April 16th 2008 Posted in
Life
Seattle’s Museum of Flight has a lot of really beautiful airplanes on display. From a piper cub to the Lockheed M-21 Blackbird, and the BAC Concorde, the Museum of Flight facility at King County / Boeing field is a major destination for aircraft enthusiasts and tourism. What a lot of people do not realize is that the Museum has another facility at the Snohomish County airport. The Museum of Flight Restoration Center is open to the public and provides a great lesson on the work it takes to bring some broken down aircraft back from the scrap yard.
Staffed almost totally with volunteers, the Restoration Center is currently working on several unique or rare aircraft, like the only de Havilland Comet in the United States, and the XF8U-1 Crusader, the prototype to the F-8 Crusader that served with the US Navy and Marines from 1957 to 1976.


Currently, the floor of the restoration center is dominated by the Crusader and a Vought F-7U Cutlass, a Navy aircraft that flew for less than ten years and replaced by the Crusader.

Also on the floor is a Grumman FM-2 Wildcat, a World War II fighter that flew with the US Navy and Marines.

Along with an impressive amount of parts and pieces of airplanes, some new woodwork is also on display, as the staff restore the wooden wings of a glider on the upper deck.

Outside the restoration center there are some more finds, particularly the first Boeing 727 and the Piasecki H-21 twin rotor helicopter.


A trip to the Restoration center is a must for all aircraft enthusiasts, if only to witness the skill and dedication it takes to bring these wonderful aircraft back to life.
The Restoration Center is open Tuesday through Thursday, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The Restoration Center is closed on Fridays, Sundays and Mondays. Please call 425-745-5150 for more information.