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A New Gallery Celebrates the Variety That Is General Aviation

Scheduled to open in 2022, the Thomas W. Haas We All Fly gallery will help define the wide world of general aviation at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. and, through interactive exhibits and audiovisual displays, explore its impact on everyday life and how it has influenced society.

Most people experience flight aboard airliners, and a great many have flown in military aircraft. General aviation is everything else—private pilots who fly for fun and those who set records; performers who fly aerobatics and compete in races; and professional pilots who fly for all kinds of practical reasons other than fighting wars or moving cargo and hundreds of passengers at once. Business transports, firefighting platforms, and airplanes flown on search-and-rescue and other humanitarian missions are all part of the general aviation scene. The new gallery will organize them according to five themes: private, sport, business, humanitarian, and utility flight.

There is also an interactive feature of this display. With the “What is General Aviation?” interactive database, you can select an airplane and learn the type of mission it flies. Once you’ve seen what general aviation entails, you might decide you’d like to work in the field. “Entry Points” is for anyone wondering what kinds of jobs exist. You don’t have to be a pilot—you can choose from among more than 20 other careers or opportunities.

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