Guided Tour Perspective

I’ve had the pleasure of being the Guided Tour Coordinator for the Museum of Aviation Education Department for nine years now!

I would have to say that my favorite part of the guided tours is taking groups into the C-130A Hercules fuselage, located on the second floor of the Eagle Building. It never fails, whether the group is young or older, that I always hear several gasps when I tell them that we are going inside the C-130 fuselage.

C-130 nose — Nose of the museum’s C-130A Hercules fuselage in the Eagle Building.

C-130 interior — Interior of the C-130 fuselage. Visitors can strap themselves into the red seats and enjoy a short video showing paratroopers and aerial resupply operations.

The other day I had some 2nd graders and it was no different from any other time. When I announced that we were going inside the fuselage, the gasps began. But this day I also heard a little whimper. I looked around and it was a boy, about to cry because he was scared to go inside the plane. He was saying “I don’t want to go, I don’t want to fly!”

I went over to the boy and tried to console him. I assured him that I wasn’t going to fly that airplane because I didn’t have my license to fly! I also assured him that I would NOT take him into anything that was going to be scary. Somehow, someway, I convinced him and we walked around the corner together to enter the fuselage and there it was…THE GASP! I looked at him and his face was full of surprise but with the cutest grin you have ever seen.

As the saying goes… “Just another fun day at the office.”