Aviation View - December 2024

The Mid-America Air Museum in Liberal, KS can trace its roots all the way back to the early days of aviation when Wright Flyers landed in Liberal on October 12, 1912. If you look closely at a photograph from that date you can see two men in the picture who appear to be Orville & Wilber Wright themselves. Other notable early aviation pioneers who visited Liberal include Glenn Curtiss, and Glenn L. Martin who actually spent some of his younger years living in Liberal. Long after he founded the Martin Aircraft Company he continued to fly into Liberal periodically to visit old friends. After Pearl Harbor was bombed the Army Air Corp came to town and overnight the city’s population doubled, and the airfield our Museum is situated on was built. About one third of all the B-24 Liberator Command Pilots received at least part of their training in Liberal. After the war the airfield was turned over to the City and in 1951 Beech Aircraft started leasing some of the hangars and by the 1970’s operated a major aircraft manufacturing plant in the 88,000 square feet building that is our Museum today. In the 80’s a reunion was held for the men who trained here, and the idea for the Museum took flight. The Museum officially opened in 1987. In 1997 the Museum was turned over to the City who owns the Museum. In 1997 Col. Tom Thomas Jr. donated 53 aircraft and the Museum became the 5th largest in the country. We currently have over 100 aircraft and although we are no longer the 5th largest air museum in the country, we are still one of the larger ones. The collection consists of approximately 1/3 military planes, 1/3 commercially built general aviation planes, and 1/3 experimental aircraft which makes us one of the few air museums to have a balanced collection of the three types. In regards to the military aircraft we have a B-25, Grumman TBM Avenger, and numerous examples of spotter and liaison type planes from WWII which we own. We also have some amazing military aircraft on loan from the National Museums of the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marines. For example, we have a pristine F4U-5N Corsair on loan from the National Museum of the Marine Corp, and a F-14 Tomcat on loan from the National Museum of the Navy. The “Huey” on loan from the National Museum of the Army is another very popular aircraft.

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