26 September 2026
Asheboro, NC
A fun day enjoying aircraft during the annual Fly-In at the North Carolina Aviation Museum & Hall of Fame.
Post Contents
- Douglas A-26 Invader (Featured Plane)
- Golden Knights Parachute Team
- Golden Knights Video
- Other Planes on display
- A peek into the NC Aviation Museum
Douglas A-26 Invader
The main reason for attending was to see this beautifully restored Douglas A-26 Invader.
Jim Thompson and I drove over to Asheboro to see “Pale Rider” up close.
Jim is the real aircraft enthusiast and seemed to enjoy chatting with the plane’s pilot.
Views from that glass nose cone must be fantastic, unless they include hostile fire.
US Army Golden Knights Parachute Team
Another reason to attend was to see the parachute team jump at 1300.
The team took off in this US Army C-147A about twenty minutes before the show was scheduled to begin.
And they are airborne.
Streamers were dropped from about two miles up. They landed a little behind the hangers instead of in front of the crowd. Crew on the ground communicated this to the airborne team so the jump point could be adjusted.
Smoke trailed from the first jumper’s boots.
After a perfect landing, the first jumper ran over to the announcer’s booth. Taking over the microphone, he provided interesting commentary as the seven remaining team members jumped.
Three smoke trails appeared in the sky almost two miles above us. Zooming in, the right-hand photo reveals seven jumpers joining into a formation before their chutes were deployed.
We learned that jumpers use small shoulder movements to steer during free fall.
A North Carolina flag deployed just below the parachute.
Another jumper hung a US Army Flag below him.
And finally a big US Flag was unfurled. Note the weight underneath to keep the leading edge of the flag straight.
Back on the ground The US Army “Golden Knights” Parachute Team lined up to accept cheers and applause from the crowd.
The US Army C-147A plane returned safely to the airfield.
Click the above for a short video of the action between the still photos.
Other Planes on the Runway
1952 Cessna L-19A
A few of the planes were smaller than others…
R.C (Radio Controlled) Modelers brought planes too.
Inside the Museum
One hanger is open as a museum. Lots of the planes are homebuilt kit aircraft like this Long-EZ designed by Burt Rutan sold in the early 1970’s.
A sample of aircraft artwork found on museum aircraft.
Robert “Bob” Moon, a museum founder, built and maintained an extensive collection of model airplanes. Over 100 scale models are on display in the museum gift shop.
Memorabilia lines the hanger walls providing an interesting look into the history of aircraft.
This wall is dedicated to women who contribution to aviation in World War II.
If you are passing near Asheboro, the NC Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame is a good place to stretch your legs and get a taste of aviation history. If you can be there for the annual fly-in, it is even better.
Thank you to the museum volunteers and the US Army Parachute Team for pulling the event together.
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