The Unexplained Glory Flies Above Them

The Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA

Yesterday, my husband and I went to The Museum of Flight in Seattle. It was another surprise drive, so I initially didn't know where we were going. It was, however, the perfect day to be out and about as the weather was lovely: 27°C / 80°F, very warm and sunny! Also, the first Thursday of the month is free museum day at The Museum of Flight, so our admission was free.

As it turns out, The Boeing Company is celebrating its centennial this year, so the exhibits included the world’s largest and most important display of Boeing planes and artifacts. We were able to see the company's unrivaled collection of aircraft, images and documents that tell its incredible history. It was an impressive display of many of Boeing’s most significant planes including the 1930s P-12 fighter,  the Boeing Heritage aircraft like the World War II P-51 Mustang and today’s 787 Dreamliner.

One of the outdoor exhibits was a Boeing 707 which became a military aircraft. It became VC-137 with the flight and mission name SAM 970. 

While this plane transported the U.S. president many times, it was not called an "Air Force One" all the time.
"Air Force One" is a temporary call sign, used by air traffic controllers, given to a U.S. Air Force aircraft while it has the president aboard.

Aircrafts and War

The museum housed a wide array of permanent and temporary exhibits that was a feast even for non-enthusiasts.



Blackbird “Mother Ship” - Retired in the 1990s, Blackbirds remain the fastest piloted jets ever built. Built for the CIA's “Tagboard,” program, this M-21 carried unpiloted drones for intelligence gathering.



A McDonnell F-4C (F-110A) Phantom II. Called "brutishly ugly" by some pilots, this F-4 Phantom II apparently more than made up for its looks through its exceptional performance.

While viewing the F-4 Phantom II on display, a father and his very young daughter stopped beside me. I overheard the father explaining to his daughter. Pointing at a photo of the aircraft with military weapons laid out around it, he said, "Do you see those? Those are all the bombs and missiles it could carry. Got it?" While it was heartwarming to see a father and daughter spending the day together – and with the father making great effort to explain everything to the restless little girl – I felt sad that he did so sounding quite delighted about the possibility of dropping bombs and missiles. He didn't even explain further why the aircraft needed to carry such cargo and why it had to deploy them.

In that moment, I was reminded of "War is Kind" by Stephen Crane, a poem I learned in school. Through the brilliant use of sarcasm, Crane implores the reader to see war for what it really is: the tragic loss of human life. The poem makes the reader reflect on whether the death and destruction caused by war are indeed worth it. The title of this post is a line from this poem. I've provided a copy of the whole poem at the end of this post if you're interested to read it.

Space and Education

It's hard to resist reading every single explanation you see inside the museum. By the time we got to the Space: Exploring the New Frontier exhibit, I was already very tired. Good thing this was one of the permanent exhibits I can always revisit.

On the way out, a quote from Barbara Radding Morgan from NASA's Teacher in Space Program caught my eye. (Morgan was part of the crew of STS-118, an assembly mission to the International Space Station (ISS). She operated the Shuttle's robotic arm and coordinated the transfer of cargo to and from the ISS.) It said:

"The job of education is never done. It always should be a major focus in this country. It is the key to the future...so, there's no endpoint to education, just like there's no endpoint to the universe and the kinds of things NASA is doing to explore that universe."

The Museum's Lunar Rover and Apollo Command Module on exhibit
(photo from The Museum of Flight website)

I was very impressed with everything I saw at the Museum of Flight. It reminded me a lot of my visit to the Intrepid Air, Sea and Space Museum in New York. I was particularly fascinated with how both museums effectively narrated stories about history, science, innovation and service through their exhibits.

When we left the the museum, we watched a UPS plane take off on the airstrip. Having seen the Air Mail exhibit a few hours before, I realized that I will definitely never see such planes the same way again.

At 7 p.m., it was still light outside. As we walked to the parking lot, Mt. Rainier looked magnificent in the distance.

A view of Mt. Rainier from the tower exhibit at Boeing Field.

--o--

War Is Kind

by Stephen Crane

Do not weep, maiden, for war is kind, 

Because your lover threw wild hands toward the sky

And the affrighted steed ran on alone,

Do not weep.

War is kind.

Hoarse, booming drums of the regiment,

Little souls who thirst for fight, 

These men were born to drill and die. 

The unexplained glory flies above them. 

Great is the battle-god, great, and his kingdom— 

A field where a thousand corpses lie. 

Do not weep, babe, for war is kind. 

Because your father tumbles in the yellow trenches, 

Raged at his breast, gulped and died, 

Do not weep. 

War is kind. 

Swift blazing flag of the regiment, 

Eagle with crest of red and gold, 

These men were born to drill and die. 

Point for them the virtue of slaughter, 

Make plain to them the excellence of killing 

And a field where a thousand corpses lie. 

Mother whose heart hung humble as a button 

On the bright splendid shroud of your son, 

Do not weep. 

War is kind!