Tag Archives: Cradle of Aviation

Long Island’s Cradle of Aviation Museum is Sensational Destination on Staycation Itinerary

The world-class Cradle of Aviation Museum in Uniondale, Long Island, is a sensational destination for a staycation – inspiring exhibits that explain the beginning of aviation to the future of space travel in the place where it happened, set in a spacious, comfortable air-conditioned facility. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Garden City, NY July 8, 2020 – On Thursday, July 9th at 10am, the Cradle of Aviation Museum and Education Center will reopen to the public following local, state, and federal guidelines. The air and space museum has been working diligently preparing for a safe and secure experience for visitors and will begin a phased reopening approach proceeding cautiously to normal services, placing the health and safety of its visitors, employees and community first.  As a thank you to frontline healthcare workers for their courageous and selfless efforts, the museum is offering free admission until August 31, 2020 with valid employee id. 

Additionally, for reopening weekend only, July 9 – July 12th, the museum is rolling out from storage, four recently restored aircraft, the Republic F-105 Thunderchief, the Grumman Agcat, the Grumman X-29, and the Fokker D-VII, for visitors to view outside for the very first time.

“The Cradle staff and volunteers are excited to be able to reopen the museum to provide visitors with a safe and exciting experience. The museum staff has worked hard to create a safe and clean environment for all visitors and we look forward to welcoming everyone to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the end of WWII as well as the 50th Anniversary of F-14 Tom Cat,” said Andrew Parton, President, Cradle of Aviation Museum and Education Center 

Cradle of Aviation educators measure out six-foot social distancing separations getting the air-and-space museum ready to reopen to the public  © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

REOPENING PREPARATIONS  – Reopening Plan 

Reduced Services and Reduced Schedule

As of July 9th the museum’s new operating hours are Thursday – Sunday 10 am-4 pm.

Museum galleries will be open.

Theater and Planetarium, Nunley’s Carousel, and Junior Jet Club are temporarily closed as per NYS direction.  

Cafe – Open with limited light snacks and pre-packaged items. 

Admission tickets may be purchased online or at the box office. 

Safety Requirements

All Employees are required to wear face masks.

All visitors over the age of 2 are required to wear face masks while at the museum. Disposable face masks will be made available for anyone who does not have them. This is an NYS mandate; this simple action keeps our employees and fellow visitors safe, helping to stop the spread.

Certain jobs will require employees to use gloves, but gloves are available to all staff who choose to use them.

The museum has added signage about appropriate distancing, wearing masks, our cleaning procedures and best practices in sanitation behavior.

Implementing Social Distancing Standards

The museum is limiting the number of people allowed in the museum by 25% maximum capacity for the foreseeable future.

The museum is introducing socially distanced queuing at our box office, entrances, café and store registers.

Six feet is the standard, and staff are empowered to close exhibits if maintaining 6 feet of distance between people appears to not be possible.

The museum has installed plexiglass shields at all registers.

Directional floor markers and one-way flow through the museum and within galleries,

The museum is restricting group visits, guided tours, public programs, and special or private events limiting the number of participants until further notice as directed by NYS Government.

Enhancing Cleaning Procedures

The museum maintains its enhanced COVID-19 cleaning procedures (including thorough, frequent cleanings of high-touch surface areas), in addition to its daily standard cleaning services.

Bathrooms are cleaned every hour on the hour during work hours and are deep-cleaned in the evenings after the building is closed to the public.

The museum has installed hand sanitizer stations at frequent intervals throughout the museum, galleries and offices.

The museum is using the EPA recommended cleaner that is effective in killing SARS and COVID 19 for all of its sanitizing efforts along with 80% isopropyl alcohol spray for surfaces.

Health Screening and Policies

The museum is  requiring employees to do a health screening before each shift; checking for COVID symptoms; taking temperatures. Anyone with a fever of 100.4 or higher will be required to go home and we are encouraging staff to stay home if they feel unwell.

REOPENING – Top Reasons to Return to the Cradle

Free Admission for Healthcare Workers

Free Admission for Healhcare Workers until August 30, 2020 with valid employee ID.

Tickets can be ordered online or at box office. 

