118 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1949 
National Museum. There the Spirit of St. Louis had been moved so 
that the two noted aircraft could share the same North Hall of the 
Arts and Industries Building and, with the assistance of photographs 
and drawings provided by M. J. B. Davy of the Science Museum, the 
Kitty Hawk was assembled. Some details of the engine and trans- 
mission were installed from sketches and photographs furnished by 
Charles Taylor, the mechanic who assisted the Wrights in the original 
construction of the plane and engine. The aeroplane was suspended 
in the front of the hall with cables and splices donated by the Jacoel 
Equipment Co. At the ceremony of presentation, the “Karly Birds,” 
the association of pioneer pilots, many of whom had been trained by 
the Wrights, were among the honored guests. A number of them have 
since augmented the Kitty Hawk exhibit by donations of their own 
records and relics. Acknowledgments are also made to the Air Force 
Technical Museum and to S. Dunham, Dayton, Ohio, for photographs 
and drawings for addition to the Museum’s reference and exhibition 
material on the Wrights. At the close of the fiscal year progress is 
being made on an auxiliary exhibition case to be placed under the 
Kitty Hawk in which the story of the Wright Brothers will be told in 
detail. 
As the National Air Museum progresses, its purposes and services 
have become better known, and very helpful cooperation has been 
received in the matter of accessions. The following examples are 
outstanding. The presentation of Alford Williams’ renowned Gulf- 
hawk-2 October 11, followed an impressive flight-demonstration of the 
remarkable aerobatic combination of pilot and plane. The Gulf Oil 
Company formally presented the airplane at the National Airport and 
soon after, Major Williams’ technician, Frank Tye, who had main- 
tained the plane in splendid condition throughout its 12 years of stren- 
uous flying, assembled it in the Aeronautical Hall. The Department 
of the Navy, Bureau of Aeronautics, repaired and transferred a Jap- 
anese Baka Bomb to the Museum and provided, as auxiliary material, 
examples of both jet and rocket engines used in these ‘‘suicide planes.” 
The collection of scale models which reviews the evolution of aircraft 
used in Naval service was improved by 10 recent types received from 
manufacturers who produced the original planes for the Navy. The 
Department of the Navy assisted also in the special anniversary cele- 
bration held in the Aircraft Building to commemorate the thirtieth 
anniversary of the first trans-Atlantic aircraft flight made by the 
NC-4. An illustrated description of this Curtiss-built flying boat, 
the hull of which is in the Museum, was prepared by the staff and 
printed by courtesy of the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. Speakers 
included Vice Adm. John D. Price, U. S. N., and Capt. Holden C. 
Richardson, U.S. N., Ret. 
