off we go, into the wild blue yonder

C.R. Smith was one of the pioneers behind American Airlines [AA]; there's a museum (open 3 days a week) bearing his name, southwest of DFW International Airport This afternoon, I went to the C.R. Smith Museum and (before even getting inside) this sign in the museum parking lot struck me funny:


What is it trying to tell me -- that someone is angry (cross) "over there"? Perhaps it relates to a religious artifact ahead? Hmm.  Inside, among many other things, there is the DC3 Flagship Knoxville [NC-21798]:


Those DC-3 aircraft were American Airways [sic] first passenger planes in 1936, carrying only 21 passengers (trivia: the first flight attendants were required to be Registered Nurses). The smallest jet in their current fleet is the Fokker-100 (not considering the Regional Jets flown by American Eagle).   I wasn't aware that Fokker ceased production in 1997.

There's a theatre inside which shows a 10-minute movie entitled "Spirit of American" which was very cool. In one scene (apparently taken from a biplane) you "experience" an airplane roll (I felt oddly weightless). The theatre seats are from a first class section of a 767, complete with seatbelts. There are several 9/11 related items, including a memorial quilt with the names of the AA crews who died in the attacks.