Admission to the Biggest Little Airshow is free with your paid admission to the Pacific Aviation Museum.

The nonprofit organization was formed in 1979 in association with the National Park Service to support and fund educational programs, museum exhibits and interpretive programs for the USS Arizona Memorial, which is part of the recently dedicated WWII Valor in the Pacific National Monument. The monument also includes sites on Ford Island: the USS Oklahoma Memorial, USS Utah Memorial, and several historic Battleship Row mooring quays and CPO bungalows.

Over the last 31 years, the organization’s role has grown to include support of the three additional historic landmarks. Information about all four parks is available at PHP’s new website.

Michael Carr, president and chief operating officer of the Battleship Missouri Memorial, showered gifts upon the milestone visitor, including a U.S. flag that Chmiel and her children helped raise over the “Mighty Mo”. Other Oahu attractions and companies joined the Missouri in congratulating the visitor with gifts.

Visiting Hawaii with her husband, Tim Saviello, and their two children, Chmiel and her family have several ties to Hawaii and the military. Chmiel’s father served in the U.S. Navy; Tim Saviello was born on Oahu at Tripler Army Medical Center, where his father worked as a doctor; and his sister-in-law, Erin Saviello, is currently serving in the U.S. Air Force.

The new center is designed to improve the visitor experience and comfort. A 23-minute movie about the Pearl Harbor attack will be shown in temporary facilities until the primary facility for the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center is complete.

You might also be interested in Hangar Talk, a blog on many aspects of the Pacific Air Museum and related subjects.

An average of 4,000 visitors per day make Pearl Harbor one of the most popular Hawaii activities on any visit to Oahu. Pearl Harbor tours can include just a visit to the Arizona Memorial or can take in all four fascinating museums. Be sure to view our tips for what you need to know before you visit Pearl Harbor.

Arizona Memorial is a short boat ride from the museum.

Pearl Harbor is home to some of the most important World War II historic sites. A shuttle-boat takes visitors to the USS Arizona Memorial built over the sunken remains of the USS Arizona battleship. A short walk away from the Arizona visitor center is the USS Bowfin submarine museum, another interesting destination for those visiting Pearl Harbor.

The Battleship USS Missouri Museum and the Pacific Aviation Museum are located a short shuttle-bus away on nearby Ford Island. Visits to these two fascinating museums are recommended as part of a Pearl Harbor tour if time permits.

USS Arizona Memorial and Museum

This memorial is a moving tribute to the brave soldiers who lost their lives in the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. A visitor center and museum are the land-based portions of the memorial park. A free ferry takes visitors for the short boat ride to the memorial located over the sunken hull of the USS Arizona. Over 1.5 million people visit the Arizona Memorial every year.

USS Bowfin Submarine Museum

Go on board one of the few WWII submarines still afloat and learn what life was like for a submariner. Adjacent to the sub is a fascinating museum focused on the US Naval submarines from the first in 1900 to the nuclear submarines of today. Numerous other submarines, torpedoes and missiles are located on the grounds around the Submarine Museum.

Battleship Missouri Memorial and Museum

The last of the great US battleships, the “Mighty Mo” took part in many battles during WWII and secured her place in history as the site of the surrender to Allied Forces that ended World War II. Learn what life at sea was like with tours throughout the ship, films, photos and artifacts at the Missouri Museum.

Pacific Aviation Museum

Numerous WWII planes, dioramas, historical movies, and fascinating true stories of heroes and villains make this museum entertaining as well as educational. You can even try your skills in a WWII dogfight in a flight simulator at the Pacific Aviation Museum.

All of these museums share the same parking lot. The stop for the shuttlebus that takes visitors to the Battleship Missouri Memorial and the Pacific Aviation Museum is located just outside the Bowfin Museum (vehicle access is restricted on Ford Island). The shuttlebus is frequent and free for museum ticket holders.

Books and Videos about the attack on Pearl Harbor

To learn more about the history of the attack on Pearl Harbor, we’ve selected several prominent books and a few DVDs. Have a look at our selection of books and videos about the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Illustration of the new Pearl Harbor Visitor Center & Museum

The new Pearl Harbor Museum and Visitor Center is expected to be completed in December 2010.  The construction is being done in stages so that that portions of the museum can remain open and provide continuing access to the Arizona Memorial.

The new facility will include an additional six acres of land and the visitor center will expand to 24,000 square feet, doubling the current museum exhibition space. Have a look at illustrations of the new design.

The new Arizona Visitor center will:

• accommodate the increasing number of people that visit each year with expanded, comfortable, and ecologically aware facilities.
• provide in-depth interpretation of what happened at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 through comprehensive, state-of-the-art audio/visual displays; the use of rare, historical photographs, charts, maps, and more to extensively analyze events leading up to the attack through the post-attack salvage efforts; and new, “tactile” presentations allowing visitors to feel the history of Pearl Harbor.
• Make use of climate-controlled exhibit cases allowing many more of the priceless artifacts of Pearl Harbor history to be displayed.

Funds are still being raised to pay for the construction. To find out more about the new visitor center or make a donation online visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial Fund website.