A thank you to our courageous heroes.

Four Recently Restored Planes on Display Outdoors for First Time One Weekend Only 

In recognition of the re-opening of the Cradle of Aviation Museum, the museum will allow visitors to see four aircraft recently restored and in storage for ONE weekend only July 9-12. 

This is the FIRST time these aircraft will have been shown to the public & will be placed back in storage after this weekend. 

Visitors may inspect the aircraft up close, barrier free, and museum staff will be on hand to answer any questions. The aircraft will be shown outdoors which should allow for excellent photographic opportunities. This viewing is free with admission.

Republic F-105 Thunderchief. Mach 2 fighter/bomber built in Farmingdale in the late 1950’s, and workhorse of the Vietnam War. Still the largest single-engine single-seat military aircraft ever built!

Grumman Agcat. 1960’s crop duster designed and first built in Bethpage. This is the only agricultural aircraft ever designed and built on Long Island. Aircraft was in a crash in the 1980’s and was recently extensively restored by the museum.

Grumman X-29. This full-scale mockup was built by Grumman prior to the construction of the two experimental jets in the 1980’s. Pioneered many advanced concepts including forward-swept wings, composite construction and fly-by-wire control.

Fokker D-VII. This vintage flyable replica is still under active restoration. German Fokker D-VII’s were the first fighters stationed on Mitchel Field in the years immediately after World War One. As the war’s best fighter, many were seized in Germany at the war’s conclusion and shipped to America. This exact replica includes many original parts. Upon conclusion of the restoration this will be the only Fokker D-VII in the world in U.S. Air Service markings.

The Grumman F-14 Tomcat (famous in the Top Gun movie, just in time for the relese of Top Gun 2) is on display, marking the 50th anniversary of the first flight © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

2020 is the 75th Anniversary of the End of WWII

Visitors can commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the end of WWII visitors with  a look back at the aircraft and the people that made a difference in ending the war including such fighter planes as the P-47 and Grumman’s Avenger, Hellcat, and Wildcat. 

2020 is the 50th Anniversary of the First Flight of the F-14

Visitors can experience the F-14 Tomcat, one of the most iconic Navy fighters, ever built on Long Island featured prominently in Top Gun.  See a full size aircraft, the third f-14 ever built and oldest flying F-14 from 1971-1990, two -F14 cockpits, nose and flying suits. Learn about the plane, the pilots, and why the F-14 is  such a beloved fighter and just in time before the release of Top Gun: Maverick this December.

The Cradle of Aviation Museum is an Escape and a Place to Feel Inspired for the Future

Who couldn’t use a little of that these days?

Spacious, clean, safe, air-conditioned, and inspiring.

The Cradle of Aviation Museum & Education Center is home to over 75 planes and spacecraft representing over 100 years of aviation history and Long Island’s only Giant Screen Dome Theater.  The museum is located on Museum Row, Charles Lindbergh Blvd., in Garden City.  Call (516) 572-4111 or visit www.cradleofaviation.org      

For more travel features, visit:

goingplacesfarandnear.com

goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com

moralcompasstravel.info

www.huffingtonpost.com/author/karen-rubin

travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/

goingplacesfarandnear.tumblr.com/

instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near/

‘Like’ us on facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Twitter: @TravelFeatures

                                   

Long Island’s Cradle of Aviation Brings Museum Online to Help Families, Educators & Community Stay Connected

Among the ongoing virtual experiences that Cradle of Aviation Museum is offering are replays via Facebook Watch Parties of some of its favorite encounters with astronauts, pilots, authors, and STEM leaders including the Apollo 50th Anniversary Dinner Panel in July featuring five Apollo Astronauts and two Mission Control directors. © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Garden City, NY — The world-class Cradle of Aviation Museum continues its primary mission to collect, preserve and interpret Long Island’s rich aerospace heritage of discovery and inspire future generations through science and technology. Though shuttered during the coronavirus pandemic, Cradle of Aviation is staying connected to the community by bringing the museum experience online with 360°  view gallery tours and through sharing helpful, fun, and inspirational content and programming. All resources are available at www.cradleofaviation.org/virtualmuseum and via social media channels.

