In addition to the aircraft on display at the main complex, a new Flight/Restoration Center has been opened. This vintage complex has been completely renovated and holds more aircraft. It also has a large art gallery. Visitors can see restoration and maintenance work in progress.

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The Air Zoo took possession of an F-14A Tomcat on loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation on May 18, 1995. It is thought to be only the fourth museum in the world to have that fighter in its collection. Other than the Pensacola museum, the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum is the only known museum to have all of the Grumman cats when Art Wolk’s Panther is in residence. These are the FM-2 (F4F), F6F, F7F, F8F, Wolk’s F9F, TF9J, F11A and F-14A.

The Kalamazoo Air Zoo, like most nonprofit institutions, could not survive without its dedicated volunteers. They do everything from maintenance and gift shop sales to tour escort and security. Tour guides explain the role various aircraft played in the history of the United States. More than half of the aircraft in the collection are airworthy, and many more are flown on a regular basis.

There almost always is a lot happening at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. Close to 60,000 visitors come to the museum annually, and though the wear and tear of that many people should take a toll on the building, it is as pristine as the planes it holds. The floor glows with the reflections of aircraft like the camouflaged Supermarine Mk.IX Spitfire, the navy-blue Douglas AD-4 Skyraider, the silver Vultee BT-13 Valiant, and the purple Hispano HA1112 Buchon–the Spanish Messerschmitt.

Colorful banners with aviation insignia and geometric shapes brighten up the main exhibition area. Collections of artifacts representing everything from ration stamps to weapons are displayed. There is an assortment of more than 200 model aircraft, including a replica of “The Guff,” the first radio-controlled aircraft built by Kalamazoo’s Good Brothers–the original is in the Smithsonian. There is also a large display of aviation art and photographs.

But there is plenty more to see and do at the Air Zoo than just visit old aircraft and memorabilia. Visitors can experience the exciting “Corsair Challenge” flight simulator, in which riders are physically and visually tricked into thinking they are actually flying in an F4U Corsair fighter. The virtual reality technique overloads the riders’ minds with so much sensory input that it causes them to believe they are flying.

May to September finds the Air Zoo holding its Flight of the Day (weather permitting), when one of the warbirds takes to the air to perform for spectators. Those interested in the “real thing” can actually fly in a vintage aircraft. From May to October, the museum sells seats for flights in its classic Ford C-4 TriMotor. Flying in the TriMotor gives passengers a taste of aviation’s golden age. This aircraft was built in 1929 and was one of the five original Tri-Motors purchased by Northwest Airlines.

Perhaps one of the most important offerings of the museum is the mini-museum it houses within itself. This is the Guadalcanal Memorial Museum, which is maintained by the Guadalcanal Campaign Veterans Association. It consists of artifacts, pictures and three realistically constructed dioramas of key battles on Guadalcanal during World War II.

The Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame took up residence at the Air Zoo on September 23, 1995. This collection of artifacts and information of such august aviation figures as Charles Lindbergh, Eddie Stinson, William Boeing, Henry Ford, and Harriet Quimby celebrates those personages who made outstanding contributions to the aerospace heritage of the United States and who were born in Michigan or spent a significant portion of their careers in that state. Each of them has a fascinating story to be discovered by museum guests.

Along with the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame, the Air Zoo has newly expanded to provide its visitors with a hands-on activity room in which children can get inside the cockpits of an F-80 Shooting Star, a KC-135 Stratotanker, an F-106 Delta Dart, a CH-53 Super Stallion and a half-scale Corsair fighter. Other hands-on activities are available.

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