Chennault Aviation and Military Museum, Military aviation museum in Monroe, Louisiana.
The Chennault Aviation and Military Museum occupies a 10,625 sq ft building in Monroe, Louisiana, with an adjacent aviation park displaying several aircraft. Inside, a room called Way of a Fighter is dedicated to General Claire Lee Chennault, and a research library is also present. A memorial to soldiers killed in action and a statue of Chennault donated by Taiwan stand in front of the museum.
The museum grew out of a 1986 reunion of airmen who trained at Selman Field, a World War II navigation school. It opened on 11 November 2000 as the Aviation Historical Museum of Louisiana, was renamed the Aviation and Military Museum of Louisiana by July 2004, and took its current name in August 2008 after a Louisiana State Legislature bill. It separated from the Louisiana State Museum system in 2015.
The museum is named for General Claire Lee Chennault, who led the American Volunteer Group, the Flying Tigers, in China. A room called Way of a Fighter is dedicated to him, and a statue donated by Taiwan stands in front of the building. His granddaughter, Nell Calloway, has been the museum's CEO since 2017.
The museum is located on Kansas Lane in Monroe and is easiest to reach by car. Plan to spend a good part of the morning or afternoon there, as the collection takes time to explore properly.
The original classrooms from the Selman Field Navigation School are still inside the building and look much as they did when training was in session. During World War II, this site trained more navigators than any other location in the country, a fact that often surprises visitors.
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