Return to the Former General Electric Flight Test Center
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| The Williamson Flying Club at the Empire State Aerosciences Museum. Photo by Tim. |
Schenectady, NY has been home to General Electric Global Research since 1900 when it was established as the first industrial research laboratory in the United States. As our nation moved into the jet era, GE founded their Flight Test Center at the Schenectady County Airport (KSCH) in 1946 with a focus on jet propulsion development. Early flight tests involved TG180, J47, and J73 turbine engines hung from a retractable pylon in the rear bomb bay of a testbed Boeing B-29 Superfortress. During testing at altitude, props on the B-29's four piston engines were feathered and thrust for the airplane was provided solely by the jet engine under testing. Active until 1964, the GE Flight Test Center developed turbine powerplants for fixed and rotary wing aircraft, researched electronic flight control systems, and developed missile technology.
Today, the massive concrete Quonset-style hangar of the former GE Flight Test Center is home to the
Empire State Aerosciences Museum (ESAM), an educational institution that celebrates contributions of GE and New York State to aviation. The Bear and I previously visited
ESAM in 2012, so it was time to return and learn about what developed there during the intervening years. This time, I brought friends with me.
Conga Line Across Central New York
| Date | Aircraft | Route of Flight | Time (hrs) | Total (hrs) |
| 16 Aug 2025 | N21481 | SDC (Sodus, NY) - SCH (Schenectady, NY) - SDC | 3.2 | 3030.9 |
We departed from Sodus in a line of four aircraft with the fifth, a Saratoga flown by Javan and Jonathan, departing later so as not to overrun the slower aircraft. Mark accompanied me in Warrior 481, Eric filled the seats of Eight Five X-Ray with his three kids, Steve and Charlie flew Cessna Zero Two Seven, and Alyssa brought up the rear in Five Five Whiskey, the slowest of the fleet airplanes.
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| ForeFlight screen capture from Warrior 481 showing the other members in trail. |
We were charging eastbound toward an Albany region socked in with fog. While acknowledging that the weather was forecast to lift before our arrival, a Plan B was necessary. I proposed a contingency plan to overfly Albany, land at Harriman & West (KAQW) for lunch at Trail House Kitchen, then backtrack to Schenectady to visit the museum after conditions there (presumably) improved. Separated from the Albany geography by a Berkshire ridgeline, airports in the Berkshire mountains were already reporting clear skies and good visibility. With this backup plan in place, the other pilots wanted me to lead the pack and make the Plan A / Plan B decision for the group on the descent into Schenectady. Though the weather did not lift as thoroughly as I would have preferred, Mark and I were nonetheless able to make it into Schenectady VFR with some necessary dodging of clouds. Conditions were changing rapidly in the moment we arrived, but everyone made it in safely.
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| Eric and family in Eight Five X-Ray. |
We parked on the Richmor Aviation ramp toward the edges per a request from Dave, who was expecting a handful of jets that would receive preferred parking in front of the FBO. That was fine by me, the jets pay a premium for that level of access and we do not. Eric arrived in Eight Five X-Ray shortly after we did.
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| Alyssa arrives in Five Five Whiskey. |
I became worried when Alyssa landed next because she was behind Steve en route. What happened to Steve?
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| Steve and Charlie in Steve's instructor's Cessna 172. |
Fortunately, Steve and Charlie were able to find a way into Schenectady, they simply took a longer path to reach the field than the rest of us.
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| Javan and Jonathan (J-Crew?) arrived in the Satatoga. |
With impeccable timing, Javan and Jonathan arrived last in the Saratoga just minutes after Steve.
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| The waiting is the hardest part. |
One of the contributors to what Kristy calls "airport time" (that undefined temporal variability that makes airport activities last longer than estimated) is the inevitable aimless milling-around that occurs while arrivals are still parking and getting their airplanes squared away.
I spoke with Richmor employees twice before our arrival. The first time was to glean an understanding of fees, get lunch recommendations, and confirm that fly-in ESAM visitors still needed to park at Richmor rather than the museum. All was confirmed, but the only lunch tip I received was quite specifically non-specific. "Whatever you do, don't go to the diner. My manager will recommend it, but everything there tastes like cardboard."
