Warhawk Museum

Nampa Idaho, near Boise

A few Saturdays ago, I took my two oldest grandsons to the Warhawk Museum which is right outside of Boise Idaho. Charles (10) and James (9) came with me (they call me “Major Dad”), and we three had a great time seeing the extensive collections in the museum plus walking around the airplanes, both flyable and under restoration. What a great museum!

I bought Charles & James two model fighters, and they ‘flew’ them all around the museum and the parked airplanes - of course mouthing all of the proper engine and guns and bombs sound effects! All of us old fighter jocks smiled remembering ourselves doing the same thing at their age. And we were the lucky ones to actually live out our youthful dreams!

There on Saturday was one of only two flying P-38 'Lightning' fighters from WWII which had flown in to the Warhawk Museum in Nampa Idaho. It would actually fly that Saturday along with a P-40 Warhawk from the “Pearl Harbor” movie, and a T-28 Trojan. A P-51 Mustang had flown in also and was on display. With all of those famous aircraft I just had to go!

One of my friends, Les "Buck" Earls, from the local flight of the Order of Daedalians, was also speaking about his WWII experiences flying both the P-38 and the P-51 and I couldn’t miss that either. Medal of Honor winner and fellow Daedalian, Bernie Fisher was there also and was recognized with a standing ovation from a crowd that appreciates aviation, patriotism, and valor.

The aircraft took off about 11am, and the crowd loved seeing them airborne with the throaty sounds of past era fighters as they made high speed passes - at the proper 'legal' altitude, of course! (You just know that some 'pencil-neck' FAA guy was watching closely to see if they flew by 3 feet too low or 2 knots too fast).

As a kid myself, I had built many plastic models of those aircraft, plus models of the later jet fighters - P-38, P-40, P-51, F104 & F4, in fact, the entire "Century Series" along with German & Japanese fighters and bombers. Who can forget any detail?!! Years later I flew the F-104 with many of our NATO allies, and now that very plane with my tail number has its own plastic model! and with my name on the decal! Thanks to a member of the modern "Starfighter Team", Bob Irwin, I have that model which he gave me.

At the museum, I bought a model fighter for each of our 7 grandsons, and afterwards gave James' younger brother Dallas his fighter plane, then we drove over to Payton, Sean, and Christian so they could each have a plane too. Finally, I’m sending Will in Japan his plane which is a WWII Japanese Zero.

Of course, at 6 months old, he’ll probably ‘chew the tail off’ just like the P-38’s of 60 years ago did to Japanese Zeros of that day with their 50 Cal and 20mm guns!!!

What a great day of aviation fun, and time with wonderful grandkids, exciting old fighters, and interesting old men!

Ike (Major Dad)

WWW.FighterPilots.Net

Ike (Major Dad) with Grandsons Charles & James.
“Now repeat after me boys - helicopter pilots and businessmen and athletes are ‘boring’
         - it’s Fighter Pilots who have the most fun!”

Now from their looks you can see they're not buying it - One's father is a helicopter pilot, and
the other a successful businessman, and we have a professional athlete in the family too.