Unless otherwise stated, all events begin at 1:00PM.
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The following events are subject to rapid change well beyond the ability of this Webmaster to keep up with them. If an event is critical to your visit, please contact the museum via phone for confirmation. Flight demonstrations are scheduled with many events however our visitors must realize that these are vintage planes and subject to maintenance surprises, delays and the possibility that the demo flight may be cancelled at the last moment.
Unless otherwise stated, all events begin at 1:00PM.
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Click here to join our mailing list and receive notices of our upcoming programs, special events, new
exhibits and newsletters.
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| Feb 2, 3 |
2ND ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF BOOKS – The Palm Springs Air Museum will offer two full days of exciting events for all ages. Over a dozen noted authors will be on hand to speak about and sign their books on WWII era history. From combat pilots and pioneer women pilots to the women and children left behind, these authors are sure to touch your hearts as they re-live the history of the greatest generation. Story Time for children will be held in front of the Bob Hope Stage at 11, 1 and 3 Sat and Sun.
List of Authors and their Books
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| Feb 2 |
DR. EDWARD GORDON The Fall of the Japanese Empire – This program tells the riveting story of how Allied forces under Admiral Chester W. Nimitz and General Douglas MacArthur developed campaigns that gradually advanced through the Pacific islands while British Lord Louis Mountbatten led Allied forces in liberating Southeast Asia from Japanese occupation. Program covers all aspects of the battles in the Pacific, taken from the individual soldiers, sailors and airmen who were there.
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| Feb 9 |
100th BOMB GROUP REUNION – Actual and personal experiences will be shared by members of the 100th BG who flew missions in B-17s over Germany. The 100th flew its first combat mission on June 25, 1943, and its last on April 20, 1945. During those 22 months, some 7,000 men and a few women were stationed at Thorpe Abbotts. They flew 306 missions including six food drops to the Netherlands in May, 1945. They were credited with 8630 sorties; they dropped 19,257.1 tons of bombs plus 435.1 tons of food on mercy missions.
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| Feb 15 |
CLOSED FOR ANNUAL PSAM GALA
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| Feb 23 |
TUSKEGEE AIRMEN AND THE 69TH BOMB GROUP – Renowned aviation artist Stan Stokes will host a program honoring the Tuskegee Airmen featuring Rusty Burns, one of the original Tuskegee Airmen (pilots). Join us in celebrating this all-black squadron of pilots who fought and died for the US during a time of segregation. The Tuskegee Airmen flew fighter support for heavy bombers during WWII. With over 1,500 missions flown, and because of their flying talents and bravery not one heavy bomber was lost to enemy planes. The Tuskegee Airmen flew at a time of segregation. Of the original 996 Airmen who got their wings at Tuskegee, roughly 100 remain, and two live in the Coachella Valley. Local resident Rusty Burns, one of the original Tuskegee Airmen joins Stan Stokes for this fascinating look back into history. The plane they most often flew was the P-51. Flight demo by the P-51 follows the program.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| Mar 1 |
EAA YOUNG EAGLE'S DAY – Registration starts at 8AM (1st come basis)
Pancake Breakfast 8AM to 11AM - $4.00 Kids & $5.00 for adults The EAA Young Eagles program was launched in 1992 to give interested young people, ages 8-17, an opportunity to go flying in a general aviation airplane. These flights are offered free of charge and are made possible through the generosity of EAA member volunteers. Since 1992, more than 1.25 million “Young Eagles” have enjoyed a flight through the program. “Young Eagles” have been registered in more than 90 different countries and have been flown by nearly 40,000 volunteer pilots.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| Mar 8-9 |
MUSTANG RALLY! P-51 FLY IN & MUSTANG CARS – P-51 Mustangs will fly these great warbirds in demonstration flights. Among one of the most famous fighters of World War II, the P-51 Mustang has its roots in both Britain and the USA. Originally overlooked by the USAAF, the P-51 did not see action with American forces until March 1943. Once its full potential had been developed, the USA realized that this aircraft had been ignored for far too long a time. With the forging of the American airframe with the British Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, it would be unmatched by any other piston aircraft of World War II.
