The Flight Deck

Episode 13: Meet and R2-D2 Builder

Bob Jacobson, R2-D2 builder extraordinaire, claims that he wasn’t always into engineering, but the process of building his droid forced him to learn some basic and advanced techniques. Our host caught up with Jacobson at the Museum’s R2-D2 Builder’s Expo, held every year in the spring. Jacobson and his R2-D2 were game for all of our questions, like what inspired him to pursue R2-D2 building and what he really thinks of BB-8. You’ll also be surprised to hear about the impact Jacobson’s R2-D2 have on the kids who meet them at expos. But you won’t be surprised at how Jacobson describes his favorite droid: “R2-D2 is funny, smart, loyal, and kids love him. He’s a golden retriever made of metal!”

Don’t miss our next R2-D2 Builders event! Check our Calendar page in March 2019 to see when you can meet your favorite droid; and, if you love Star Wars, you’ll love exploring our Space Gallery!

http://www.museumofflight.org/Plan-Your-Visit/Calendar-of-Events

http://www.museumofflight.org/explore-the-museum/museum-galleries/space-gallery

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Keny Dutton

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 12: She Opened Up the Skies

A faceless mannequin wearing a 1920s’ style dress is posed next to our Boeing model 40B, but it’s not just there for show. The mannequin represents Jane Eads, the world’s very first transcontinental commercial airline passenger. In 1927, when she was just a 21-year old journalist, Eads rode in a 40B on a mail route from Chicago to San Francisco. Back then, the journey took 22 hours. Her vivid descriptions about her experience in the air led to more people gaining an interest in flight at a time when airplanes were still being perfected. The plane she flew in was not equipped with pressurization or climate controls, so Jane and the pilot were directly exposed to altitude and temperature changes during the flight. This week, we talk to Docent Zandria Hopper, who explains how Eads’ trip helped “solidify aviation’s potential to do what the railroads had already been doing to guarantee people could get from point A to point B.”

See the Boeing model 40B, and the Jane Eads mannequin, up close next time you’re in our Great Gallery. While you’re there, brush up on the first 100 years of flight by checking out the Wright flyer, the Lockheed Model 10E Electra, and the Blackbird M/D-21 spyplane! http://www.museumofflight.org/explore-the-museum/museum-galleries/great-gallery

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Sean Mobley

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Back in 1977, when Bob Alexander was just a young engineer, he was chosen to work on a challenging new project: the Hubble space telescope. During his ten years on the project, Bob—now a Museum volunteer—advanced to the level of supervisor and recalls that with all the experienced engineers working alongside him, designing the Hubble was a pretty smooth operation. This week, we’ve tapped Akshay Murthy, a student at Tesla STEM High School in Bellevue, to do the interview because of his passion for aerospace (thanks Akshay!). Akshay asks Bob about his thought process in designing high-tech instruments like the near-field camera 3, the cosmic origin spectrograph, and the multi-object spectrometer, and Bob gives his insights about what he calls “the finest scientific instrument ever built.”

Next time you’re at the Museum, come see the Hubble telescope replica hanging above our Space Gallery.

Host: Sean Mobley

Guest Host: Akshay Murthy

Producer: Keny Dutton

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 10: Do Airplanes Have Keys?

This week we talk to Kevin Gordon, first officer for Alaska Airlines, who graciously answers questions that our listeners have submitted via social media. Do a pilot’s arms get tired after flying all day? And can they watch movies during their flights? Gordon answers these queries and explains that the titles captain and first officer, which many mistake for pilot and co-pilot, stem from military traditions and denote levels of responsibility in the cockpit. The captain is first in charge, and the first officer holds secondary responsibility for the aircraft. Gordon also offers some advice to those with a fear of flight. When white-knuckle flyers approach him and confess their fears, he says this: “I know I just met you, but I like you already, and I love me; so, I’m going to make sure I get me there, because I want to see my family. You’re going to be just fine.”

Want to get your own up-close aviation experience? Head to our Alaska Airlines Aerospace Education Center https://www.museumofflight.org/Education/Educator-Resources/education-center ,

where you can enjoy hands-on aviation activities, including doing a pre-flight check on our own Cirrus SR20.

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Keny Dutton

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 9: Surviving the Final Frontier

Did you know that for every month you spend in space, you lose about 2% BMI? Neither did we until we talked to Tommy Gantz, one of our volunteers and resident space experts. Over the years she’s spent a lot of time studying space travel and life aboard the International Space Station, and has developed a deep respect for anyone who travels to space. Gantz admires astronauts—“They remind me of the first great aviators”—but maintains that she’s not nearly brave enough to spend that much time in space, especially given the harsh physiological consequences that result from extended periods in microgravity. Join us as we discuss what it takes for human bodies to survive the final frontier and how space station experiments can result in miracles of modern medicine.

Want to learn more about life in space? Check out our Charles Simonyi Space Gallery next time you visit! http://www.museumofflight.org/explore-the-museum/museum-galleries/space-gallery

Correction: Mark Kelly is the name of the former NASA Astronaut.

