Golden Age Air Museum's JN4

Lufbery · 19 March 2003, 09:12 AM

All,

This past weekend, my wife and I stopped by the Golden Age Air Museum near Reading, PA. We stopped in without an appointment and without realizing that the museum is open from May through October.

Nevertheless, Paul Dougherty Jr., very kindly answer our questions and showed us around. One of the plane's they're working on is a Curtiss JN4D. They say that they're restoring it, but it looks more like they're using the old plane as a pattern for the new plane. The've got the fuselage frame pretty much done, and the level of craftmanship is outstanding. I truly look forward to seeing how they continue to put the plane together and I can't wait to see it fly.

One thing I found interesting is that they are using authentic construction, materials, and methods. The amount of research and level of detail is amazing, but I can understand now why people are drawn to 7/8 scale replicas and welded steel tube fuselages rather than wood and wire construction.

FWIW, our very own Bald Eagle is affiliated with this museum, and he's working on an N-28. The museum also has a Dr.1 that they'll be working on in the future.

Regards,

Alan · 22 March 2003, 11:57 PM

Cool on all accounts! *8)

Gee, your wife actually digs aviation? *

Mine doesn't see the big deal. *

But since I'm an aviation professional it kinda gets ramrodded...just...a...little *

Lufbery · 23 March 2003, 01:04 PM

Yeah, she likes it. Aviation is not her first love, or anything, but she puts up with my hobby.

I don't think she quite understands why seeing the Jenny under construction was an almost religious experience for me, though.

Regards,

Lufbery · 24 March 2003, 03:42 AM

Hmm. I'm surprised that more people haven't latched onto this thread. Is the Jenny held in such low esteem?

Regards,

ONEALM · 24 March 2003, 05:57 AM

OK, you got me.

The museum is nice and they have a really good collection of airframes, but you can see all that on their website. http://www.goldenageair.org/.

I was out last year twice once during a fly in and once during the week when they were open. THe museum is so far from anything else in the area (on purpose - no complaining neighbors during the airshows), that even when they are open for business during the week, we were the only two people there.

The time to show up is during the fly-in/show days in May, June August, Sept and October. Besides the stuff they already have, you get a more interesting aircraft coming in from around the area.

FWIW, my wife is also in the, "I guess that's interesting, but I don't see the total fascination" camp. She indulges the hobby, ocassionally participates, but has here own interests. On the up side, she can tell an Albatros from a SPAD....

-Mike

Lufbery · 24 March 2003, 11:09 AM

I guess for me, it was actually seeing a real, honest-to-God-Jenny, and not just a picture that really made an impression. More to the point, it was a real, honest-to-God-Jenny that was under construction. Seeing it, and talking to those involved really brought home a lot of issues that had been purely theoretical for me before. Basically, though, it was just neat seeing the creation of something wonderful.

Regards,