I talked to Dave on my second call to clarify a couple of items and, because he would be on duty the morning we arrived, he promised use of a car. As we congregated on the ramp, Dave met us with Richmor's crew car, a grey Chevy Malibu (pictured above). "It's yours for the day," Dave told me while handing over the keys. When I asked him for lunch recommendations, Dave enthusiastically said, "There's a really good diner nearby." I kept my composure, but there was definitely a snort as part of my snarky inner monologue.
"I read some good things online about TJ's Flightline Pub, how's that?" I asked him.
"Oh, that's really good, too."
Perfect.
With a lunch destination chosen and a courtesy car idling nearby, we took a moment for the mandatory ramp photo. From left to right are me, Mark, Charlie, Javan, Steve, Jonathan, Alyssa, and Eric with his kids. Three trips were necessary for me to shuttle everyone over to TJ's in the courtesy car.
I can say from experience that TJ's "Meatatarian" pizza is excellent, even if I got called-out by Eric for eating the whole thing. (And rightfully so.)
Return to the Empire State Aerosciences Museum
Since my prior visit, the front of the former GE research facility had received a facelift and a new totem. This half-scale Concorde is claimed to be the largest model airplane in the world. Weighing in at 24,000 pounds (which explains the beefy structure supporting it), this model occupied the roof of Times Square Brewery in NYC for 15 years.
On short final to the museum admission counter, we rolled in on a directionally-authentic runway, though I might quibble with the placement of the runway number in line with touch down zone markings. I also do not think that the sill of the entry door was high enough to warrant a displaced runway threshold.
The first thing that caught my eye was this 450 horsepower Franklin O-805-2, a 12-cylinder, air cooled, horizontally-opposed engine designed by Air-Cooled Motors (Syracuse, NY) to power drone aircraft in the 1940s. Though it never went into production, one has to wonder how often those back cylinders would have overheated. Otherwise, it was just a big Franklin of the kind powering several models of light aircraft or
installed in the Spruce Goose as APUs.
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| Yep - definitely a Franklin! |
ESAM pays tribute to New York's favorite Pioneer Age aviator Glenn Curtiss with a specimen of his eponymous Pusher. Moreover, this particular aircraft was built and flown by 19-year-old John Von Pomer of Fort Edward, NY in 1910, an early example of homebuilding in New York State. This vintage aircraft was a "barn find".
Exercising That SES Rating
The goal: get the ski-equipped LC-130 cargo plane flying by applying throttle, then successfully land it on ice near the model of Amundsen South Pole Station without going getting the airplane's feet wet. This display is locally relevant as the Schenectady County Airport is also home to the 109th Airlift Wing that flies ski-equipped LC-130 variants of the workhorse cargo plane on missions to cold places.
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| Photo by Alyssa. |
Cut the throttle, settle to the ice, and -- one skip later -- into the sea we went.
Dammit.
They're not supposed to skip! |
| Photo by Alyssa. |
Alyssa managed to capture my expression of pure chagrin. Given the scuff marks left on the "water", I suspect that I am not unique in my failure.
The Airpark
(But not really...)
Considering the site's heritage as a GE jet propulsion development lab, it should not be surprising that the ESAM collection focuses on jets. Most are displayed outdoors in what the museum calls the "airpark". Because the airpark was scheduled for repaving, all aircraft were temporarily moved to the apron in front of the main GE hangar and this is where we found them.
I caught Alyssa peeking into the cockpit of the F-14 Tomcat. I know that Maverick is short, but I don't think he's hiding in there.
The F-14 Tomcat is still one of my favorites; capable and good looking.
Also capable, but not particularly good looking (my opinion), is the Grumman A-6 Intruder. The Intruder was a subsonic, all-weather attack aircraft used by the Navy and Marines. It was designed to replace the Douglas A-1 Skyraider, a World War II era piston powered heavy hauler that remarkably remained in use by the U.S. military until 1973. (As a military prop plane in the '60s and '70s, the Skyraider was called a “SPAD” in reference to the WWI French aircraft manufacturer because it was so obviously ancient.) The Intruder first flew in 1960 and was in service until 1997.
