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, 

 1954: 



GENERAL STATEMENT OF CONDITIONS 



Conditions have improved in the National Air Museum relative to 

 its two principal problems — the care of the stored material and the 

 need for an exhibition building to house the national aeronautical 

 collections. 



Considerable progress was made during the year with the Museum's 

 storage facility at Suitland, Md., but there remained the problem of 

 transporting the stored collections from O'Hare International Air- 

 port, Park Ridge, 111., where they were originally placed. By the 

 close of the fiscal year, however, arrangements were being made for 

 the allotment of Air Force funds for shipping this material. Many of 

 the aircraft and all the engines require preservation treatment, several 

 are yet to be dismantled, and those previously boxed need reinforce- 

 ment before they can be shipped, but a target date of January 1956 

 was set for completing the move. 



The problem of acquiring an adequate exhibition building to house 

 the national aeronautical collections has become a vital one since the 

 close of World War II. It will be recalled that Public Law 722 of the 

 79th Congress authorized the Museum "to investigate and survey 

 suitable lands and buildings for selection as a site for said national 

 air museum and to make recommendations to Congress." Comprehen- 

 sive plans were prepared for a National Air Museum, but Congress 

 did not act upon them. Since then these plans have been subjected 

 to considerable modification including the proposal that the location 

 be near existing Smithsonian buildings. Recently a plan has been 

 originated for improving the southwest area of Washington south of 

 the Smithsonian buildings. The planners have included a proposed 

 Smithsonian museum and other cultural buildings in their layout, 

 and Smithsonian officials have expressed their interest in such 

 proposals. 



In the meantime steps are being taken to determine the needs of 

 the National Air Museum, including the size and cost of a site and 

 building. It is a pleasure to report that the Aircraft Industries Asso- 

 ciation and the Air Transport Association have generously donated 

 funds to cover the costs of this primary study. 



74 • 



