CULTURE AND SOCIETY

The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum

At the end of the 1970s, brothers Zachary and Larry Fisher, real estate entrepreneurs in New York, and philanthropist and journalist Michael Stern, saved the USS Intrepid CV-11 aircraft carrier from demolition, transforming it into a museum dedicated to the history of the navy, aeronautics and the military, which opened in August 1982.
A highlight of the collection is the aircraft carrier itself, which was launched in 1942 at a cost of $44 million. It was 275 meters long, could carry over 100 aircraft and 3,000 people and was used during the World War II in the Pacific campaign against the Japanese fleet surviving five kamikaze attacks. It was later used in the Vietnam War and during the Cold War period as well as being used as a NASA recovery ship in the 1960s. There are four bridges to visit.

USS Intrepid CV-11

The Flight Deck is home to over twenty aircraft, including the McDonnell F-4N Phantom II, the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, the General Dynamics F-16A Fighting Falcon, Lockheed A-12 Project Oxcart "Blackbird", which with its Mach 3.35 is the fastest aircraft ever built, some Mig and the Italian Aermacchi MB-339 with the colors of the Italian National Acrobatic Patrol. The Gallery Deck, between the Flight Deck and the hangar, contains a gallery with the Combat Information Center (CIC), the Ready Room where the pilots received their final briefing before leaving for the missions. The Hangar Deck has two separate paths, one showing aircraft carrier technology and the other celebrating the people who lived and worked on the ship with original artifacts, historical footage and interactive exhibitions. Finally, the Third Deck where you discover life on board the ship through the galley, canteen and crew quarters.

Space Shuttle Pavilion

In the pavilion, located on the flight deck, is exposed the Space Shuttle Enterprise, the prototype of the NASA Space Shuttle that paved the way for the program of reusable space launch systems. In addition to the shuttle there are various exhibition areas showing original artifacts, photographs, audio and films that tell the story of the era of the Space Shuttles.

Submarine Growler

The USS Growler SSG-577, the second and last submarine of the Grayback class and operational between 1958 and 1964, was the first American submarine to be equipped with a nuclear cruise missile used as a deterrent off the Pacific coast of the Soviet Union during the peak years of the Cold War, from 1958 to 1964. What made the Growler and its twin submarine unusual was the fact that it was a conventional diesel-electric propulsion system with nuclear weapons. For this reason, it soon became obsolete with the deployment of nuclear-powered submarines equipped with ballistic missiles.

British Airways Concorde

The Concorde is a supersonic transport aircraft produced by the Anglo-French consortium formed by British Aerospace and Aérospatiale. On November 4, 1970 it reached for the first time Mach 2, becoming the second commercial plane to fly at such a speed after the Soviet Tupolev Tu-144. It was operational between 1976 and 2003 and holds the record for the fastest commercial Atlantic crossing, made on February 7, 1996 in only 2 hours, 52 minutes and 59 seconds. Among the various reasons that led to the suspension of the Service there was the disastrous accident that took place on July 25, 2000 during the take-off in Paris, but above all the economic deficit due to the impressive consumption and maintenance costs.

References

Kenneth T. Jackson, Lisa Keller, Nancy Flood. The Encyclopedia of New York City: Second Edition. Yale University Press, 2010. p. 653
Exhibits (Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum)
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum (Wikipedia)