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Grissom Air Museum, Peru, Indiana

A nice, spacious museum, with a really useful watchtower for some unusual viewpoints. Grissom Air Reserve Base used to be NAS Bunker Hill, then Bunker Hill AFB until 1994. The State governor changed the name for Virgil "Gus" Grissom, who died in the Apollo 1 fire in 1967. The museum is named after the base, and has nothing to do with Gus Grissom himself, who has his own museum elsewhere in Indiana.

The museum opened especially for us on a misty morning, and the Director was at pains to point out that he had no idea why the YS-11A was there - so don't ask!

Aircraft Reg'n Thumbs Notes
Bell UH-1H Iroquois 68-16256 US Army Vietnam veteran.
Boeing B-47B Stratojet 51-2315 USAF - around 1968, it broke its back in a hard landing at Bunker Hill AFB.
Boeing EC-135L Stratotanker 61-0269 USAF - 'Excalibur': command post and radio relay aircraft based here. Veteran of middle east operations inc Desert Storm. Operated 1961-92.
Boeing KC-97L Stratofreighter 52-2697 USAF - converted in 1964 from a G to an L model by adding two GE J47 turbojets.
Cessna O-2A Super Skymaster 68-6871 USAF Vietnam veteran.
Cessna T-37B Tweet 54-2736 USAF
Cessna U-3A Blue Canoe 57-5922 USAF, but this is a basic army colour scheme.
Convair TB-58A Hustler 55-0663 USAF - eight of the eleven YB-58A pre-production aircraft were converted to TB-58A trainers.
Convair TF-102A Delta Dagger 56-2317 USAF. The spikes around the canopy are vortex generators, not bird deterrents. 111 built. Occasionally used in the Forward Air Control role.
Douglas C-47D Skytrain (DC-3) 43-49270 USAF. Freshly repainted.
Douglas TA-4J Skyhawk 153671 A-716 US Navy
Fairchild C-119G Flying Boxcar 52-5850 850 USAF - flew to the museum in 1971.
Fairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II 77-0228 USAF
Grumman C-1A Trader 136790 US Navy: retired in 1988 and came to the museum in 1999.
Grumman F-11A Tiger 141790 US Navy Blue Angels livery - it was with them 1964-66.
Grumman F-14B Tomcat 162912 AA-101 US Navy - flew from NAS Oceana to the museum in 2005.
Lockheed GTD-21B 528 USAF - D-21B models were designed for launching from B-52s, with a large booster rocket slung underneath.
Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star 52-9563 USAF. Retired to the museum around 1967.
McDonnell F-4C Phantom II 64-0783 USAF. Retired to the museum in 1987
McDonnell F-101B Voodoo 58-0321 USAF
NAMC YS-11A P4-KFD Japan Air System (JAS) basic livery. Ex Toa Domestic Airlines (TDA). Ex JA8643, N102LM, P4-YSD.
North American TB-25N Mitchell 44-86843 58 344 USAF, but with a mystery RAF fin flash. Converted from a B-25J. Ex N3507G. Was one of the 18 B-25s in the Catch 22 film.
North American F-100C Super Sabre 53-1712 FW-712 USAF Used for a while by NACA for high speed testing. Last pilot was Neil Armstrong.
North American T-2C Buckeye 158583 F-829 US Navy gate guardian
Republic F-84F Thunderstreak 51-9456 USAF: spent a few years at the EAA Museum, Oshkosh.
Republic F-105D Thunderchief 61-0088 USAF

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