Visit the Smithsonian — at Oshkosh

The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum has an unmatched collection of thousands of aviation and space artifacts. With so many valuable historical objects at hand, the museum is, not surprisingly, a rewarding work environment for its 250 full-time employees. To preserve and display such iconic artifacts as the Spirit of St. Louis and the Apollo 11 command module, the museum depends on an experienced workforce — everyone from curators and restoration specialists to archivists and conservators. A small team of Smithsonian experts has traveled to Oshkosh this year to give daily talks about the amazing work they do in maintaining the National Air and Space Museum’s status as one of the world’s most popular places to visit.

Chris Reddersen — who was only 8 years old when he realized that he wanted to work with historic aircraft — will be speaking about his contributions to the restoration of an F-86 Sabre. Reddersen has also worked on the preservation of Flak-Bait, a Martin B-26B-25-MA Marauder that survived more than 200 combat missions flown over Europe in World War II.

Chris Moore, a curator in the museum’s aeronautics department, will also be speaking. Moore explains the decision to preserve — rather than restore — Flak-Bait.

“The aircraft was acquired just after the war, and it’s a time-capsule, bearing all the scars of its many missions,” Moore said. “Numerous patches covering battle damage are visible, especially on the bomber’s fabric-covered control surfaces. These repairs are evocative of the struggle the air crews went through to fly their missions, but they likely would have disappeared in a restoration. Innovative conservation techniques developed specifically for this project have ensured that the museum can retain as much original material as possible — preserving the physical evidence of the dangers American bomber crews faced in combat.”

The meticulous care of the museum’s artifacts goes beyond their preservation and restoration. When aircraft and spacecraft need to be moved from one building to another — or even within the same building — a talented team plans and executes their safe transport. “Ideally, the aircraft or spacecraft is disassembled into pieces that are more easily moved,” said Kristen Horning, who will be speaking about her work in the Museum’s Collections Processing Unit. “For an airplane, we usually remove the wings and tail surfaces to make it small enough to fit inside a 53-foot box trailer. For smaller components, we build customized conveyances; these could be wood or aluminum pallets or a steel stand that is fabricated in-house by our shop welders.”

The team has been very busy moving artifacts as part of the total renovation of the main museum in Washington, D.C. The next phase of five new galleries opens on July 28.

Rounding out the list of speakers are archivists, conservators, and noted aeronautics historian Jeremy Kinney, an expert on air racing and World War II U.S. military aviation. Our speakers are also available to answer your questions about their efforts to ensure that the museum’s national collection will be preserved for generations.

You can find us at Booth No. 328 (look for the red and yellow flags), where we have brought an array of touchable objects, including heat-shield tiles from a space shuttle, a U-2 pilot flight suit, and pieces of woodwork from a World War II-era Soviet bomber. We’ll also be handing out brochures that explain how you can best preserve your own family keepsakes.