OLDNAVYMCPO
US Veteran, Absent Comrade
As part of my physical therapy, I'm supposed to take short walks on level ground each day. There is very little level ground in El Paso except for malls or large stores such as Cabela's. My wife attempts to be innovative in her choices of places to walk.
Sunday, she chose to go to the War Eagle Museum at nearby Santa Theresa, NM. I'm sure that there are bigger air museums with more exhibits but this was a terrific trip into the past.
My father had served in the 13th Army Air Corps during WWII as a Gunnery Officer. He got out after the war but was recalled for Korea. He stayed in the Army and never looked back.
The museum had a large assortment of 13th memorabilia on display. Photos, paintings, A/C parts and donated personal items.
There was plenty to see but several things that really stood out for me were a Viet Nam Era A-7 which I had spent plenty of time dodging on various carrier decks in the Tonkin Gulf, a restored WWII Seabee utility vehicle with the famed emblem on the door, a P-38 Lightening of the type that ambushed Admiral Yamamoto ( the architect of Pearl Harbor attack), and a fighter from the famed Marine VMF-122.
There were 36 WWII, Korea and Viet Nam Era A/C on display. There was also a vintage car collection that evoked many memories.
Places like this are shrines to the men and women who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy. For me, it is very emotional to walk among the ghost of bygone conflicts.
Sunday, she chose to go to the War Eagle Museum at nearby Santa Theresa, NM. I'm sure that there are bigger air museums with more exhibits but this was a terrific trip into the past.
My father had served in the 13th Army Air Corps during WWII as a Gunnery Officer. He got out after the war but was recalled for Korea. He stayed in the Army and never looked back.
The museum had a large assortment of 13th memorabilia on display. Photos, paintings, A/C parts and donated personal items.
There was plenty to see but several things that really stood out for me were a Viet Nam Era A-7 which I had spent plenty of time dodging on various carrier decks in the Tonkin Gulf, a restored WWII Seabee utility vehicle with the famed emblem on the door, a P-38 Lightening of the type that ambushed Admiral Yamamoto ( the architect of Pearl Harbor attack), and a fighter from the famed Marine VMF-122.
There were 36 WWII, Korea and Viet Nam Era A/C on display. There was also a vintage car collection that evoked many memories.
Places like this are shrines to the men and women who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy. For me, it is very emotional to walk among the ghost of bygone conflicts.
