WW2 top ten planes

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I just spent about an hour looking at all of the French and Belgian aircraft museum site. There is a smattering of French fighters, observation aircraft, and trainers but no bombers. As an aircraft lover I am appalled that none of these aircraft were preserved.

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Not many nations seem to have had the "keep something of everything" attitude to WW2 vehicles that the US had. Possibly its just a function of national wealth and personal luxury.

The only surviving Typhoon (and even then some parts of it are "fudged") is the one that was transported to the US for testing than returned to the UK inthe mid 60's. US citizens could even buy cast off P-51s, P-38s, P-40s and P-47s after the war, for incredibly small amounts. Therefore, there are quite a few of them about.
Countries like Germany, France, Britain, Japan and even Russia seem to have a very schizophrenic relationship with the war. Because of the large amounts of suffering inflicted on their general populations they seem to want to forget the war, while at the same time not trying to diminish their accomplishments on the field of battle. They seem sad, ashamed and proud all at the same time. Having lived and worked in Japan and America and spent 8 months living in the UK, it struck me that Americans are generally lot more 'gung-ho' about the WW2 and the role they played in it.
 
I guess the preservation of history in the US is a sort of pack rat mentality. I know that here we have WWII museums for both our greatest victories, defeats, and even our greatest errors and abuses. Yes I do agree that Americans are more gung ho about WWII. I agree its from the fact that the war really never physically reached here, U-Boats and Japanese fire ballons non-withstanding.

On the other hand there are still many Allied, Red Airforce, and Luftwaffe planes still flying in an airshow somewhere every weekend. I understand why there are not that many JAF aircraft but, and I am ignorant of the role of the French Air Arm during the occupation and its role in Vichy, you think there would be more WWII aircraft at least preserved in museums. There are Enough SPADs and Nieuports even here in the US to even have flying museums. But the French won that one.

Just thinking.

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If you ever get the chance to go to the German go to the Deutsches Musuem they have Me-262's, Bf-109E, Bf-109G, Me-163, He-162, Do-335, Ar-232, Ju-88, Ju-52/3m, Do-17, He-219, Bf-110, Fw-190A, Ju-87, Hs-129, Ar-196, Do-24, Ba-349, V-1 and V-2 Rockets. That is just what I can remember off the top of my head and just the German Aircraft. They also have a slew of WW2 British and American aircraft. Very good museum I might add for natural history and what not. It is basically the German version of the Smithsonian Institute. They have a partnership with the Smithsnonian Institute and share there things all the time. I recall the Do-335 being on loan to the National Air and Space museum for quite some time. It might be back in Germany now because I did not see it in Febrauary when I was in Washington D.C.
 
hi peepz ive been in a museum in holland (airbase soesterberg)
this airbase was active in and after ww2 and had primarilly p-51s and british aircraft, do not expect many aircraft because the dutch airforce is the the theme.

they have a lot of fokkers (d-21s and more) a spit, p-51 and an avro anson, and dc-3 and a few jet fighters like the sabre and starfighter.

Its an nice museum with a lot of beautiful paintings and scale models.

And u better check this link to see there collection.

greetings

crowdpleaser! :lol:
 
I recall the Do-335 being on loan to the National Air and Space museum for quite some time. It might be back in Germany now because I did not see it in Febrauary when I was in Washington D.C.[/quote]

I think the Arado Blitz Bomber that is in NASM is also thier's. I really would love to go to a museum that has other aircraft besides the ubiquitos P-51 and USN aircraft.

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i'd like to go to any aircraft museum :lol: the on;y one relatively close is the fleet air arm museum, i've been to an airshow there but never into the museum...........
 
I feel your pain. I would love to go to the Dayton airshow and USAF Museum but everytime I say "I am going THIS year" a disaster strikes.

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PS Now there is a good thread, the strengths and deficiencies of aircraft museums in our respective countries. I would especially like to hear what our Eastern European friends have to say about the museums in thier countries.

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CurzonDax said:
I recall the Do-335 being on loan to the National Air and Space museum for quite some time. It might be back in Germany now because I did not see it in Febrauary when I was in Washington D.C.

I think the Arado Blitz Bomber that is in NASM is also thier's. I really would love to go to a museum that has other aircraft besides the ubiquitos P-51 and USN aircraft.

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I think you are right also. I remember seeing a sign at the Blitz exhibit.
 
If you can get only 1 shot at seeing any one museum in the US, the Smithsonian should be the one, just remember to check out the auxiliary site ehere many aircraft are located.

The AF museum in Dayton/Wright-Patterson AFB is great, with many German and a couple of Japanese aircraft. I went several times and could go many more times, there is enough there you can't more that glance at the planes in 8 hours. Also the X planes and Pesidential planes are there too.

wmaxt
 
I am an airplane museum junkie. It drives my wife sort of nuts when we go on road trips we have to stop in some podunk airplane museum. Still some of these museums are suprising. I have been to the standards like the NASM and the USN museum in Pensacola, but some of these out of the way museums have suprises in them too.

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the south west of england has barely anything aviation related, the fleet air arm museum is the only thing worth visiting, well, it's the only thing to visit :lol:
 
The Hamilton RCAF museum has an excellent collection of restored planes, Ive been there, then I moved back to Edmonton, god dammit I had taken a sweet number of pictures of a restored Halifax bomber, CF-100 Canuck, Hawker Hurricane, they had a Lancaster outside, an old Sikorsky helo, CF-104,CF# Voodoo, CF-5 Freedom ect but I lost the damn film and never found it when I think about it god I should go back to Ontario just to retake those pictures.
 

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