If the World War II P-39 Airacobra from Bell was designed around the 37 mm cannon in its nose (and it was), then the Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II (Warthog) is a philosophical jet-era successor designed around the 30 mm GAU-8 Avenger rotary autocannon (Gatling gun). It may not look like much where it projects from the nose of the A-10, but the gun itself is nearly 20 feet long. It is no simple bolt-on.
"Hi! My name is BRRRRRT!"
The Northrup F-5 Tiger was used as an aggressor aircraft in exercises against US fighter pilot trainees. Its design is closely related to the Northrup T-38 Talon trainer. It also portrayed the completely-fictional MiG-28 that Maverick and Goose faced in the original Top Gun movie. In fact, this very aircraft was one of them, and it is still painted black with the red star on its vertical stabilizer as it appeared in the film (though other markings have been added since).
The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was a swept wing redesign of the original straight winged F-84 Thunderjet. It first flew in 1950 and completed its service with the United States Air National Guard in 1972.
The last time I laid eyes on this Douglas F-3D Skyknight, it was sitting on the deck of the USS Intrepid in New York Harbor circa 2004. The aircraft was ultimately gifted to ESAM when the Intrepid needed deck space to display the boilerplate space shuttle Enterprise. The Skyknight is aptly named because it housed a large airborne radar dish in the nose and functioned as a night fighter during the Korean War. In addition to the pilot, another crew member was on hand to manage the radar. This very aircraft once operated from the Schenectady County Airport as an electronics test bed while GE developed the airborne radar for the F-14 Tomcat.
The Republic F-105G Thunderchief (most commonly known as "The Thud") was originally designed as a supersonic bomber for the delivery of nuclear ordnance. It is the largest single engine aircraft ever used by the United States military.
Hercules! Hercules!
We had the good fortune to meet docent Tim, who offered to escort us into the Lockheed C-130 Hercules on display at ESAM. While possessing the same moniker, it is a very different aircraft than the last
Hercules I climbed aboard. The C-130 is a medium sized cargo aircraft powered by four turboprop engines. It first flew in 1954 and has been a capable military hauler ever since.
For me, the C-130 tour was the highlight of the day.
This particular C-130 is special. It is a C-130 variant (XFC-130H) called Credible Sport. Designed for a hostage rescue mission, two Credible Sport C-130s were created to possess STOL (short take-off / landing) capabilities. The mission profile was to launch at night, land in a soccer stadium near the embassy where hostages were being held, deploy a Delta Force unit to retrieve the hostages, then launch from the tight confines of the soccer stadium to safely land the rescued hostages on an aircraft carrier. That would be a tall order for a standard issue C-130!
Credible Sport was modified with a tailhook for the carrier landing and 30 rockets that would significantly arrest the aircraft's descent rate, stop it in a short distance, then enable an extremely short take-off roll once the hostages were aboard. These modifications were enabled by multiple structural alterations to the basic C-130. Because the hostages were released through diplomatic negotiations, the mission was never activated. Of the two Credible Sport C-130 variants constructed, one was lost in a fiery crash during testing. The other was reconfigured back to a more conventional C-130 and ultimately made its way to ESAM.
Tim showed us how the rear cargo ramp is used to drop supplies from the air.
The cargo hold of the C-130 is utilitarian in the extreme.
On the flight deck, Alyssa immediately took up station in the left seat. I settled myself into the right seat.
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| Photo by Alyssa. |
Because we habitually get cockpit selfies on club fly-outs, it seemed appropriate to grab one here. From left to right are me, Jonathan, Tim (low key chilling in the back), Mark, and Alyssa. The seat that Mark is leaning on is where the flight engineer ordinarily sits.
The C-130 instrument panel is busier than that of the average general aviation airplane and, full disclosure as a pilot for 20+ years, there were instruments in the panel whose functions I did not understand.
The panel is dominated by analog flight and engine instruments. That the aircraft is a Lockheed design is given away by the star logo on the pilot's rudder pedal.
