The museum was built on the site of a former air force base with a long history. During the 1920's and 1930's, its runways were unpaved and the planes stirred up a lot of dust. During the German occupation, in the 1940's, it was enlarged and the runways paved. Toward the end of the war, the Germans destroyed almost all of it. There are still bunkers visible around the grounds.
During the Cold War it was a major base for both the Dutch and the Americans. The Americans left in 2004 and it shut down.
The inside reminds me of the Udvar-Hazy Museum (part of the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum at Dulles Airport in Virginia.
Duco took this picture - he likes to take panoramas.
This very large seaplane was impressive. It had a gunner position at the front and the rear. It also had 3 engines.
The displays traced the development of war devices from pre-historic times to the modern.
There were many interactive displays. Duco is hitting various types of armor to see how much protection each provided.
We both had a good time. Almost everything was bi-lingual and that made for a much more enjoyable time for me.
By the time we returned home, it was after 4:00 and Linda and I walked down to the Proef to sit outside and eat a burger and drink a beer.
There's always something to see on the Soest main street. We have no idea why these two guys were dressed up and pedaling their old and different bikes.
A second nice day spent with one of Peter and Lizzie's children. They are great kids.
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