Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum

The Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum is a U.S.A. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the display and preservation of rare military aircraft, tanks and other military equipment. The museum reopened on the Memorial Day Weekend 2023.

On rotation in the three working hangars are military artifacts from the United States, Britain, Germany, the Soviet Union, and Japan.

The Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum is housed in three working hangars at Seattle-Paine Field International Airport in Everett, WA. Mechanics are typically on-site Monday through Friday, working on maintaining the technology and operating condition. The museum provides guided tours three days a week, hosts a variety of activities, features war conflict simulators, and possesses countless historical artifacts.

History
In 1998, Microsoft Corporation co-founder Paul Allen began acquiring and preserving vintage aircraft. Allen's passion for aviation and history, and his awareness of the increasing rarity of original World War II aircraft, motivated him to restore these artifacts to the highest standard of authenticity and share them with the public.

The Collection opened to the public in 2004 at the Arlington, Washington, airfield, but in 2008 moved to a newly renovated historic industrial hangar located at Paine Field in Everett, Washington, United States. In 2013, the Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum added a 22,000 square foot expansion hangar for its expanding collection. In 2018, came another expansion featuring the opening of Hangar C, which added over two dozen artifacts. On March 24, 2017, the Museum changed its name from the Flying Heritage Collection to the Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum to reflect the transition from exclusively aircraft to a military vehicle & armament as well. In 2018, the Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum became a public 501c(3) nonprofit. On March 3, 2020, the Flying Heritage & Combat Armor Museum temporarily closed due to complications that arose as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In April 2022, the industry magazine Air Classics reported that the museum's collection was sold, promising further details in its June issue. The Dutch Aviation Society reported that the buyer was Steuart Walton, grandson of Walmart founder Sam Walton. The sale was confirmed by CNN and other media in August, 2022. The plan is for the museum to remain in Everett; reopening in 2023 under the stewardship of the Wartime History Museum, a nonprofit established by Walton earlier in 2022.

Walmart heir Steuart Walton's nonprofit, the Wartime History Museum, acquired aviation artifacts from the FHCAM and reopened the museum on Memorial Day Weekend of 2023. The museum remains open with increasing operations.

Museum Programming
FHCAM is currently hosting a variety of programs at the museum. ￼

Walking Tours: These docent-led tours are scheduled in advance as indicated on the activity schedule. They focus on pre-scheduled topic areas and involve walking about the hangars to view artifacts related to the topic. Walking tours range from approximately 90 minutes to two-and-a-half hours in length. They are limited to 20 guests on a first come, first served basis.

Behind the Barriers Tours: These tours offer guests the opportunity to get closer to a particular artifact or set of artifacts, depending on the tour focus area. Docents will lead the group behind the barriers for an up-close look at the subject matter. Tours last between 60-90 minutes and are limited to 15 guests. Special event tickets are required for attendance.

Lectures: Lectures are held in Battlefront Theater, offering guests a chance to sit and learn through instruction and audio/visual displays. They are mostly static, though depending on the topic, may include some time in the hangars looking at artifacts. Lectures can accommodate up to 35 guests, on a first come, first served basis. They generally last between 60-90 minutes.

Ad-hoc Docent Tours: We have volunteer docents on site during open hours. A docent will be available at 11 am daily at the Docent Headquarters (HQ) to lead interested guests on an impromptu tour based on interest areas of the group. If you wish to attend, simply report to the Docent HQ a few minutes before 11. If you’re interested in an ad-hoc tour during your visit and cannot or do not wish to join the 11 am group, please inquire with one of our Guest Services Associates when you arrive. Planning a visit in advance and looking for a specific topic for your tour? Please reach out to our team so we can coordinate the details with you to make sure we have a docent with expertise in your topic when you arrive.

