07-09 National Soaring Museum

Thursday afternoon, July 16th, we drove over to Elmira, NY to tour the National Soaring Museum. This is the only museum in the United States dedicated to soaring. There is only one other in the world.

I have always been interested in soaring, so this was a real treat for me. There are over 80 gliders or replicas on display dating from the late 1890’s to the late 20th century.

We recently watched a show on PBS about WACO gliders used in WWII to land soldiers behind enemy lines. So it was interesting to see the inside of a WACO replica.

There are also two excellent displays with models of I assume every modern era glider ever made. There are over 100 models on display.

The museum is next to a soaring field high on a hill top over Elmira. Below is a glider being pulled aloft. Tourists can take a 15 to 20 minute ride. I hope to do this before we leave.

Here is the view just below the rim of the airfield. You can see how high it is above the valley below.