27 May - (updated) Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, Dinner at Barbie's

27 May (updated)
The day started sunny and warm(ing) but has turned nasty.  There has hardly been a day since we hit Colorado that it has not either rained or snowed.  There have been a few but very few.  But even at that our stay has been great and we have seen a lot of sights.  Today we headed to the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, at the site of the old Lowry Air Force Base.

When I enlisted in 1972 Lowry was used as an Air Education and Training base. It was USAF School of Applied Aerospace Sciences.  Our avionics, munitions and other specialties came here for training.  Lowry was a bit unique as it had no runway, so it was considered for closure in 1978.  When Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) came around in 1991, it was a prime target and in 1994 it closed.  Interesting tidbit, Lowry also served as the interim US Air Force Academy from 1955-1958 while the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs was being built.

Big ol' BUF (RB-52B) out front. The "R"B-52B indicated reconnaissance.

Wings Over the Rockies Museum

 The museum has a great selection of aircraft, spacecraft and other aviation memorabilia.  Here are a few of the photos we took:

EA-6B Prowler.  This specific aircraft was flown by President George HW Bush while he was in the Navy.

Collins Radio, Cedar Rapids Iowa, proudly represented!

Display of the Colorado Minute Men.  From 1953 to 1959, the Minute Men Flying Team of the Colorado Air National Guard  flew demonstrations similar to the Thunderbirds.

3/4 scale replica of the Star Wars X-Wing Fighter

The B-1A Lancer bomber.  What a beautiful aircraft!

A Ram Air Turbine (RAT) provides emergency power in case of primary and backup power failure.  

F-86H Sabre

Douglas B-18 Bolo

F-104 Starfighter

F-102 Delta Dagger

F-101 Voodoo

F-4 Phantom

A-7D Corsair.  This aircraft was also flown by the 132d Fighter Wing in Des Moines until replaced by the F-16

They have dedicated a whole room to the Colorado  Air National Guard.  A great display!  Just a couple pictures below.

Colorado Command Chiefs.  I went to Command Chief school with CMSgt Annadele Kenderes, pictured lower right.

Part of the space display

They have their own ham radio station on-site.  DE (This is) K0WAR, Wings over the Rockies Amateur Radio Station

 There are many other displays we did not post photos here, but all in all, very worth while stop.  They have done a great job presenting military aviation history here in Colorado.

This afternoon we headed to LaFayette CO for dinner with Doreen's cousin Barbie Puzio and her family.  Not long after we arrived we were joined by Barbie and Jake's son Tommy and his wife Kristen and their children Colby, Raleigh, Zoe and Zea.  Tommy and family had been to a baseball tournament and stopped by for dinner.

Doreen, Barbie and Kristen

Jake, Tommy, Ed and Colby in front

(Back) Barbie, Doreen, Kristen, (Front) Zoe, Zea, Raleigh

They are great baseball fans so we had a lot to talk about!  Tommy went to Notre Dame University with Matt Macri from Des Moines who played baseball with Danno and later went on to play for the Colorado Rockies.  We had a great time talking to them and then enjoyed a fantastic lasagna dinner with all the fixin's.  Barbie gave Doreen a beautiful plant that we can take with us as we travel, and Jake hooked me up with some Coors Colorado Native Saison beer!

Tomorrow we will take in a Colorado Rockies baseball game with the Puzio's and then Monday we will pull chocks, depart Buckley and head westbound to Grand Junction CO for a couple days.