The Age of Aerospace

Sixty years after the launch of Sputnik satellites become the invisible infrastructure that power the world; it wasn't until the 1991 Gulf War that the public came to recognize the transformative power of GPS and communications satellites.

James McDonnell and his St. Louis-based McDonnell Aircraft transform naval aviation following WWII, bringing the first jet-powered fighter to American carrier decks; McDonnell Banshees, Voodoos and Phantoms become iconic defenders of the free world.

Frank Piasecki was a pioneer of rotorcraft and his groundbreaking tandem rotor design brought the helicopter into the modern age; the iconic Chinook helicopter and it's many uses from combat to humanitarian aid is his legacy.