Greetings Family and Friends,

Yes, the Great Lakes themselves are now far away in the rear view mirror. But as in the journey to them, the journey from them has brought more than its share of interesting and at times surprising finds. Unexpected places to visit that have been a delight and of course people with interesting stories and boatloads of information. Hopefully you too have found these adventures of interest and potentially inspiring.

Last stop is Topeka, Kansas. And being a plains state, it feels symmetrical to close out with a visit to the Combat Air Museum as one of the first museums visited on this road trip was the SAC Museum outside of Omaha, Nebraska. So this time a museum primarily of the fighters whereas previously the museum was primarily focused on the bombers. Also, the Combat Air Museum has a much more rustic hangars compared to the sleek hangars of the SAC Museum. Both though are serious quality efforts at restoration and preservation of military aircraft.

In Museum Hangar #1, there are several World War I fighters. Note that these are scale replicas. There is a Blue Angels jet from 1968 – an F11F-1 Tiger. Plus a couple of MIG fighters – a Polish MIG-15 and a Czechoslovakian MIG-21. Also, look for the photo in the gallery with the story of Lydia Litvyak, the “White Rose of Stalingrad”. She, along with her wingman, are the only two female fighter aces in history.

In Museum Hangar #2, there is a CH-54 TARHE – a helicopter known as the “Sky Crane”. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get in a position to capture the entire aircraft in one photo – what a beast! Look for the helicopter with a skeletal appearance about midway through the gallery. Also, quite interesting is the Vulcan rotary cannon (20 mm) behind plexiglass which is on the F-14 Tomcat.  

Outside of the hangars are a CH-47D Chinook helicopter, an F-15A Eagle (painted in an unusual color), and an EC-121 Warning Star (early warning and control aircraft). The runway outside the hangars does see use from the Air National Guard and Army Aviation. As if on cue, as I was getting on the highway after leaving the museum, a B-2 Spirit bomber flew over – would’ve been nice to get a photo!

On the drive into town, made a stop downtown to grab a few pics of the state capitol building. A fine looking capitol building that simply resonates a Kansas sturdiness. Didn’t take pics of them but there are statues on the grounds of Abraham Lincoln as well as of that famous Kansan, Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Well that wraps up another series of On the Flip Side as I am heading back to Colorado. First, merci to those of you who have been following along. Second, merci beaucoup to those of you who have provided commentary, especially via the public comments. Your encouragement is something I have always appreciated and continue to appreciate even more. For those who have left a comment, note that I always reply to your comment, usually within 24 hours. As always, feel free to share this link with anyone who expresses an interest.

Until later,

Papi