A group of people from church met for a little field trip to the Freedom of Flight Museum, located on the grounds at the Joplin Regional Airport. Mr. Coit and Mr. Trumbly deliver a thorough explanation of all things aeronautical at the museum. The old control tower at the airport is a part of the museum, and it's always fun to watch planes take off and land while listening to the controllers in the newer tower across the field.
A couple of simulators invite guests to sit in the cockpit and fiddle with the countless, unknown controls. Lots of artifacts are on display in the museum, including all sorts of missiles, jet parts, schematics, ejection seats, parachutes, and more tedious parts than a regular person can comprehend.
| | There are also items from the space program, the Tuskegee Airmen, and maps of spotter locations and missile silos from the last world war. Very interesting to me are a few tiny artifacts that hand on a particular wall. One is a signature from the inventor of the first airplane, Orville Wright. The second is a piece of The Spirit of St. Louis, the plane Charles Lindbergh flew on his historical transatlantic flight in 1927. The third of these items is a little square from one of Amelia Earhart's flight jackets. It intriguing to see these items from world history located right here in Joplin, Missouri. |
