Not that many people are aware of it, but Long Island is one of the cradles of aviation. 2 great (and one punchline) giants of aviation came out of the area. The punchline company was Brewster, which was known for building planes slowly and poorly during WWII (coincidentally, Jetblue is based out of its former headquarters in Queens). The one that won the Air Force's heart was Republic Aviation, based out in Farmingdale. It started its illustrious career with the Jug (P-47 Thunderbolt), the Hog (F-84 Thunderjet), the Super-Hog (The F-84F Thunderstreak), the Thud (The F-105 Thunderchief that played chicken with missile batteries in Hanoi during the Vietnam War), and then the Warthog (the plane that was designed to plink Soviet tanks in the Fulda Gap and ended up putting 20mm milk-bottle sized pieces of metal deep into the hearts, minds and other vital organs of the Islamic state today). It unfortunately died out in 1987. There's Grumman out in Calverton, a.k.a the Iron Works, which churned out numerous classics of aviation, and contributed to our Naval air supremacy for the past 50 years.
Why was Grumman so important? Let's see. A Grumman type has been there for every major American conflict since World War II. Grumman Wildcats (F4F) danced with Japanese Zeroes at Midway. Grumman Hellcats (F6F) swept the Japanese from the skies over Guadalcanal, the Marianas and the Philippines. Grumman Panthers (F9F) bombed the bridges of Toko-Ri in the Korean war. Grumman Intruders (A-6) went up against Hanoi and punched holes all over North Vietnam during the Vietnam War. When Goose got behind Maverick, it was a Grumman Tomcat (F-14) on the deck. Grumman Hawkeye (E-2) airborne command and control planes keep tabs on the skies above our aircraft carriers and direct the battle in Libya and Serbia. Grumman also built the Apollo lunar module that took Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong down to the moon so they can have small steps for men, giant leaps for mankind. To keep the snow, rain, heat or gloom of night off our postal workers, they built the LLV (long life vehicle) mail truck.
Grumman no longer build warplanes - during the post cold-war defense industry drawdown the programs to keep the Tomcats and the Intruders flying were cancelled, and the Calverton plant shut down - its now an executive airport for the east end of Long Island. There was a long and proud legacy of Grumman engineering and manufacturing know-how. Where do you see the legacy? Right here. The former Grumman engineers and executives pooled together resources and bought a parcel of land near the end of the old factory runway at Calverton, and with the solicitation of donations from local businesses, were able to secure some artifacts of its proud history. 2 historically significant planes from Grumman's history (The A-6E Intruder and the F-14A Tomcat) were borrowed from the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida. Memorial plaques from the extended Grumman family were secured from the engineers, shop foremans, workers and executives who worked on those important programs, and you can see their hard work on display here.
Granted, this is really a place for the hardcore plane nerds, but it's important to keep these memories alive. With the merger of Northrop and Grumman, the company is safe and secure, but the emphasis is on missiles and information security. If you want to see traces of the old Iron Works, it's right here at Calverton. If you want to see Republic's history, check out the Cradle of Aviation Museum out in Garden City (near the Roosevelt Fields shopping mall), which contain their own artifacts. read more