Flight Demo at 11:00AM and 2:00PM (Saturday only). Mustang Cars Provided by Palm Springs Motors. Bring your VINTAGE Mustang. Driver is FREE. FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| Mar 22 |
TRIBUTE TO THE ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FORCE – The Palm Springs Air Museum will make its annual salute to the Royal Canadian Air Force. Scottish Piper Stan McLeod will lead the RCAF veterans into the south hangar before they share their experiences. Local radio, TV and stage personality Joey English will sing “O Canada.”
Canadian achievements during WWII were truly remarkable. There were only 3,100 personnel at the beginning of WWII. And by the year 1945 the Royal Canadian Air Force grew to the fourth largest Air Force in the world. More than 249,000 Canadians served in the RCAF. They saw duty in Europe, the Middle East, Ceylon and Norway. FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| Mar 24-28 |
Kool Kids Spring Fling Week of Activities
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| Apr 12 |
DOOLITTLE RAID ON TOKYO – WWII veteran, Blaine Mack will talk about the Doolittle Raid and the B-25 Mitchell Bomber.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| Apr 19 |
VIETNAM AIR WAR – Presentation by the First Air Commandos: The beginning of the war in Vietnam. Two possibly three AD Skyraiders will be flying in and performing as part of this program. Used over Korea and briefly over North Vietnam, it was adopted as the primary ground support attack for the U.S. Air Force and South Vietnamese VNAF during the Vietnam war.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION (AD Skyraider) |
| Apr 26 |
GUADALCANAL – Les Carlyle, who was a marine radio operator at 19, will describe the heroic activities of the First Marine Division on Guadalcanal. Following the Attack on Pearl Harbor and Singapore, Japanese forces advanced into the South Pacific occupying many islands in an attempt to build a defensive ring around their conquests and threaten the lines of communication between the United States and Australia/New Zealand. They reached Guadalcanal in May 1942. When the allied forces spotted construction of an airfield on Guadacanal, the United States conducted the first amphibious landing of the war. It was one of the most hotly contested campaigns for control of the ground, sea and skies of the war. Guadalcanal became a major turning-point in the war as it stopped Japanese expansion. After four months of fighting the Japanese ceased trying to contest the control of the island. They finally evacuated it in February 1943 after tremendous losses.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| May 10 |
T-34 FLY IN – T-34 Trainers will fly in from many parts of the U.S.
The T-34 was the brainchild of Walter Beech, who developed it as the Beechcraft Model 45 private venture at a time when there was no defense budget for a new trainer model. Beech hoped to sell it as an economical alternative to the North American T-6/NJ Texan, then in use by all services of the U.S. military. The Beechcraft T-34 Mentor is a propeller-driven, single-engined, military trainer aircraft derived from the Beechcraft Model 35 Bonanza. The earlier versions of the T-34, dating from around the late 1940s to the 1950s, were piston-engined. These were eventually succeeded by the upgraded T-34C Turbo Mentor, powered by a turboprop engine. The T-34 remains in service almost six decades after it was first designed. [courtesy Wikipedia] ------------------------
The Korean War was an escalation of border clashes between two rival Korean regimes, each of which was supported by external powers, with each trying to topple the other through political and conventional tactics. In a very narrow sense, some may refer to it as a civil war, though many other factors were at play. After failing to strengthen their cause in the free elections held in South Korea during May 1950 and the refusal of South Korea to hold new elections per North Korean demands, the communist North Korean Army assaulted the South on June 25, 1950. The conflict was then expanded by the United States and the Soviet Union's involvement as part of the larger Cold War. The main hostilities were during the period from June 25, 1950 until the armistice (ceasefire agreement) was signed on July 27, 1953. [courtesy Wikipedia] FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| May 24 |
Open cockpit day! - Special access to our Warbirds collection in the Palm Springs Air Museum. From 11:00 am. - 4:00 p.m., the cockpits of selected aircraft will be opened, allowing the visiting public to take a close-up view. This will allow opportunities for much better inspection than is normally possible, and in some cases, the public will be allowed to sit in the cockpit. Guides will be assigned to supervise each individual cockpit and provide additional information about interesting features.
