Projects

Noorduyn UC-64A Norseman

The Norseman

Restoring a Norseman is no small undertaking, as the past several decades have clearly demonstrated. Both the Noorduyn Foundation and Aviodrome have reached the same conclusion: the Noorduyn Norseman is an incredibly complex machine. One of the restorers often sighs, “Why…? Why did they build this aircraft in such a complicated way?” Dispite these challenges, we have made significant progress in bringing the aircraft back to an airworthy condition. We are looking forward to the final steps of the project, and hope to have the Norseman in the air by 2028.

Our Vision

There are big plans for the Norseman when it is back in an airworthy condition. We want to show people around Europe what it was like going on a mission in one of these aircraft and offer special experiences where people can re-live history by going on a "mission" in this aircraft including everything that would happen before and after a flight. Besides this, we also want to display the aircraft at airshows throughout Europe and inspire young people to become an active member within the Historic Aviation scene.

1942 Dodge WC-53 Carryall

The Dodge

The Dodge WC-53 Carryall was used as an officer transport vehicle and as a radio communication wagon. We started working on our Dodge in 2014, when we compleetly dissasembled the car and started rebuilding from the frame up. After many years of work, we were finally ready to take the Dodge to the road in 2020.

Result

Now that the Dodge is finished, we take it to re-enactment gatherings and memorials all around the country, just like we plan to do with the Norseman. A highlight this year was our visit to the Bridge in Nijmegen, a 300k drive through the Netherlands with a lot of enthousiastic people enroute.

Display

Bringing history to life

We want to bring the history of our projects to life for the public by immersing them in displays that tell the stories of people who lived during the second world war. The displays will be like a living painting, using vehicles, props and mannequins from the 40s.

Glenn Miller

Glenn Miller was the leader of the U.S. Army Air Forces Band during the Second World War. In 1944, he disappeared while flying across the English Channel in a Noorduyn Norseman en route to Paris under poor weather conditions. His well-known story, combined with our own Noorduyn Norseman, provides a unique opportunity to bring history to life in a compelling display. Re-creating his band is a strong example of how we envision our historical presentations taking shape.

Flight preperation

This display is a smaller example of how we try to immerse the pulbic in the life of people who lived during the Second World War.