We took a day trip down to Tucson to visit the Pima Air & Space Museum. It’s a huge indoor/outdoor facility with over 400 current and historical aircraft spread out over 80 acres including 6 hangers. One of the big reasons Mike wanted to go there is the number of Glenn L. Martin aircraft they have and one noteworthy plane: the last remaining PBM5 Mariner. This aircraft is literally the last one in the world and at the time of it’s donation to the museum back in the ’70’s – was flown in to the facility! So it was airworthy at the time!

The museum is also home to several other Martin aircraft: 2 – B-57’s, a 404, and a B-26. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) the B-26 is not on display and undergoing restoration at this time. Fun fact/sidenote: Those that know us know we are huge Doobie Brothers fans … ‘back in the day’ the Doobie Brothers had their own plane called the Doobie Liner – it was a Martin 404!

There are of course many more aircraft to see from a tiny BD-5 mini jet to several B-52’s and 747’s, as well as aircraft from around the world.

There is also a ‘museum within the museum’. There is a single building within the complex dedicated to the 390th Bombardment Group and home to a fully restored B-17.