Report on the National Air Museum 



Sir : I have the honor to submit the following report on the activi- 

 ties of the National Air Museum for the fiscal year ended June 30, 

 1962: 



Staff studies and planning for the new National Air Museum Build- 

 ing and exhibit continued, pending the appropriation of planning 

 funds. 



All records for visitors in the Air and Space Building were broken 

 during the year w^ith a total of 1,986,319. This was more than double 

 the count of 987,858 for fiscal year 1961 and reflects the growing 

 interest in the historic relics of air and space flight. Although this 

 old (1917) building contains but 17,400 square feet and houses less 

 than 5 percent of the National Aeronautics and Space Collection, it had 

 the third largest visitor count of the Smithsonian museum buildings. 

 The largest single day's count exceeded 31,000. One aircraft had to 

 be removed to make room for people ! 



The Museum received many historically significant accessions dur- 

 ing the year. Here are a few examples : the Air Force-Douglas C-54 

 "Sacred Cow," first Presidential aircraft, and an F-86A North Amer- 

 ican Fighter aircraft, from the U.S. Air Force; a Bellanca CF air- 

 plane and an Anzani three-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, from 

 Mrs. Guiseppi Bellanca; instrumented duplicates of Pioneer IV, 

 Lunar Space Probe and the Explorer I, America's first orbiting satel- 

 lite, from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory; the General Thomas D. 

 White Air Force Space Trophy from Dr. Thomas W. McKnew ; As- 

 tronaut Alan B. Shepard's Mercury Spacecraft "Freedom 7," from 

 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ; a Polaris rocket 

 from the U.S. Navy ; and the original "Journal des Marches et Op- 

 erations" kept by Capt. Georges Thenault, French Commander of 

 the Lafayette Escadrille, from Madame Thenault. 



One of the most active and increasing fimctions of the Museum 

 continues to be information service. During the year the Museum 

 averaged more than 600 letters per month, furnishing historical, 

 teclmical, and biographical information on air and space flight to 

 authors, researchers, schools, Goverimient agencies, students, and the 

 public. 



ADVISORY BOARD 



A meeting of the Advisory Board was held on March 21, 1962, with 

 all members present. Among the actions taken by the Board were 



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