At the Controls: NASM Looks At Cockpits

Programming Ideas

• The Witchita Public Library sponsored a 'pick your favorite cockpit' contest and picked 8 winners of gift certificates good for a free flying lesson at local aviation services. The library also offered a "Learning to Fly" program lead by an area pilot, discussing the steps in getting a pilot's license and learning necessary skills.
• The Cave Creek Museum in Cave Creek, Arizona, held a lecture by Betty Blake, one of the first female pilots. Blake served in the United States military from October 1942 to December 1944.

Visitor Comments

• "I'm going to D.C. to see the rest of the airplanes!" —Spartanburg, S.C. visitor

Museum Responses

• "The Smithsonian name is magical and opens many doors for marketing and publicity purposes. We had another exhibit this past spring and were able to get free"leaders" at the movie theaters because of the name. Newspaper and magazine reporters wanted to interview us about the museum, why we were having it, what it was about, etc. They took photos and all that great stuff." —Jo Ann Stuckey, Executive DirectorCave Creek Museum, Cave Creek, AZ

• "I was in line at a grocery store, chatting with a woman ahead of me.
  She mentioned something about planes and her grandson. I immediately launced into a pitch about 'At the Controls' and mentioned that it was a Smithsonian exhibit.'You mean the Smithsonian exhibits here?,' she said with wide eyes. I was pleased to tell her that it did." —Richard Saunders, Director, Paul Meek Library, University of Tennessee at Martin.
  
  
• "We noticed teenage boys and fathers and sons visiting this exhibition."
  —Patricia Brown, Spartanburg County Library, South Carolina
  
  
• "Having the prestige of a Smithsonian Institution exhibit was a great asset in local fundraising." —Bob Hopkins, North Carolina Transporation Museum

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