Aviation Unmanned Vehicle Museum

Aviation museum in Caddo Mills, Texas

33°02′17″N 96°14′24″W / 33.038°N 96.240°W / 33.038; -96.240TypeAviation museumFounderLt. Col. Harold F. "Red" SmithWebsitewww.auvm.net

The Aviation Unmanned Vehicle Museum is an aviation museum located at the Caddo Mills Municipal Airport in Caddo Mills, Texas focused on the history of unmanned aerial vehicles.

History

A few years after retiring from the United States Air Force, Lt. Col. Harold F. "Red" Smith began a drone manufacturing business. Over the years, he gathered a collection of various drones in a 22,500 sq ft (2,090 m²) building at the Caddo Mills Municipal Airport.^[1] By 2014, he began raising funds to establish a museum.^[2] However, Smith was killed in a car accident in 2017. His family continued the project and the museum opened to the public on 16 May 2021.^[1]^[3]

Collection

Beechcraft AQM-37 Jayhawk^[4]
Beechcraft MQM-61 Cardinal^[4]
Culver PQ-14 Cadet^[4]
General Atomics MQ-1B Predator^[4]
Gyrodyne QH-50 DASH^[4]
Hayes TRX^[4]
Lockheed X-7A^[4]
Northrop BQM-74 Chukar^[4]
Northrop KD2R5^[4]
Radioplane MQM-57 Falconer^[4]
Radioplane OQ-2^[4]
Ryan BGM-34B Firebee^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b Skores, Alexandra (10 May 2023). "Caddo Mills Museum Opens to the History of Aviation's Future: Drones". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
^ Farmer, Liz (7 November 2014). "Air Force Vet from Parker Advanced the Country's Drone Program in Vietnam". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
^ Hairgrove, Travis (24 November 2021). "First-Ever Drone Museum Celebrates Grand Opening in Caddo Mills". Herald Banner. Retrieved 15 November 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l "Exhibits". Aviation Unmanned Vehicle Museum. Retrieved 15 November 2023.