented a car for just 24 hours in mid-afternoon. We overnighted and got to the museum on a Monday as it opened, not having to walk far from the car parking. Get a layout of the museum hangars in the entry lobby to plan your tour. We actually inadvertently missed one entire hangar and speed-walked through the outside large aircraft exhibits; so fast I couldn't photograph them all. We got the rental car returned in about 23.5 hours at the Dayton airport KDAY, and I rued not getting enough museum aircraft photos, but they are uploaded here.

So, plan for several days-two at least as some exhibits take some time to read about if you want the full experience and want to do photography which may take some time to get clear of the crowds shots. Suggest a weekday visit would be better than a weekend visit, crowd-wise.

[Glenn E. Chatfield]

I'm sort of an expert for time it takes, having been there several dozen times D

Be there before it opens - I think the gate still opens about 0800, although I haven't been there since April and with sequesters and all one never knows.

Anyway, get NLT 0830 if possible to give yourself at least 30 min to look at a and photograph all the outside stuff. Once you get inside, go straight to sign up for the bus to the annex so - it has a schedule and need to know which one you are on - assuming it is open again since the sequester. They give you only 45 min at the annex, so you need to hustle for photos and looking. I take few photos over there now, since I've shot them all - I now look for new stuff and reshoot those which didn't come out as good as I likes.

You can photograph all the aircraft in the main buildings within about 3-4hrs, but that doesn't give you time to stop and look at everything. So if you have a short time, just look and shoot the planes. If you have time to spend a couple days, then you can spend a whole day in each section reading all the stuff on the walls and examining the displays.

You certainly want at least one whole day if you are short on time passing through, but even if you get only half a day, you can go through quickly to look at all the planes.

If you have a few months prior to going, sign up for the restoration facility tour - they fill up fast. That will take a couple hours out of you main museum time. I did my first tour there in April.

Doug's right, though - weekdays and as many days as you can allot will give you the full experience.

Oh, and I've never done the IMAX - not my cup of tea. So I can't speak to that.

My first trip was in 1969, the summer before my senior year in high school and we had just moved back to Ohio after 5 years in Colorado. It was still at Patterson Field. Went again the next summer just before going in the Army, and didn't visit again until March 1972 after it moved. Then my last leave before getting out, in August 1974, I again visited it. Once I was back to civilian status the end of Feb 1975, I was over there about every six weeks to see what was new (I lived about an hour away). That was standard visit schedule until leaving Ohio in Sept 1978, and then from the Chicago area we were down there at least twice a year until Dec 1995 when we moved to Iowa. Now it's only once a year, and a couple years we didn't get there at all.

[Paul H]

Thank you for the quick answers!

All in all I'll have three days in Dayton -so about 65 hours- but as this is the only reason for going there, I wil try to spend there, as much time as possible!

Paul

[Doug Robertson]

Glen is our expert on the Dayton USAF Wright-Patterson Museum. All good advice.

You might also want to try to get to Dayton-Wright Brothers airport KMGY 10 miles south of Dayton as you will be so close, to see their small museum with a replica Wright Brothers Flyer within. The Wright "B" Flyer Museum is open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 9 am to 2:30 pm and is also free.

The original Wright Flyer aircraft restored is in the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC which would take more than one day to fully see properly. I was last there in 1979, and also inadvertently missed the entire Helicopter section. They have a theater and cafeteria also. Their restoration facility near Washington Dulles International airport KIAD is National Air & Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center and is also to be considered.