From the perspective of the right-seater, the panel is less busy and includes a radar display, the gear lever, and an RMI. Radio magnetic indicators are a type of navigational instrument that I needed to understand to pass the FAA instrument exam, even though they are rarely found in general aviation aircraft and are considered obsolete in the era of GPS navigation.
A console at my left hand included the ELT (emergency locator transmitter) with a guarded activation switch, an audio panel, an old school radio receiver, and the flap controls. It was a curious set of instruments to be grouped together on the same panel, but less random than the “shotgun” instrument panel layout in Five Five Whiskey that Alyssa flew to Schenectady that morning.
To my right was a circuit breaker panel that really makes the one in Warrior 481 look inadequate.
On the left half of this panel are SKE (Stationkeeping Equipment) units that allowed cargo aircraft to fly in formation under zero visibility. To the right, multiple KY58 boxes provided encrypted military radio communications.
The overhead panel had controls for fuel system management and fire abatement.
The throttle quadrant includes two power levers and four engine condition levers (numbered) that control the pitch of the blades. Pulling them all the way back from the firewall feathers the blades. C-130 engines can also be operated in beta range (power levers set between flight idle and full reverse), that flips the blades around to provide negative thrust. I have seen C-130 demonstrations at airshows where beta range is used to dramatically shorten the landing roll or enable the C-130 to outright taxi backwards.
Behind the right seater is a dedicated navigator station.
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| Photo by Alyssa. |
As we clambered out of our seats on the flight deck, Alyssa caught an excellent photo that really captures the complexity of this front office.
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| Me in the Credible Sport right seat. Photo by Mark. |
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| Alyssa as PIC. Photo by Mark. |
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| Steve in the left seat of the C-130. |
Recently Retired Warrior
Finally, we came nose to nose with the ESAM's latest acquisition, an F-15 Eagle that retired from the 104th Fighter Wing based at the Westfield-Barnes Airport (KBAF, our favorite sushi destination) in August of last year. The venerable fighter once flown by the 104th's Wing Commander was flown directly to the Schenectady County Airport and demilitarized on site after its final flight. The 104th is switching from F-15s to F-35s in 2025.
Caution: contents may be hot.
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| Isn't this where we came in? Photo by Tim. |
Tim was able to get a great photo of the whole WFC gang in front of the F-15. Thanks to Tim for being such a great host!
Tora! Tora! Tora!
A passing rain shower drove us inside where we got to see another unique artifact in the collection, the model of the Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi (Red Castle) used in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora! The 32 foot long model was motorized with a small interior cockpit where a pilot could blindly steer the diminutive aircraft carrier in a pool in response to radioed directions.
The model is generally considered authentic except that the Japanese situated bridge islands on the port sides of their carriers rather than the starboard as shown here. This was an intentional discrepancy made by the filmmakers because some Akagi scenes were filmed on an American aircraft carrier (USS Yorktown) with a starboard side island. Deeming continuity more important than accuracy, the model was built with a starboard island for consistency with live action shipboard scenes.
Beyond that single detail, the model otherwise features exquisite detail and accuracy due to its construction in Japan with reference to the actual Akagi blueprints. The model is only visible in a few brief scenes of the film, but it is convincing.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I wish my paycheck had as many Zeroes on it as this carrier deck.
After the rain, I shuttled the WFC folks back to Richmor Aviation in batches with the crew car. Although I was told by "Diner Food = Cardboard" Girl to expect a $5 parking fee, none of us were charged for the day spent parked at Schenectady County Airport. An easy VFR flight home brought an almost anticlimactic end to the adventure.
Overall, it was a good day. I learned some new things and saw artifacts that cannot be seen anywhere else. The Empire State Aerosciences Museum collection certainly suffers with exposure to New York's capricious weather. But in addition to a focus on New York aviation, they have a number of unique artifacts such as one of the Top Gun "MiG-28s", the Credible Sport C-130, and the Akagi model. Hospitality, both from Dave at Richmor and Tim at ESAM was terrific. When you bring your friends with you, the company is guaranteed to be excellent.
