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In the early 1960s, a number of senior Naval Aviators identified a need to capture and preserve the heritage of Naval Aviation. Their concern and vision gave birth to the National Museum of Naval Aviation (NMNA). The Museum was established on 14 December 1962 by authority of the Secretary of the Navy, as a shore activity in an active operating status. The primary mission of the Museum is to select, collect, preserve and display appropriate memorabilia representative of the development, growth, and historic heritage of United States Naval Aviation. It began in a small World War II temporary building of only 8,500 square feet. A major effort was undertaken to collect the rapidly disappearing examples of historic aircraft, artifacts and memorabilia of Naval, Marine Corps and Coast Guard Aviation. As the collection grew rapidly, the need for a permanent, larger home for the Museum became apparent. To meet this need, and to provide adequate facilities for the preservation of the history and heritage of Naval Aviation by the Museum, Admiral Arthur M. Radford volunteered to organize a civilian group to provide Museum support. Thus, the Naval Aviation Museum Association was founded in 1966 to raise funds for a new Museum building. Presently referred to as the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation (N.A.M.F.), this organization still serves as the non-profit fund raising and educational branch of the Museum. In April of 1975, Phase I of the new Museum was completed. This first phase of the Museum, now known as the South Wing, included a main exhibit area, offices, gift shop and entrance lobby, measuring more than 64,000 square feet, almost eight times the size of the original building. Five years later, in 1980, through more hard work, dedication and support throughout the aviation community, Phase II of the Museum was completed. This included the mezzanine and the spaces under it bringing the total Museum space to 107,000 square feet. Phase III was completed and dedicated late in 1990 adding more than 127,000 square feet to the Museum, which included the Blue Angel Atrium, the USS Cabot flight deck area, the Emil Buehler Naval Aviation Library and office spaces. This area is now known as the West Wing. Phase IIIA, a new 41,000 square foot entrance building was dedicated on May 8, 1996 that contains a 534-seat IMAX® large screen theater and a magnificent five story glassed entrance foyer known today as the Quarterdeck. A heroic sized statuary is displayed here representing Naval Aviators from World War I, World War II, the war in Korea, the war in Vietnam and Desert Storm. Suspended overhead are five representative aircraft used during those periods. The National Museum of Naval Aviation has welcomed millions of visitors from throughout the world. Recognized as one of the leading attractions in the entire Southeast, with more than 130 aircraft on display and with more than 180 on loan or in storage, the Museum clearly has one of the finest collections of historic aircraft in the world. The aircraft in the collection span the entire history of Naval Aviation from 1911 to the present. The Museum, a major attraction with a large open display area, plays host to a number of official and semi-official ceremonies including reunions, seminars, retirements, wingings, graduations and reenlistments. |