Since we had gone into the heart of D.C. for the past two years, we decided to try something a little different this time. Having heard great things about the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center- which is the annex to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, we decided to check it out. We are so glad that we did- what a neat place!
The annex is located out by Dulles airport. Once we arrived, we ate at the McDonald's inside the museum (overpriced) and then headed straight for the tower- which offers visitors a view of the runways at Dulles. The kids had a good time watching for airplanes that were taking off and landing.
Also located in the tower was the air traffic controller exhibit. This was my #1 favorite thing about the museum. There was a screen that showed real-time air traffic at Dulles and then there were speakers that let you hear the air traffic controllers giving instructions to the pilots. I was amazed by how many planes were in the area at once. I definitely understand how stressful the controller's job is- you really have to stay on your toes.
After visiting the tower, we headed out into the museum itself. I say "museum"- it's really an enormous hanger with many, many planes in it. There are some planes that are stationed on the ground while others are suspended from the ceiling. There are also three levels of walkways so that visitors can view the planes from various angles.
One (free) interactive exhibit lets visitors sit in the cockpit of a Cessna and get a brief lesson on how to control the plane. The museum employee showed the kids how to control the roll, pitch, and yaw of the plane, and then they were able to practice. It was cool because you could see the outside parts of the plane move as the kids worked the levers inside.
One thing that we were all excited to see was the Space Shuttle Discovery. This was the first time that any of us had seen an actual space shuttle- so we took lots of pictures.
And here is the picture with a side view.
Another must-see was the Enola Gay, the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb.
This Pepsi stunt plane was not exactly a must-see, but the kids insisted that I take a picture of it "for Gigi".
I must say that I was really impressed with the Air and Space Museum annex. It was interesting and a good way to spend an afternoon.
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