anging from the rafters of the Museum, in the Barnstorming exhibit, is a Standard J-1 airplane that has a famous background. This particular plane, serial #1598, was built in 1917 and purchased as Army surplus in 1920 by B.A. Bower of Knoxville, Tennessee. Our Standard is a movie star, appearing in two films, "It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "The Spirit of St. Louis" (1957).
Early in the summer of 1929, Cleveland buzzed with excitement about the National Air Races scheduled to come to town. Mr. Lee Clegg of Thompson Products was approached by a volunteer worker of the National Air Races to ask if Thompson Products Co. would provide a trophy for one of the many races being held for the first time in Cleveland.
At the top end of the list of ground-based aircraft trainers are the Full Flight Simulators; a combination of both the motions enhanced generic flight trainers and the non-motion, but aircraft specific, cockpit trainers. The San Diego Air and Space Museum collection includes a Full Flight Simulator built specifically for an iconic airliner, the Boeing 727. Introduced in 1964, over 1800 of the model were built and some are still in use today. The 727 was a mainstay for several airliners around the world, including TWA, whose livery SDASM's simulator is painted with.
The Museum's popular stewardess or flight attendant uniform collection serves as a wonderful illustration of changing times. With over 250 uniforms in the collection, dating from the 1920s to the 1990s, they illustrate what was culturally or socially appropriate through the years. Our 1944 Trans World Airline uniform is especially illustrative of the breath of the Museum's collection.
As aircraft became faster and more sophisticated, the equipment that their pilots wore had to adapt as well. It became clear that the human body was not naturally able to cope with the stresses that flying in these modern aircraft put on them. One of the main issues was G-force, which in simple terms is the increase in gravity due to acceleration, which in aircraft can be very great. For example, if you are on a roller coaster that is said to have a force of 3G, would feel 3 times as heavy as normal gravity. High G force makes blood gather in the lower extremities of the body, which can deprive the brain of oxygen. As such, pilots can pass out when exposed to 4-6 Gs. To combat this, along with breathing techniques, pilots utilize G-Suits to keep the blood from collecting in the legs.
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The San Diego Air & Space Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Federal Tax ID Number 95-2253027.
