NASA may force Moffett Field Museum to shut its doors NASA may force Moffett Field Museum to shut its doors (January 04, 2002)

By Bill D'Agostino

Just as Mountain View steps one toe into its centennial year, one of the few museums dedicated to showcasing some of the city's history is being threatened with a mid-month eviction.

A sprinkler system _ of all things _ might signal the end to the intimate but impressive Moffett Field Museum, an often unknown and overlooked treasure located inside the former Navy base.

Recently, NASA _ who took control of the base when it was closed in 1994 _ gave notice to the museum that they had to either install a fire detection and sprinkler system by Jan. 11 or move out.

The Moffett Field Historical Society _ a group of volunteers who run the museum _ estimates that such a system would cost at least $80,000, far more than the group's annual budget. The society is a nonprofit organization that gets no outside funding from the military or NASA.

Museum advocates, worried the museum will close, are upset about the move by NASA, who they say has not been interested in preserving any ties to the former air base in their quest to create NASA Ames Research Park.

NASA officials were unavailable to comment for this story at press time.

The museum's beginnings trace back to 1992 when it was learned that the Navy was leaving Moffett Field and closing down the base. Many locals with ties to the Navy formed the Hail and Farewell Committee and began collecting items of interest from those still stationed there or living in the area.

Although the museum is located inside the gates of Moffett Field, civilians have access to the museum during its regular business hours.

Inside, visitors learn that Moffett Field, originally named Naval Air Station Sunnyvale in 1933, was created around Hangar 1, built to house one of the world's largest dirigibles, the USS Macon.

After the USS Akron _ a predecessor of the Macon _ crashed eight days before the station was commissioned, the base was renamed in honor of Rear Admiral William A. Moffett, an early champion of naval aviation who died aboard the Akron.

The Moffett Field Museum is located inside Hangar 1, and is designated a Navy Historical Monument. The museum traces the evolution of the base, as it fell under U.S. Army control and was eventually reclaimed by the Navy during World War II.

The items in the museums range from the eccentric (lucky pajamas a World War II bomber wore on 68 successful missions) to the visually impressive (a to-scale recreation of the Macon and the planes it transported) to the historically significant (the covers of the San Jose Mercury Herald and San Francisco Chronicle from when the Macon crashed).

"We have things that really are priceless," said Carol Henderson, the museum's director and original member of the Hail and Farewell Committee. If the museum were to close, Henderson _ whose husband was stationed at Moffett in 1949 _ said she would have to return the items to the original donors or to the Air Force in Washington, lost to the public eye. Henderson added that NASA, since taking over, has shown little to no interest in the military heritage of the site. For instance, she pointed out that they tripled their rent prices in 1999, forcing remaining naval reserves to leave the area.

"They would love to see anything to do with the military gone," Henderson said.

Museum advocates have begun petitioning national and local officials to help save the museum. Captain Tom Spink, USNR (Ret) _ the regional vice president for the Association of Naval Aviation (ANA) and the commanding officer for the San Francisco Bay Area ANA squadron, wrote a letter to President Bush in December asking for his support. In the letter, Spink pointed out that NASA is requiring the museum to have a sprinkler system installed even though the rest of Hanger 1 _ often rented out by NASA for corporate events _ does not have one.

"NASA Ames has always had an adversarial relationship with other organizations at Moffett Field," Spink wrote, "but their actions since 1994 have proven to many in the local area that they are without proper oversight and they act in a manner that is seemingly without reproach." Bernard McDonough, the historical society's president, wrote a letter in December to Mountain View Mayor Mario Ambra, asking for the city's support. "We have no possible way of raising anything close to the amount required to install a fire sprinkler system, and we cannot meet the Jan. 11, 2002 deadline," McDonough pleaded.

Henderson said the society needs all the help they can get to keep the museum afloat.

If it were to close now, it would be a cruel irony. Later this month, the front gate at Moffett Field _ the same gate that often intimidates visitors from seeking out the museum _ will be relocated. Attendance should rise accordingly, should the museum still be open.

For more information about the Moffett Field Museum or to visit it, call 603-9827. The museum is open Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free.