The path not taken... Once upon a time, long before I had a driver's license, a pilot in Fairbanks, Alaska offered to help me get my pilot's license. What to say? Sighhhhhhh...the summer was short, my family was heading home, and it never happened. But.... Had I lived in Port Townsend, WA as a child, it could have. Indeed, it would have. I'd be flying the friendly skies of PT now, even as we speak. But, of course, I might not have time to do this review... www.ptaeromuseum.com I visited the Port Townsend Aero Museum three days days ago. T'was a bright spring day and I was loathe to go inside knowing that the three day forecast was for snow, snow, snow. Chipper Yelper that I am, I went inside the museum anyhoo, leaving the balmy outdoor weather to a small (teenaged) work crew landscaping the front of the building. If the kids were hard at work making the place beautiful for visitors, who was I not to reward their efforts? A small admission fee got me inside the new building. Airplane models hung from the rafters, beautifully restored planes had "landed" strategically about the floors. Placards described each plane and its role in history. Several planes (as noted on the placards) were currently in use as training craft for the young pilots who learn to fly at the museum. My entrance fee (donations from other visitors) is what keeps the fly lessons and the museum going. So I lingered for an hour or so, looking at airplane models, antique cars and some wonderful old flight helmets and gauges. I walked the catwalk around the inside of the tall building, looked at aviation paintings, watched other visitors as they entered the spacious hangar. DIdn't even notice that I was inside on a balmy day. I do have a suggestion or two for future museum exhibits: I'd have liked to have seen a motor, perhaps with its schematic nearby. I would have enjoyed brief "instructions" on the aerodyamics of flight. A checklist of preparations for lift-off and landing would have been fun to look at. (I am told that these are readily available through airplane manufacturers...so a generic list shouldn't be hard for the museum to find. ) There once was a wonderful old hand-lettered sign visible as you exited Jefferson International Airport, which is where the museum is located. It said "Don't forget to close your flight book." Perhaps an actual flight book would make interesting reading. Certainly the visitors' comment book does reflect the numbers of geographically distant folks who tour the museum but no space is included in it for visitors comments. This would be nice. But heck. Who am I to tinker with the success of this endeavor? This is a cool museum. Kids involved in its programs really *do* get the flight bug and occasionally do solo before they get their Washington State driver's license. And as for me? Well, I had a good time. Hopped into my ancient Saturn which was parked in the parking lot. Waved at the kids working on the landscaping. Scanned my gas gauge, speedometer and clock...and said to myself as I exited into the sunny Port Townsend afternoon... What if?? The road not taken. Or rather the runway not taken. Yet. read more

Port Townsend Aero Museum - From the PT Aero Museum website, the new building - Museums Near Me - Port Townsend, Washington

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My husband and I made this one of our musts during our trip to Port Townsend, and it didn't disappoint! I know nothing about planes, but I still really enjoyed the museum, which has a whole bunch of beautiful planes, gliders, engines, and artifacts on display. Staff was friendly and fun to chat with. I learned a lot and the husband had a lot of fun here. read more

Port Townsend Aero Museum - Museums Near Me - Port Townsend, Washington

I've been an airplane "nut" most of my 75 years. I earned my commercial ticket in 1969 thanks to the G.I. bill. But I made my living doing more mundane stuff, however, and feed my flying bug with visits to aviation museums, membership in EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) and subscriptions to flying magazines. When the opportunity arose in 1988 to support the founding of a new aviation museum in my Oregon town, I purchased a life membership. Eventually, after retiring from my boring day job, I got involved in the museum's operation as a volunteer and as a director. I learned a lot about what it takes to make a volunteer-run non-profit thrive. The "secret" is a simple one word formula: "LOVE". After selling my Oregon home and moving to the Olympic peninsula (Sequim, WA) I paid a visit to the Port Townsend Aero Museum at Jefferson County International Airport. A friend who had been there recommended it and suggested that I'd find it "attractive". He spoke great truth. General Aviation... the private, non-commercial sector of flying, has been struggling for survival since the 1960s when some landmark product liability court cases put the Pipers, Cessnas and other light plane manufacturers into economic limbo. While the "death" of General Aviation has been so far avoided, the economic realities have priced the common man out of flying. In the late 1960s my private pilot license required an investment of about $800. Today that license will cost about $10 thousand. Without young people getting interested in flying, the future of General Aviation is bleak. PTAM was established in 2001with a unique and inspiring mission that addresses this problem beautifully. With a collection of about 30 aircraft built in the 1920s, 30 and 40s, the museum offers job skills training to teen-aged volunteers. Young applicants pledge one day per week working at the museum restoring, maintaining and learning to fly these antique aircraft. When they are not working with tools, they are attending ground school or getting one-on-one instruction. They are supervised by licensed aviation mechanics and certified flight instructors. Some of these kids are able to achieve their first solo flight before they get their WA drivers license! The aircraft collection is amazing. The quality of the restoration work exceeds anything I have seen elsewhere... and I've been to many aviation museums across the country. The pristine condition of these aircraft is even more impressive when one considers that the majority of them are regularly flown... and a few of them are exceedingly rare! The adjacent restoration facility accepts private projects at competitive rates with all profits benefiting the museum collection and educational mission. The museum receives no taxpayer support and is an IRS 501(c)(3) charity. The museum is open from 9AM till 4PM Wednesday thru Sunday. Admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, $7 for youth 7 to 12, and children 6 and under are free. Groups of 15 or more are eligible for special rates (call ahead). Memberships are available. read more