Explore The Marvels Of The Smithsonian National Air And Space Museum!
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00:00Welcome back to another exciting episode.
00:20Today we are at, I believe it's pronounced, Chantilly, Virginia, to check out the Smithsonian
00:27Institute National Air and Space Museum.
00:30Yes, there is a Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. as well, but this
00:38is the annex in Chantilly, Virginia.
00:42I've been to both of them and they each have their pluses and minuses, and I think you'll
00:47see the big plus in this one.
00:50When you first pull in, you'll see there is ample parking, and it's right around the main
00:56entrance.
01:18After walking down the very long walkway, you will go into the building.
01:24There is security, and I notice they do randomly check your bag, so be prepared for that.
01:37Admission is free, but there is a $15 parking fee, and you do pay here inside the facility.
01:46Some quick pro tips, if you're going to be going out off property to eat, then you do
01:52need your parking receipt to get back in, because you can have free re-entry the same
01:57day.
01:58Also, don't forget to check out the Welcome Center, where you can get a map of the whole
02:03facility.
02:06It's quite extensive and pretty accurate, both front and back.
02:11You can also download a digital copy of the map through a QR code on a monitor, and just
02:18so you are prepared, this is an absolutely huge place, so buckle up.
02:25This might be a long one, but definitely worth a watch.
02:33Walking down the ramp into the main hangar, you will see some electronic kiosks that you
02:39can play with, as well as these very informative information boards that are all over the place,
02:47so you know what you're looking at, and the history behind it.
02:50Continuing down the ramp, you kind of get a little bit of an idea just how massive this
02:56place is, and the awesome items you're going to get into, including the actual engines
03:04that are in these aircraft.
03:06Once you hit the hangar floor, wow, just wow.
03:12The adventure begins, including aircraft simulators, but we'll get more in depth with
03:19that a little bit later, but let's start out checking out the Boeing Aviation Hangar.
03:25This is the largest part of the museum, and for me, one of the most fascinating.
03:30They really cram a lot of stuff into this hangar, and I am so excited to explore it
03:36with you.
03:37When you get to the bottom of the ramp, right in front of you, you will see the SR-71, and
03:42of course, after gawking at that thing for quite some time, turn around, and underneath
03:48the steps, you get a better view of the aircraft engine display, which shows everything from
03:55the Wright Brothers engine, all the way to more modern engines.
04:03In the section of the hangar you're looking at now, we find that air power came into its
04:09own as an indispensable weapon during the Second World War.
04:14All the roles and missions emblematic of modern air power were defined during World War I,
04:21and redefined in practice during World War II.
04:25Among them, maintaining air superiority, performing reconnaissance, providing close support for
04:31ground forces, ensuring logistical support, and executing strategic attacks.
04:39As aviation technology has evolved, so too has the nature of air warfare.
04:45Nations will most likely never again build the kinds of vast aerial armaments that were
04:50seen during World War II.
04:53Modern aircraft, they carry weapons far more accurate than the bombs dropped by the thousands
04:59in World War II, and far fewer aircrafts and weapons are needed to destroy or dismantle targets.
05:07Modern air power can produce precise and deadly effects with relatively few of the so-called
05:15smart bombs.
05:17As you watch this video, I just need to note that there are some places where there was
05:23music playing in the background.
05:25It was very light, but I will probably have to overdub some music of my own just so I
05:33don't get hit with copyright strike.
05:36So I apologize for those who don't like music in the background of the videos, but in this
05:42case there are some places I'm going to have to do that.
05:46For those of you who were not born within the Cold War aviation era, tensions between
05:52the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War resulted in a competition to
05:57create advanced technologies aimed at gathering intelligence.
06:02Aerial reconnaissance played an important role and the Lockheed SR-71 was a direct result
06:10of this struggle for supremacy.
06:13And it is a beautiful bird as you see.
06:16I was even lucky enough to see one fly when I was in the Air Force.
06:21The Stephen F. Udvar Hazy Center displays thousands of aviation and space artifacts,
06:29including the Space Shuttle Discovery, which we'll see a little bit later, the Blackbird
06:34SR-71, the Concorde, and so much more, and two large hangars.
06:44The hours of operation at the time that we visited was 10 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. and they
06:51are open every day except December 25th.
06:56To give you sort of a general idea of where this place is located, it's just south of
07:02the Washington Dulles International Airport along Route 28, about a half mile north of
07:10the intersection of Route 28 and 50.
07:13Obviously you're not allowed any weapons here, but also for those of you who are going
07:20to document your trip, you're not allowed to bring tripods or monopods, selfie sticks,
07:26those kind of things.
07:28And of course you can't have pets other than medical assist dogs.
07:31You're not supposed to bring food or drink in there because they do have places for you
07:36to eat on site, or again you can go off site and come back on as long as you keep the receipt
07:43for your parking.
07:45So again, free admission to the parking area if you keep your receipt for the same day.
07:53And it is a non-smoking facility.
07:57As far as accessibility, they do have handicap available parking and they even have a special
08:06handicap drop-off lane at the entrance of this center.
08:11But again, it's only for drop-off, you can't park there.
08:15And as you saw at the beginning of the video, they do have access ramps and they do have
08:20elevators that are available in several locations throughout the building.
08:25And you are welcome to bring your own mobility devices, but they do have a limited number
08:31of standard and bariatric wheelchairs that are available for use while visiting the museum
08:37if something happens to your wheelchair.
08:40Just remember these wheelchairs are provided on a first-come, first-served basis and they
08:46are stationed right after entering the building on the right-hand side.
