The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

This is going to be a very photo rich post, so most of it is below the fold. Also, although I love my little Sony camera, it unfortunately does not do too well in low light on its automatic settings. However, not having a tripod handy, I was kinda stuck with what I got. Still, the pics came out pretty well, even if they're not perfect...

Moooooving along, now: I'm up in Annapolis with the Beloved Husband and the Darling Munchkin, while Husband conducts some business. We came up on Sunday so we could have Monday to go to the National Air and Space Museum outside of Dulles International Airport. The Munchkin loves scientific things - she adored the Museum of Natural History when we were in D.C. over Memorial Day Weekend - so this was a huge treat for her.

Actually, it was a treat for me, too! I got to see some planes that made history, as well as take lots of pictures of the the plane which is - for some unfathomable reason - my absolute favorite in all the world.

For more yummy aviation-type stuff, you can now click to read below the fold! I've used fairly large thumbnails throughout, but ALL of the pics can be enlarged by clicking on them. Go on, now - you know you want to!

All right, I may as well start off with a bang. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the most beautiful and awesome plane ever flown - so far. I admit, our engineers and aviation companies may come up with something even hotter... but it won't be soon.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird:

Beautiful, isn't she? I love the way she blends into the darkness behind her.

I ought to mention at this point, that a) all the exhibits were inside, which surprised (and gratified) me, and b) the lighting is actually pretty dim. There are accent lights on many of the planes, but no real overall lighting. I'm not sure yet if it "works" for me or not. I will say that it made some of the photography a bit tricky.

Anyway, here are more worshipful images of my lovely:

 

Ah, the beauty that is the Blackbird...

Another historic plane displayed at the Museum is the Enola Gay. For those of you who are puzzling, yes, the Enola Gay is the plane which dropped the Atom Bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. She, too, is a beautiful plane - smooth and silver, gleaming dully in the ambient light. One thing which surprised me about almost all of these planes was their size: most were smaller than I had imagined them to be, and this was particularly true of the Enola Gay.

   

A beautiful, tragic plane. I pray that we will never again have to use such a terrible weapon, but I realize that there are still bad guys out there, and this may be the only language they can understand. Sobeit. But, dear Lord in Heaven, I pray that You keep us from the necessity...

Another treat on display at the Museum is the Concorde. A very sleek plane, and again, much smaller than I expected. Really, a pretty cool piece of machinery.

      

One exciting exhibit was so new that it had no "proper" information plaque - just a simple printout of this amazing plane:

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the first jet plane to make a solo, non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world. As you can see, the Global Flyer made several other records - make sure to click on the picture for full-size if you have trouble reading the info.

 

An amazing plane - she's got a huge footprint, almost the same as the Concorde, for example. However, she's still very tiny, all lightweight materials, fuel tanks and wing. Truly amazing!

Finally, I present to you my favorite part of the whole exhibit. Yes, I know I told you that Blackbird is my favorite plane, but this lady is something special. She has never flown as her family was meant to, and yet she is the Crown Jewel of this collection. She stands for her sisters performing their mission, and she stands for her sisters who have tragically fallen.

She represents the highest ideals, the most dedicated courage, the fierce intelligence, and the unbending determination of America to rise above the bounds of this earth and touch the stars.

She is... Enterprise.

She follows a long line of ships graced with that name. The first American ship of that name fought in the Revolutionary War, and died a sacrificial death:

        During the British advance prior to the Battle of Saratoga, Enterprise was one of the five vessels assigned to duty convoying bateaux in the evacuation of Ticonderoga. The small American force was no match for the British fleet on Lake Champlain, and after two ships had been captured, Enterprise and the other two were run aground on 7 July 1777, and burned to prevent their capture.

A second Enterprise was a privateer during the same period, and the third Enterprise fought - and won - at Tripoli and the War of 1812.

The next Enterprise to sail for America was a scientific and exploratory ship, perhaps the first inkling of the shuttle Enterprise, and a small part of the foundation of the USS Enterprise, of Star Trek fame.