Online Educational Services

LEARN with #Educator Tom, the museum’s latest TikTok sensation (with over 1.5m views in under a week) as he brings edutainment online through over 50 videos on the history of ingenuity and innovation in aerospace. Did you know that rotary engines spun along with propellers to cool it down? https://www.tiktok.com/@cradleofaviation/

MAKE an At Home Activity with video instruction from Cradle’s Education Team. Like “Make A Mission Patch” asking students to use their imagination on their own personal mission. If there were a mission to stop a virus, what would the patch look like? YouTube https://youtu.be/OShJVmPPJ8A

ASK an Educator those challenging STEM related homework questions and assignments and get some help from the Education team, like which layer of the Earth is located closer to the crust? Send questions to [email protected].

Virtual Museum – We Bring the Museum to Your Screen

EXPERIENCE the museum galleries in 360° via Google Street View and visit Cradle’s many exhibit pages with links to further resources from The Dream of Wings to the Future of Space. Virtual Tours https://www.cradleofaviation.org/plan_your_visit/virtual-museum/galleries-exhibits.html

BE INSPIRED with evening lectures as the museum replays via Facebook Watch Parties some of its favorite encounters with astronauts, pilots, authors, and STEM leaders including the Apollo 50th Anniversary Dinner Panel featuring five Apollo Astronauts and two Mission Control directors (Thursday, March 26th at 8pm) presentation and an intimate look at life and art of Apollo Astronaut Alan Bean with Leslie Bean and Shuttle Astronaut and Bestselling Author Mike Massimino (Tuesday, March 24th at 8pm.  www.facebook.com/cradleofaviation 

PERUSE thousands of inspirational photos of the heroes of air and space in our NY Heritage Digital Collection including rarely seen photos of Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, the F-14 and Lunar Module. https://nyheritage.org/contributors/cradle-aviation-museum

WATCH our playlists on our YouTube channel www.youtube.com/cradleofaviation including recommended picks from our curator, Josh Stoff, as well as inspirational interviews with astronauts who recently visited the museum.

FOLLOW US on social media as we continue to highlight inspirational stories of triumph over tragedy and celebrate teamwork in overcoming odds as well as recommended helpful resources on Facebook, InstagramTikTokTwitterLinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest.

“The Education Department is fortunate to have the opportunity to continue collaborating with educators and families across our region. Learning takes place beyond the four walls of a classroom. It can be fun and exciting in any environment from our museum floor to your living room to right outside your window! During this time, when families are learning at home, we’ll be sharing content from astronauts talking about their time in outer space, to how to build paper airplanes for a family flight contest, to homework help with the Cradle’s Education Department. We look forward to being a free resource for our community and to bring STEM to everyone,” said Catherine Gonzalez, Director of Education, Cradle of Aviation Museum.

“During these difficult times we salute the efforts of our superhero scientists and all health care professionals. At the Cradle we continue to serve as a STEM resource for the thousands of students who are operating in the current distant learning environment,” said Andrew Parton, President, Cradle of Aviation Museum.

Additionally, the Cradle of Aviation Museum is working on offering bilingual content including at home activities and a bilingual presentation from NASA Engineer Scarlin Hernandez.

The Cradle of Aviation Museum and Education Center is home to over 75 planes and spacecraft representing over 100 years of aviation history and Long Island’s only Giant Screen Dome Theater. The museum is located on Museum Row, Charles Lindbergh Blvd., in East Garden City. For more information call (516) 572-4111 or visit www.cradleofaviation.org 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CradleofAviation/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cradleofaviation/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cradleofaviation/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CradleAviation

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CradleofAviation

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cradle-of-aviation-museum

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/cradleaviation/

For more travel features, visit:

goingplacesfarandnear.com

goingplacesnearandfar.wordpress.com

moralcompasstravel.info

www.huffingtonpost.com/author/karen-rubin

travelwritersmagazine.com/TravelFeaturesSyndicate/

goingplacesfarandnear.tumblr.com/

instagram.com/going_places_far_and_near/

‘Like’ us on facebook.com/NewsPhotoFeatures

Twitter: @TravelFeatures