By A. Kevin Grantham and Stan Piet

The de Havilland Dragon Rapide. One of the museum’s crown jewels. This particular airplane was originally built in 1944 and is restored to resemble the aircraft that was ordered by the Prince of Whales in 1935. (A. Kevin Grantham)Virginia Beach, Va. is well known as one of the best places on the east coast to visit and enjoy the surf and sand of the Atlantic Ocean. It is also the home of Gerald “Jerry” Yagen’s Military Air Museum, which is quickly becoming a major attraction for the resort town.

The museum was established in 2005 and is located on the privately owned Virginia Beach Airport in Pungo, Va. It is only about a 15-minute drive from the shore to the museum. The first hint that something special is ahead is when the red and white water tower appears on the horizon. The museum’s 1930s era hangars come into site a few yards farther down Princess Anne road, and as you turn into the entrance you are instantly greeted by some wonderful dinosaur sculptures. This is not exactly something one would expect to see in a somewhat rural area of Virginia, or for that matter at an air museum. But seeing these colorful static creatures brought back fond memories of the roadside attractions that littered the United States during the post-World War II pre-interstate era. No doubt Yagen had that in mind when designing his Jurassic Park gallery.