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  Location in Alabama Show map of Alabama Southern Museum of Flight (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Established | 1966 (1966) |
|---|---|
| Location | 4343 73rd Street North Birmingham, Alabama 35206 |
| Coordinates | 33°33′49″N86°44′17″W / 33.56348°N 86.73806°W /33.56348; -86.73806 |
| Founder | Mary Alice Beatty |
| Director | Dr. Brian J. Barsanti |
| Website | www |
TheSouthern Museum of Flight is a civilian aviation museumBirmingham, Alabama. The facility features nearly 100 aircraft, as well as engines, models, artifacts, photographs, and paintings. In addition, the Southern Museum of Flight is home to the Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame, which presents Alabama Aviation History through collective biography.
TheLake MurrayB-25C Mitchell[1] bomber crashed in South Carolina during a 1943 training exercise. The right engine was torn off during the crash but the crew was able to escape unharmed before it sank to a depth of 150 feet (46m). The aircraft became a dive site for local technical divers until it was raised from the depths of the lake in September 2005.[2] Dr. Bob Seigler who spearheaded the project, John Hodge and Dr. Bill Vartorella, formed the Lake Murray B-25 Rescue Project to salvage the aircraft from the bottom of Lake Murray.[3] After recovery the remains of the aircraft were moved to the Southern Museum of Flight inBirmingham, Alabama for conservation andmuseum display.[4] A video crew, including maritime video experts fromNautilus Productions, documented the recovery for theMega Movers series on theHistory Channel.[5]
Featured on display is a diorama exhibit honoring Alabama's famed Tuskegee Airmen, as well as the Korean War Jets Exhibit and Vietnam War Helicopters Exhibit.
The museum received aHind and anAn-2 in April 2012.[6]
The museum is currently on the grounds of theBirmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport but plans to reopen at the Grand River Technology Park.[7]
In 2017, the museum announced plans to move to theBarber Motorsports Park.[8] In 2023, after delays, the museum stated that it was going to retain its original campus, although it would continue to move forward with plans for the new location as an expansion.[9]
