Come Fly with Me: The Piper Aviation Museum, Lock Haven, PA

Exploring the Life and Legacy of the “Henry Ford of Aviation”

As part of her “day job,” The Fussy Diner recently had the opportunity to take a one-day trip to Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, the home of the Piper Aviation Museum. The museum is located in the former Piper Aircraft engineering building, adjacent to two factory buildings that churned out tens of thousands of Piper Aircraft planes – including the beloved Piper Cub - from the 1930s through the 1980s. Many of these planes are still flying today.

Piper Aircraft is now based in Vero Beach, Florida. But the company’s story is preserved and presented very imaginatively here in Lock Haven. I love small, unusual museums, and this one is a gem.

The museum tells the story of entrepreneur William T. Piper, Sr., a salesman and oilman who almost accidentally found himself in the aviation business when he bought into a local airplane manufacturer in 1930 for $400.

Mr. Piper (no one ever called him anything else) had a vision: everyone should fly.

Under his guidance and later that of his three sons, Piper Aircraft produced a series of iconic airplanes that were easy to learn, easy to fly and affordable. For this reason, Mr. Piper is known as the “Henry Ford of Aviation.”

Mr. Piper was a tireless and creative promoter of personal flight. He engaged in some colorful and successful promotional stunts, including offering beginners their first flying lesson for only $5. He championed the establishment of small airfields and aircraft harbors to accommodate small planes.

Through dogged persistence, he also convinced the U.S government of the value of light planes to the war effort in World War II (he was right).

Mr. Piper was a decisive businessman who innovated ways to build and manufacture planes to lower the cost of flying. He steered his company through floods, fires and turbulent economic times. Piper Aircraft today continues to be an international force in general aviation.

It’s a great story that’s told in the museum by a film, interesting displays of historical photos and other memorabilia, and, of course, the planes themselves. Our docent, who guided us through the museum, was knowledgeable, witty and full of humorous anecdotes. The museum also contains an archive, which we were able to tour. Some of the people who work at the museum remember the Piper family, and it was a treat to hear them share their personal stories and observations.


Other highlights for me included the strategic role of Piper Cubs in World War II; the Tomahawk simulator room; and the missions – from strategic to stunts — that many Piper customers engaged in over the decades. I also enjoyed learning about the many experimental planes and how the company marketed the Cub, Cherokee and other planes to the American public.

Do not miss the ground floor, a large hangar filled with Piper planes from different generations – each of which has an interesting story behind it. There’s also a paint shop where experts work on repairing and maintaining the classic planes on display.

Every June, Piper enthusiasts fly into Lock Haven from all over for the museum’s annual “Sentimental Journey.” It’s a chance to see many Piper planes up close and in action.

The Piper Aviation Museum is interesting for all ages and not just for pilots. It tells a great American business story — one that I wish some actor or director would option and turn into a film. (Calling Harrison Ford.)

You can read more about Piper in the book Mr. Piper and His Cubs. It’s out of print, but I found it at our local college library and was able to buy a used copy on Amazon.

Quite appropriately, I flew to the museum. My colleague Michael Kolowich, an experienced pilot, flew us in his four-seater plane. The two-runway William T. Piper Memorial Airport is next to the museum, a five-minute drive by car. It was a perfect day for flying, and we saw only one other plane on the whole four-hour-or-so roundtrip from Hanscom Field in Massachusetts (so much for the crowded skies).

Mr. Piper believed that everyone should fly. I do too: it’s a different world. General aviation is a parallel universe to the hot, flat and crowded world of commercial aviation. I can’t wait until my next flight.

The Fussy Diner rating: Two Wings Up for the Piper Aviation Museum.