08:53As mentioned before, service animals are welcome, however remember emotional support, therapy,
09:00animals, comfort, or companion animals are not service animals, so they are not permitted
09:07inside the museum.
09:10And the restrooms are wheelchair and companion care accessible.
09:16And to top it all off, they do have braille and tactile guides for those who need them.
09:26All righty then, let's go on a musical tour of the rest of this part of the hangar on
09:32the second and third floors and see what we come across.
09:36And I'll be right back on the other side to give you another tour for some really great
09:41and spectacular surprises that we came across.
09:46Just you wait.
12:06One of my personal favorite areas that we went through is the early flight section.
12:19It's where between the first flights of the Wright Brothers in 1903 and the outbreak of,
12:27I think it was around World War I in 1914, they show that the airplanes grew from an
12:34ancient dream into reality that would undoubtedly shape the future.
12:39Our early flight section, it uses artifacts to explore how in one short decade people
12:47in America and around the world were pushing boundaries, setting records, participating
12:53in air shows, and turning the aircraft into technology that would usher in the aerial
13:00age.
13:01They even had some docents there that would explain to younger people and children about
13:08aerodynamics, early aircraft, the Wright Brothers, and more.
13:32It was a wonderful collection to look at, and for me, again, one of the more fascinating
13:38areas of the Boeing hangar.
13:41Yeah, there's also a multitude of simulators here.
13:48You can fly or ride in motion capture ride simulators, interactive flight simulators,
13:56and virtual reality motion ride VR transporters.
14:01You can experience the thrill of aviation, fun, and adventure.
14:06These are at a cost, so check before you go, and then just simply choose your adventure
14:12and take an exciting trip on their dynamic motion capsules.
14:17On the ride simulators, you have Discovery, Space Mission Hubble.
14:23You also have Wings, Flight of Courage, Destination Black Hole, and Red Baron.
14:31Red Baron is when you get to hop into an open cockpit of a triplane and head into danger
14:38with the most infamous ace of World War I.
14:42Now note that these do contain sounds and scenes of gunfire and explosions, so those
14:48who are sensitive to those things might not want to go onto the simulators.
14:54And they do warn you to participate at your own risk.
14:58Behind the Boeing exhibit, in a connected hangar, there is the James S. McDonald Space
15:06Hangar, which has all things space, including the Discovery.
15:13The Discovery was the third space shuttle orbiter vehicle to fly in space.
15:19It entered service in 1984 and retired from spaceflight as the oldest and most accomplished
15:27orbiter, the champion of the shuttle fleet.
15:31Discovery flew on 39 Earth orbital missions, spent a total of 365 days in space, and traveled
15:41almost 150 million miles.
15:44That's more than any other orbiter.
15:47It shuttled 184 men and women into space and back, many of whom flew more than once, for
15:53a record-setting total crew count of 251.
15:58Good morning again.
16:01How are you?
16:03Wow, that AI, you guys are fantastic.
16:06You guys are more lifelike every day.
16:08That's a magnificent job, right?
16:10Yes.
16:11So, you do this like every weekend or something, or?
16:16I generally am here most Sunday mornings, from 10 to 11.30, yeah.
16:21Oh, awesome.
16:22That's great that you're doing that for everybody.
16:23Yeah.
16:24They started doing these virtual stations during the pandemic, but they remained pretty
16:28popular, so they've kept the shuttle station, and there's one by the SR-71.
16:33That's Eleanor, correct?
16:34Eleanor, yes.
16:35All right.
16:36Well, thank you very much, Eleanor.
16:37We appreciate everything you're doing.
16:41Because Discovery flew every kind of mission the space shuttle was meant to fly, it well
16:47embodies the 30-year history of U.S. human spaceflight from 1981 to 2011.
16:57Named for renowned sailing ships of exploration, Discovery is preserved as intact as possible
17:06as it flew in 2011 on the 133rd space shuttle mission.
17:13NASA transferred Discovery to the Smithsonian in April of 2012 after a delivery flight over
17:21the nation's capital.
17:33Don't forget to visit the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar.
17:40There's a number of kiosks that will go over very specific restorations that they're doing
17:46and the restoration process in general.
17:49They have a fantastic viewing area where you can just watch and see what they're doing
17:53or take pictures of the restoration process.
17:56They have many restoration projects going on.
18:00Some of them are recreations, but some are the actual aircraft that they're restoring
18:05so they can put out in the museum for our viewing pleasure.
18:13As you can see, Elias really got into this section.
18:31There's also an IMAX theater here, which plays some really interesting movies.
18:39And this is also the area that has the penny pressing machine, if you're into those things.
18:46And we all know Elias loves them.
18:49Just look at them go.
19:01A little hard to find but worth the hunt is the Donald D. Edgen Observation Tower.
19:09Once you find it, there is a queue that you do have to wait in line at, but they do have
19:15this little mini museum area that you can peruse while you wait for the elevator.
19:21Then once entering the elevator, you go up to the seventh floor, you get out, and oh
19:29my goodness, get a load of this.
19:46You not only get a great look at the countryside, but you can also see aircraft taking off and
19:51landing at the local airport.
19:55And some of those aircraft were so close, I swear we could have touched them.
19:59Unfortunately, I wasn't quick enough with the camera to catch those flights.
20:04But this was a very enjoyable day.
20:08Well, I thank you for tagging along with us today.
20:24We really appreciate it, and we hope to see you back here very soon.
20:29And as always, have a great day.