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Keny Dutton

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 8: The Angel Bird

Hustling in and out of a Huey helicopter is one of the most vivid memories of Platoon leader David Waggoner and crew chief Jerry Sousa: it took 10-15 seconds to load and unload the helicopter, and their journeys took them to hot zones where they were vulnerable to enemy fire. The Huey and those who flew in it were fearless, reporting to every call no matter how dangerous, and ended up transporting over 90,000 soldiers during the war. Ultimately, Waggoner and Sousa want listeners to know that Huey pilots “fought against the odds to save soldiers’ lives,” and they look forward to sharing more stories about Vietnam by giving tours in our new exhibit.

See our Huey for yourself in our new exhibit, “Vietnam Divided: The War Above Southeast Asia,” opening Saturday May 26.

http://www.museumofflight.org/Exhibits/Vietnam-Divided-War-Above-SE-Asia

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Keny Dutton

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 7: Remembering Apollo Astronaut Dick Gordon

Dick Gordon passed away in November 2017, and author and volunteer Jake Schultz had the honor of recording Gordon’s oral history few months prior to learn about his experiences as an astronaut. In this episode, Gordon talks spaceflight, corvettes, and football.

He recalls the differences between the Gemini and Apollo missions. Gemini’s Titan II rocket was an ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) designed to get you into orbit as fast as possible at altitude and then shut down. The Saturn V rocket on the Apollo mission, however, was a different kind of ride. “It shook, rattled and rolled,” Gordon describes.

Gordon, a Seattle native, also fondly recalls bonding with his crew—Pete Conrad and Alan Bean—over their three red Corvettes and taking on the role of the Executive Vice President of the New Orleans Saints after his space career.

Get a taste of what it took to put a man on the Moon in our Apollo exhibit(https://www.museumofflight.org/Exhibits/Apollo) and stay tuned for info about Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission, an exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. This traveling exhibit comes to our Museum in 2019.

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Justin Braegelmann

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 6: The Personal Courage Series: Shouting at Hitler

Show Notes: In this second installment of our Personal Courage series, B-17 pilot Dick Nelms takes us on one of his missions and shares how he and his comrades dealt with fear and other realities of war. From a young age, Dick loved planes and when the time came to participate in the war effort, he knew he wanted to fly. And it’s a good thing he did: his 35 missions contributed to the final Allied victory. Dick looks back on his time in the B-17 and is proud of “putting a dent in Hitler’s war machine.”

Get more first-hand accounts of aviation history with our oral histories program. http://www.museumofflight.org/Collections-and-Research/Current-Projects/3251/digitizing-the-american-fighter-aces-oral-histories

Email our Curator if you’d like to access an oral history: [email protected]

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Justin Braegelmann

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Episode 5: When We Chose to Go to the Moon

How did a bunch of Houston high school students help President Kennedy drive the United States towards putting a man on the Moon?

In September 1962, Bob Salling, one of our docents, was pulled out of school along with tens of thousands of other Houston high school students to hear a speech by President Kennedy at Rice University. Salling remembers that “a lot of people didn’t like Kennedy, a lot of parents didn’t like Kennedy, and by extension their children didn’t like Kennedy”; but, Kennedy’s words about space exploration got Salling and his peers so excited about the possibility of going to space that they forgot their prejudices. The speech would become a rallying call for the space program in the United States, and in it Kennedy explains that “we choose to go to the Moon not because it is easy, but because it is hard.” "This speech set a deadline for walking on the Moon before the end of the decade, and the excitement it generated kept the space program momentum going through the turbulent '60s."

Get a taste of what it took to put a man on the Moon in our Apollo exhibit (https://www.museumofflight.org/Exhibits/Apollo) and stay tuned for info about Destination Moon: The Apollo 11 Mission, an exhibition from the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. This traveling exhibit comes to our Museum in 2019.

Listen to Kennedy’s original speech here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouRbkBAOGEw

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Justin Braegelmann

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

Contact us: [email protected]

Episode 4: A Brief History of Legroom

Has your airplane seat felt a little tight lately? It’s not just you—it’s the evolution of legroom on passenger planes, and it’s not getting any roomier. We talk to Marva Semet to discuss how this battle for inches came about. Semet finds that spaces weren’t always so tight on in the early days of aviation, when flying itself was a luxury for the very few. During the 1940s, airlines realized that “the more people they could fit into an aircraft, the better.” Nowadays, airlines consider pitch (the space between a point on one seat and the same point on the seat in front of it) and width in passenger configurations when purchasing planes, and these numbers can be the difference between a comfortable journey and a torturous trek.

Step inside our famous passenger planes: the Boeing Model 80-A(http://www.museumofflight.org/aircraft/boeing-80a-1), the first Boeing 747(http://www.museumofflight.org/aircraft/boeing-747-121) and the Boeing 787(http://www.museumofflight.org/aircraft/boeing-787-dreamliner) Dreamliner.

Host: Sean Mobley

Producer: Justin Braegelmann

Webmaster: Layne Benofsky

Content Marketing Manager: Irene Jagla

More Information: https://www.museumofflight.org/podcast

Contact us: [email protected]