Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum

The arrival of a retired Royal Australian Air Force F-111C in front of hangar 37

Due to its historical significance, as the location of the first radio alert of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the museum plans to spend over $7,500,000 repairing the Ford Island control tower.[19] It was registered as a category 1 structure in the 1978 Pearl Harbor Naval Base Historic Preservation Plan and is being restored by Kiewit Building Group; the same contractor who built the museum.[19] The 70-year-old 158 feet (48 m) tower suffers from deteriorating steel stairs, landing, and beams that require repair or replacement.[20] A grant through the United States Department of Defense appropriations for the stabilization and restoration of a historical landmark was given to the museum for $3,800,000 which provided the initial funds to start the project.[21] The control tower, as well as the runway, has been designated a national historic landmark since 1964.[22] In 2010, records filed with Congress shows that defense firms had donated nearly $449,000 to the museum during efforts to raise money to restore the tower.[23] The tower was considered a personal issue for Senator Inouye and many of these donations were made in his memory.[23] The tower was featured in the films Tora! Tora! Tora! and Pearl Harbor.[24]

Hangar 37, a former seaplane hangar and a survivor of the attack on Pearl Harbor, was the first hangar developed for the museum.[25] The 7.25 acres (2.93 ha) facility consists of nine exhibits, a movie theater, flight simulators, a store and a restaurant.[14] The renovation cost was $11,000,000 and was raised by federal and state grants and through donations by local corporations.[14] Built in 1939 and at over 87,000 square feet (8,100 m²), Hangar 79 is the restoration hangar but also contains many of the museums exhibits including the flying tigers exhibit, MiG Alley exhibit, and various helicopters, jets, and civil aircraft.[26][27][28] The hangar's glass windows are still riddled with bullet holes from Japanese aircraft from the day of the attack.[28] Tawani Foundation donated $82,500 for the renovation of Hangar 79.[29]

In 2008, the Hawaii Pacific University documentary and corporate video class completed development of a 12-minute film titled East, Wind, Rain to replace the older film shown to visitors at the museum.[38] The film explains the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor to museum guests and won the 2010 Pixie Gold Award from American Pixel Academy.[39]

In 2013 the museum planned to host 1,500 Chinese nationals from Amway China on Ford Island who were particularly interested in the Flying Tigers exhibit. The Navy expressed concerns about this plan as Ford Island remains an active military installation.[40] Despite these concerns, the Navy approved the event and erected a 6-foot (1.8 m) tall fence.[40][41]

In March 2013 the museum's online ticketing service was hacked. The museum's service provider, Vendini, believed that none of the data of its customers was accessed.[42]

In June 2013 the museum fought the US Navy's plan to install 60,000 photovoltaic panels over 28 acres on the Ford Island runway.[43] The Navy had intended to comply with Congressional and Defense Department mandates to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and offset the cost of Hawaiian energy costs, which are the highest in the United States.[43] The plan deviated from a 2009 proposal which would use the panels to define the historic runway in favor of panels which would produce twice the power.[44] The Navy offered the museum $250,000 toward renovation of the control tower's elevator in exchange for their support of the plan which the museum declined.[44] It organized an internet campaign to oppose the plan based on historical significance.[43] Instead, the Navy decided to install the panels on existing structures around Pearl Harbor.[43]

In 2008, the museum received a grant from BAE Systems to fund its Barnstorming program to build wind tunnels and plane props that will tour local schools to teach aerospace education to sixth graders.[45] In 2012, the program was credited with teaching 3,500 students from 40 schools.[45]

In 2013, the U.S. State Department awarded the museum the "Museums Connect" grant for the "Past to Present: U.S. -Sino Bridge of Connections" program.[46] The program allowed students from Kaiser High School to participate in a cultural heritage exchange with students in Chengdu, China and conduct research into 1940s American-Chinese relations.[46]

During the 2013 federal budget sequestration in the United States, the Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor received an increase in tourists, due to limited ferry trips to the USS Arizona Memorial which are operated by active duty United States Navy personnel.[47] While former and active military tourists gain access through the Admiral Clarey bridge and because Ford Island is still part of the active military base Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, non-military tourists gain access via the National Park Service's Halawa Landing, now known as the Pearl Harbor Historic Sites, for tickets to the museum and then are transported via tour bus onto the installation for the museum and the USS Missouri.[48]