USS Midway Museum
The USS Midway Museum is a popular historical museum of San Diego, CA. It is located at Navy Pier, in downtown San Diego. The museum actually consists of the famous aircraft carrier Midway. It is best known for offering over 60 exhibits scattered all across the historic aircraft carrier. It also consists of 29 restored aircraft. In short, the Midway Museum is a family-oriented spot with endless activities for all ages.
The history of the USS Midway takes us back to April 11, 1992, when it was decommissioned in San Diego. The ship remained in Bremerton, Washington storage until 2003. Later on, it was donated to the San Diego Aircraft Carrier Museum which is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. In June 2004, the ship opened for the local public as the USS Midway Museum. It is now home to an extensive collection of aircraft. The majority of the aircraft were built in Southern California.
Midway opened as a museum on 7 June 2004. The annual visitation increased to 1 million visitors by the end of 2012. By the year 2015, Midway became the most famous naval warship in the US. Currently, the museum hosts 700+ events on an annual basis. This includes 400+ active-duty Navy retirements, changes of command, and re-enlistments. The museum has over 13,000 active members.
The USS Midway Museum is known for hosting approximately 50,000 students on several special field trips. It also hosts around 5,000 children that attend the overnight program every year. Along with some private events, the museum also hosted public events. Some of the notable ones are the NCAA basketball game broadcast (2012), an episode of American Idol, etc. "Battle on the Midway" is a collegiate wrestling showcase that is nationally televised annually each November. The show has been staged at the flight deck of the museum since 2017. Some of the famous channels that shoot programs at the museum include The Bachelor, Extreme Makeover, the Travel Channel, Discovery Channel, History Channel, FOX News, and Military Channel.
The yearly membership of the USS Midway Museum is now around 25,000+. The members enjoy "The Battle of Midway Theater" which is a holographic, high definition movie theater. It was added to the site in 2017. A virtual reality flight simulator ride was also added to the museum in 2019. The two major screenings at the museum were arranged by the San Diego International Film Festival and the GI Film Festival.
Some of the other notable activities that take place at the USS Midway Museum are Guided Island Tour, Junior Pilot Program, Catapult & Trap Talks, Overnight Adventure, and Little Skippers. A few of the special days celebrated at the museum include Legacy Week, Operation Desert Storm 30th Anniversary, Destination: Midway, 4th Of July Celebration, Top Gun Movie Nights, Veterans Day Celebration, and WWII Wall Of Honor.