Runups: Aircraft engines need to be started as part of the annual maintenance cycle. Runups are scheduled between March and October and will generally include two engines (could be two planes for single-engine aircraft, or one plane for multi-engine aircraft). Guests will have an opportunity to observe the process, including startup and taxi, of each aircraft involved. They generally last approximately 45 minutes, including a brief overview of the process from one of our mechanics. We also offer a post-runup Q&A session in Battlefront Theater, beginning 15 minutes after the end of the runup and lasting approximately 30 minutes.

Artifact Experiences: Provides guests with an opportunity to “experience” a specific artifact. Depending on the artifact, this could be sitting in the artifact, touching or looking into a section that is normally not available for public access. These activities are normally offered during specific windows of time and are limited to the number of guests we can get through the experience during the window.

Virtual Reality (VR) and Simulator Experiences: These provide guests the opportunity to experience an artifact-themed topic through a set of virtual reality glasses or computer-based simulator. We offer several different types of VR/Simulation and generally couple them with an artifact experience or other related activity to enhance the guest understanding of what the particular encounter would have been like.

List of Warbirds
The Flying Heritage and Combat Armory has a number of historic artifacts. Their most prized collection items are all aircraft. However, FHCAM also has a rich collection of armoured fighting vehicles. The specific histories and stories of the aircraft can be discovered in-person at the museum.

United States
North American P-51D Mustang

North American B-25J Mitchell

Republic P-47 Thunderbolt

Curtiss P-40C Tomahawk

Goodyear FG-1D Corsair

Grumman F6F Hellcat

Curtiss JN-4D Jenny

Bell UH-1B Iroquois "Huey"

United Kingdom
Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Vc

Hawker Hurricane Mk.XIIAa

de Havilland D.H.98 Mosquito T.Mk.III

Avro Lancaster B. Mk.I (nose section)

Soviet Union
Polikarpov I-16 Type 24 "Rata"

Polikarpov U-2/Po-2

Ilyushin II-2M3 Shturmovik

Imperial Japan
Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa (Oscar)

Mitsubishi A6M3-22 Reisen (Zero or Zeke)

Nazi Germany
Fiesler Fi 103 V-1

Fiesler Fi 103R Reichenberg

Fiesler Fi 156 C-2 Storch

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-5

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-13 (Dora)

Messerschmitt Me 262

Junkers Ju 87 R-4 Stuka - Under restoration

Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-3 (Emil)

Messerschmitt Me 163 B Komet

Mittelwerk GmbH V-2 Rocket

List of Tanks
The collection features a variety of vehicles and armament dating from WWII to some present-day artifacts. Most of the artifacts are from the United States, Germany, Japan, or the Soviet Union. However, many of these vehicles have changed hands many times before arriving at FHCAM.

United States
M1A1 Abrams Turret Trainer

M8A1 Patton (Cut in Half)

M4A1 Sherman

M5A1 Stuart

M60A1 Patton

M24 Chaffee

M7B1 Priest

M8 Greyhound

M26 Pershing

M55 Self-Propelled Howitzer

United Kingdom
Churchill Mk VII Crocodile

Soviet Union
FMDB T-34/85

T-54M

Germany
Jagdpanzer 38(t) (Hetzer).

Panzerkampfwagon IV Ausf. H

Japan
Type 95 Ha-Go

United States
M2 155mm "Long Tom" Field Gun

United Kingdom
17-Pounder Mk. I Anti-tank Gun

Germany
75mm PaK 40 Anti-Tank Gun

88mm Flak 37 Anti-Aircraft Gun

Japan
47mm Type 1 Anti-Tank Gun

United States
M5A4 High-Speed Tractor

AM General M936A2 Wrecker

Dodge WC24 Command Car

Dodge WC54 Ambulance

Ford GPW "Jeep"

Harley-Davidson WLA

Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel (LCVP)

M3A1 "Half-Track" Personnel Carrier

M274A5 Mule

Germany
BMW R75

Opel Super 6

Scheuch-Schlepper

Volkswagen Kubelwagen Typ 82 Kfz.1