Swift Museum
Aviation museum in Athens, Tennessee
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The Swift Museum is an aviation museum located at the McMinn County Airport in Athens, Tennessee.
  Location within Tennessee | |
| Established | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Location | Athens, Tennessee |
| Coordinates | 35.3967°N 84.5583°W |
| Type | Aviation museum |
| Founder | Charlie Nelson |
| Website | www |
History
Background
The Swift Museum Foundation was established by Charlie Nelson in 1968.[1] In the early 1980s, it purchased the Globe Swift type certificate and production tooling from Univair.[2]
It acquired the first production Swift in 2007.[3]
Museum construction
The foundation announced plans for a 10,000 sq ft (930 m2) hangar in April 2008. This would allow the museum to consolidate aircraft that had been stored in multiple buildings around the airport.[4] After five years, ground was broken on the first phase, a 3,200 sq ft (300 m2) office and parts storage building, in March 2013, and it was completed later that year.[5][6]
After signing a new lease with the airport that expanded the size of its parcel in 2015, the second phase, a 6,400 sq ft (590 m2) hangar, opened the following year.[7][6]
The third phase, a 3,200 sq ft (300 m2) expansion for additional parts, was finished in time for the 50th anniversary of the foundation in October 2018.[8][1][6] In the meantime, the museum had worked with AirCorps Library to digitize its collection of drawings and manuals.[9]
The sole LoPresti Fury was donated to the museum in 2019.[10]
Collection
- Globe GC-1A Swift[11]
- Globe GC-1B Swift[11]
- Johnson Rocket 125[11]
- Temco T-35 Buckaroo[11]
- Temco T-35 Buckaroo[11]
Events
The museum holds an annual fly-in.[12]