The Strategic Air Command (SAC) Museum opened today -- Armed Forces Day -- at its new location in Ashland, NE. The $30 million facility houses 30 aircraft, four major missiles, 5,000 aerospace-related exhibit items, interactive displays, and a full-scale backyard bomb shelter.

The previous location, at the end of an old runway at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, was a popular stop on our Atomic Tour. The collection was started in 1959, with a B-36 "Peacemaker" bomber, but grew to include nearly all unclassified American weapons of mass destruction. Most of the aircraft were available for perusal out on the tarmac, making for a short tourism season in sometimes chilly Nebraska. The new museum is comprised of indoor aircraft displays that help tell the story of the Cold War and the Golden Years of Civil Defense.

If at all successful, the reborn SAC Museum should help younger generations experience the anxiety of imminent nuclear vaporization. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., daily. The SAC Museum is located at exit 426 on I-80, 25 miles west of Omaha in Ashland, NE. [05/17/1998]

February 10, 2012