Santa Monica flying museum to open this spring

The Museum of Flying, opening this spring, will be located in the south side of the Santa Monica Airport directly adjacent to the DC–3 Aircraft Monument and park. The museum will place heavy emphasis on Douglas Aircraft and the history of the Santa Monica Airport. Originally founded in 1974 by Donald Douglas Jr. as the Douglas Museum and Library, the museum reopened as the Museum of Flying in April of 1989. The museum gradually grew to a collection of more than 50 vintage aircraft with many still in flight–ready condition. The new museum will feature nearly two dozen aircraft chronicling the beginning of flight—from a replica Wright Flyer, all the way to the jet age, with the BD–5 micro jet and the FedEx 727 nose section. The museum will also feature a broad collection of aviation art, rare artifacts and ephemera from famous aviators.