If all we did was collect warbird artifacts for the man cave, that might be fine for most of us. Rescuing these relics for their historical connection to the achievements of aircraft designers, aviators, crewmen, and ground crew is noble and an important endeavor unto itself. These technological remnants offer the opportunity to share stories of history with our children and our friends. For instance, in our collection is a contact-altimeter that was only ever used for automatic dive-bombing by the Luftwaffe's JU-87 Stuka and the JU-88, and its exciting to describe to others how these aircraft performed their missions in Eastern Europe with the aid of such an instrument.
But like any curator, we view our role as being temporary caretakers of aviation history, committed to preserving these artifacts and passing them along to future generations to enjoy in air museums or in warbirds overhead.
We've supported a number of warbird restoration projects around the world in recent years by recycling artifacts from attics into the hands of restoration volunteers. A brief list of some of these projects now appear on this website at Projects We've Supported. Please click there, and then click through to the websites of those projects. Most are still restorations-in-process, which need and deserve our continued support.
And remember, it's not about the artifacts themselves....it's about the stories they carry-forward to our children and the memories they will create for all in the time to come.