The San Diego Air & Space Museum is proud to announce the completion of a major renovation project that significantly enhances our ability to preserve and protect an important part of aviation history.

Thanks to the generosity of The Fleet Foundation, the Parker Foundation, the Art Pratt Foundation, and numerous individual donors, our newly upgraded Uniform Room is now fully outfitted with compact track shelving—expanding our storage capacity by over 50% and allowing for customized preservation of uniforms and textiles.

This five-year effort began in 2019 but was paused during the pandemic. Work resumed in 2023 as we prepared for the relocation and reorganization of more than a thousand items, including military and commercial pilot uniforms, flight attendant attire, flags, parachutes, scarves, and other aviation textiles dating from the 1910s to the present.

Previously stored in a cramped 378-square-foot space, the collection now resides in a renovated 800-square-foot room—formerly our Library Annex—featuring 16-foot ceilings, improved climate controls, and secure, light-limiting conditions. Fragile items will no longer be folded or over-stuffed into boxes; instead, new drawers and hanging racks allow each piece to be stored properly and safely.

With additional support from a Groundworks Grant, the Museum acquired archival-quality materials to house these delicate fabrics. As part of the transfer and rehousing process, each uniform will be individually inventoried, photographed, and assessed for condition, ensuring long-term care and accuracy in our catalog system.

This investment not only preserves the physical integrity of these historical items but also enables the Museum to share them more broadly—through online access, improved exhibits, and future displays. Uniforms, with their deeply personal stories, connect us to the lives and legacies of those who shaped aviation history.

Thanks to our supporters, we can now protect these stories and share them with the world.

Mark IV high altitude pressure suit, Donated by Richard Gingery, whose father Benjamin King Gingery worked at Consolidated Aircraft, later Convair/General Dynamics for 37 years, working on the B-24 bomber, PBY Catalina, and later with Atlas in the Astronautics division, this suit was likely used in testing.

Leather Flight jacket, Type A-2, Worn by USAAF Lt. Edwin Douglas "Doug" Reinhardt during his service with 353rd Fighter Group, 352 Fight Squadron, stationed at RAF Raydon Field, England, World War II

48 star American flag carried on the first South Pole flight by pilot Bernt Balchen with navigator Richard Byrd in November of 1929