NASM ‘annex’ opens for business at Dulles Int’l
Gen.

Gen. Jack Dailey hefted the comically oversized scissors to approach the ribbon. Hundreds waited to pass metal detectors for the December 15 opening of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. After a mock slice for the cameras, Dailey reached for real scissors to snip a new era at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM).

The Hazy Center is officially a “companion facility” to the NASM’s flagship building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., but eventually will house the world’s largest collection, some 200 aircraft and 135 space artifacts, sprawled on 176.5 acres abutting Washington Dulles International Airport. More than a third were installed for opening day. Many are hung from 21 steel trusses from as high as 10 stories, while others, such as the B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay, are at floor level. The presentation makes history accessible.

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