Featured planes: B-17, P-63, TBM, A-26, C-47, PBY, COD (walk through). The PT Boat program scheduled for this date was cancelled. |
| May 26 1:00PM |
ANNUAL MEMORIAL DAY FLOWER DROP – In honor of and in memory of all those who lost their lives in the wars throughout our history, 2000 white carnations and 1000 red carnations will be dropped on the museum’s aircraft ramp by a WWII vintage warbird. The 1000 red carnations commemorative our recent losses. The flowers represent Americans who have died defending the many freedoms we all share today. Each visitor is invited to collect one flower to take home.
This event is co-Sponsored by Forest Lawn Memorial Parks & Mortuaries. It was 1866 and the United States was recovering from the long and bloody Civil War between the North and the South. Surviving soldiers came home, some with missing limbs, and all with stories to tell. Henry Welles, a drugstore owner in Waterloo, New York, heard the stories and had an idea. He suggested that all the shops in town close for one day to honor the soldiers who were killed in the Civil War and were buried in the Waterloo cemetery. On the morning of May 5, the townspeople placed flowers, wreaths and crosses on the graves of the Northern soldiers in the cemetery. At about the same time, Retired Major General Jonathan A. Logan planned another ceremony, this time for the soldiers who survived the war. He led the veterans through town to the cemetery to decorate their comrades' graves with flags. It was not a happy celebration, but a memorial. The townspeople called it Decoration Day. In 1882, the name was changed to Memorial Day and soldiers who had died in previous wars were honored as well. In the northern United States, it was designated a public holiday. In 1971, along with other holidays, President Richard Nixon declared Memorial Day a federal holiday on the last Monday in May.
FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION |
| June 14 Saturday |
Father's Day Weekend - Special access to our Warbirds collection in the Palm Springs Air Museum. From 11:00 am. - 4:00 p.m., the cockpits of selected aircraft will be opened, allowing the visiting public to take a close-up view. This will allow opportunities for much better inspection than is normally possible. Guides will be assigned to supervise each individual cockpit and provide additional information about interesting features.
PANCAKE BREAKFAST from 10AM to NOON, $5 adults, $4 kids. Featured planes: B-17, P-63, TBM, A-26, Spitfire, PBY, COD. |
| June 15 Sunday |
Father's Day Special Admission - Dad gets FREE admission with Paid Child Admission. Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and male parenting, and to honor and commemorate fathers and forefathers. Bring dad to the museum and take advantage of his Free day to enjoy with his family and children.
FREE ADMISSION FOR DAD |
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June 20 1:00PM
Aero Derby 2:30PM |
The Palm Springs Air Museum’s first Education Workshop will be held on Friday, June 20, 2008 at 1:00 PM. The hour-long “Wright Brothers” curriculum covers history of early aviation and general theory of flight. Question and Answer period follows. All participants will receive an Activity Booklet This workshop costs $10 in addition to the price of admission to the museum. Museum Librarian Frank Castner teaches this workshop.
A Mini Aero Derby will be held at 2:30 PM, sponsored by the Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. A contest with prizes will be held after participants build and fly their glider. Supplies for the Derby are included with the price of admission. |
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After Memorial Day, the weather turns too hot for us to fly and attendance at our formal programs declines. There is still much to do here at our Air Conditioned Museum. 
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KOREA: THE FORGOTTEN WAR – A presentation by the men who fought in Korea.
