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Yanks Air Museum
Experience the Legacy of American Aircraft
The P-40 Warhawk. (Courtesy Yanks Air Museum)Imagine a time back in historical America, when adventurous men and women flew our legendary aircraft for fun, for show, for profit, to set new world records or to fight and defend our freedom at all costs. Come to Yanks and see the aircraft that turned the tides, and changed the fate of America’s history forever. Oh, and don’t forget, these aircraft can fly!
At Yanks Air Museum, in Chino, California, the desire to honor and preserve historical aircraft has held a prominent place in their legacy since 1972. Founded by Mr. and Mrs. Nichols, who began the search for these world-renowned aircraft, that now span more than a century and a wide variety of eras, wars, conflicts, and events. When you step into one of their hangars, you are instantly transported to another time. You’ll feel a sense of wonder and awe as you explore airpower and how it has changed the world.
Raymond D. Allen: Flying WWII Veteran Still in the Air Today
By Herb Foreman
Ray Allen with his group of 10.Not many pilots have more flying time from the San Carlos Airport in Northern California than Ray Allen. Born in San Francisco and a graduate from the prestigious Lowell High School, he was at the right age to participate in World War II. Initially, color blindness kept him out of the Air Corps Academy and he began his career as a mechanic at Stockton Field in San Joaquin County on Oct. 28, 1942. After pestering his officers and taking new tests, he was admitted to the “cadet program” as a bombardier and navigator. He attended gunnery school and learned how to strip a 50-caliber machine gun blindfolded. He learned both celestial and dead reckoning navigation and after 105 hours of instruction joined a B-17 crew bound for Europe.