In modern history, two ships have served America with honor and distinction under this name:

USS Enterprise (CV-6) sailed during World War II, defending Pearl Harbor against the Japanese in 1941, and as one of the first aircraft carriers of our Navy. In 1942, she joined the Hornet and the Yorktown in the Battle of Midway, severely damaging the Japanese fleet in one of the critical battles of that War. "The Big E" continued her valiant service thoughout the Second World War, until she was decommissioned in 1947, and eventually scrapped.

The most recent wet-navy ship named Enterprise is the world's first nuclear powered aircraft carrier. USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was comissioned on September 24, 1960. She has served all over the world, including the 1962 blockade of Cuba, Viet Nam, the Philippeans, the Persian Gulf, and Afghanistan. Her replacement is scheduled for 2013, or thereabouts, and I hope the American people place her in honorable retirement instead of scrapping her.

The meaning of the word "enterprise" can be defined as: "An undertaking, especially one of some scope, complication, and risk." One of my favorite Star Trek novels, My Enemy, My Ally, by Diane Duane, has a lovely echange between Captain Kirk and the Romulan Commander, who are working together to save another ship and crew. They discuss the meaning and importance of names, and then Ael, the Romulan, asks:

"And what mighty 'enterprise' was this ship named after?" she said.

"Not one particular one. just the spirit of enterprise in general. And there were many other ships with the same name, an old tradition..."

He trailed off when he saw that she was staring at him again. "Oh, no wonder," she said softly, more to herself than to him. "All of ch'Rihan has wondered why this ship has been through so much trouble, so much glory...."

"Do enlighten me."

It was sarcasm, but gentle; he genuinely didn't seem to know what she was talking about. "Ca-- Jim, it's dangerous to name anything, a person, a vessel, after an entire unmitigated virture. The whole power of it gets into the named one, makes it go places, do things too great for man... Glory follows, but sorrow, too...."

For me, that sums up the glory and the tragedy of the ships named

ENTERPRISE

I pray that America never stops giving her ships names for the greatest ideals, concepts, and people. Enterprise, Washington, Intrepid, Lincoln, Constitution, Mercy, Independence...

Ad astra!

[photo courtesy of NASA]

Comments

[Kender]

1.

Dang it....I am soooo jealous. Great post R'Cat.

[ExPreacherMan]

2.

Kat,

Great pics.. Last month Sweet Wife and I went to Cape Caneveral zand went through the Space tour.. It was spectacular -- great pics..

But just think.. as great as we poor humans can do -- our Savior is greater!!

ExP

[Wild Thing]

3.

This is an awesome post! The photos and write up, omg fantastic! You did a great job with this, it makes me want to go soooo much.

[Beth]

4.

Great pictures! I'm a HUGE fan of the Blackbird and the space program, so along with the Enola Gay, you hit all the high points for me!
My daughter was just there last week while she was spending a week with the ex, and she LOVED it--but they forgot to take pictures!

[Raven]

5.

I have seen the Enola Gay and I was surpised at how small it is. LOL I guess when I think of nukes I think BIG. Heh.

Great pics RCat...sounds like a wonderful time too. I always wanted to be an astronaut when I was a little brat- dreamed of being onboard the USS Enterprise sitting next to Capt. Kirk!!! LOL So when they named the shuttle after that ship, or however which way it goes (didn't Star Trek name the Enterprise after the WW2 air craft carier??) I was impressed.

[annika]

6.

I love the SR-71. That thing flew so high, and so fast that the electronic controls inside missiles that were fired at her could not crunch numbers fast enough to lock on. Fighter jets that tried to shoot her down stalled in the thin atmosphere and couldn't come near her.

[Spank That Donkey]

7.

Great Post!!

Looks like some one has got that DC traveling bug!! Why not do a post on all the references you can find to God in the city's architecture? (sorry Libs, its all over the place)

[Janette]

8.

Great post Kat! I loved this museum so much, the displays really took me back to all my childhood fantasies.

I was also struck by how small all of the planes seemed to be. I guess we really build up our legends in our minds.