Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, 3

But wait, there's more. In a separate hangar is a collection of WWII fighters, some on loan (and some for sale), of interest. All are late models, and the Stuka (I think) is a reconstructed replica. As in "Knights of the Sky," "Dangerous Skies" tells many stories through many media, all impressive.

True story: 1940, the Brit pilot parachuted to safety, landing square in the middle
of a garden party going on in Kent; the doctor depicted offers him a drink after
attending to his minor injuries; guest of honor; he was stunned some weeks later
to receive a bill for her services

"His" Hawker Hurricane, depicted after he had parachuted to safety; personally,
I felt the Hurricane should have been presented with more dignity: Hurricanes,
not Spitfires, accounted for 80% of the kills in the Battle of Britain

Much in the way of apparel, accoutrements, paraphrenalia

And posters

Avro reconnaissance plane

Late model Curtis-Wright P-40; a favorite, though it was not
a star of the war

Mainly because of a boyhood infatuation with the Flying Tigers, a John Wayne
movie; interest in such things lead me eventually to libraries and books, so it
is not an altogether bad thing; it wasn't long before I learned what a patriot/
scoundrel Claire Chennault was; my interest waned...

A reconstructed/replica Stuka, the famous German dive bomber that terrorized
Europe from the Spanish Civil War on

The Jericho Trumpets (propellers) clearly in view on the landing gear

And, the pride of the show, a Spitfire

Great museum!

Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, 2

Continuing my tour of the great collection of WWI planes, replicas, memorabilia...

The German Gotha, first purpose-built bomber; terrorized London for a time
before attrition set in

The Brits' answer, the Vickers Vimy

Photograph of a Gotha; the museum is replete with photos, some
films, much else

Thus, close-up movie of a German 2-seater with the bombardier hand-tossing
anti-personnel bombs on allied troops

Quite a few of the life-sized dioramas depict real events; here a pilot, about to
abandon ship, learns he can maneuver his craft to a landing by standing outside
the fuselage and creating drag with a leg...flying a still fairly primitive in 1918;
interesting tidbit: the Brits did not allow use of parachutes until late in the war...
they were afraid the pilots would be less inclined to saving their craft...

The Centre has four Fooker triplane replicas, all air-worthy...

Scene depicting a Brit flyer who landed in a tree and was captured

The four Fokkers ("no, dem Fokkers was flyin' Messerschmidts" (favorite joke))

Model of one of the Zeppelins; they also terrorized London for a time until the
Brits figured out they were a bit, um, flammable; note the table service from
one of the trans-Atlantic versionsof later years

Art Nouveau clock with airplane model surmounting it; a model of the Etrich Taube
(devil) first produced in 1910; the Taube was the most bird-like of all planes ever
built (see previous post for life-size version)

Baron Manfred von Richtofen; greatest ace of the war with
80 victories; crashed near an Australian artillery battery
and thus much of his personal effects came to this part of
the world

Another German ace, Hermann Goering, who went on to
greater infamy in the Third Reich; he was one of the major
weaknesses in the German military, his bone-headedness so
legendary that the Allies carefully avoided bombing the Air
Ministry in Berlin; it is the only WWII structure that has
survived the war and reconstruction

Richtofen's hankie

About the Red Baron's last flight

Australian troops looting his plane and person for souvenirs; he was quite well
known and recognizable, perhaps the best known individual of the war

A favored prize was the black cross taken from German crashes

Photo of German aerodrome

Films and other media

I really wanted this T-shirt but Vicki reminded me I now
have a T-shirt for every day of the year; and have already
bought three in NZ this year

Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, 1

After a night in a freedom camp by a lake, we drove on through Blenheim, eschewing the numerous vineyards (we did Cloudy Bay last time), and straight to the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, which we had heard about from friends Rick and Kathy. In is an incipient aviation museum, not 20 years old, that found a capable donor, none other than Sir Peter Jackson, of LOTR fame, who for some years has been a collector of WWI aircraft and memorabilia. The Centre houses, among other things, his "Knights of the Sky" exhibition, augmented by incredible displays from WETA and other sources. I have seen larger and better air museums, but none that conveyed more nor more skillfully. If you have any interest in aviation or WWI history, you must see it.

Click to enlarge and read

Perhaps later I'll go back and identify all the planes

Art Nouveau aircraft (not the tail)

The displays, like this one, all life-size and more than realistic

Very early single wing model

Uniforms, flying gear, etc.

The US' top ace was Captain Eddie Rickenbacker; here,
his flying suit and other stuff; my mother worked at Eastern
Air Lines in the 40s and had met him

"Hat in the Ring," the American volunteer group of the time

Aerodrome scenes

American Glenn Curtis realized the first seaplane, or flying boat, in 1909;
here is a WWI reconnaissance version

5,000 poppies, sewn by New Zealand women; NZ contribute greatly to the
allied cause, and suffered greatly too, both inEurope and at Gallipoli

Many war posters of interest