One of the Pima Air & Space Museum’s most outstanding exhibits, a Lockheed EC-121T Warning Star, has undergone restoration. Joe Copalman examines the career of this stunning aircraft.
The Pima Air & Space Museum (PASM) in Tucson, Arizona maintains one of the largest and most diverse collections of preserved aircraft in the world. Being next to Davis-Monthan AFB gives it two major advantages – new aircraft for the collection can fly in to the base and it is home to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG). The unit is responsible for thousands of stored aircraft and is a rich source of new airframes. The museum is currently using 65 acres of outdoor display area with more land available. Among its portfolio is an impressive number of large aircraft such as Lockheed EC-121T Warning Star, s/n 53- 0554 (or ‘554’), which has been part of the collection since June 1981.