Airborne & Special Operations Museum

The Airborne & Special Operations Museum (ASOM) is part of the United States Army Museum System. Located near Fort Bragg, Fayetteville, North Carolina, it opened to the public on August 16, 2000, the 60th anniversary of the first U.S. Army parachute jump in 1940 at Fort Benning, Ga. The museum's emphasis is on United States military history especially U.S. Army Airborne and Special Operations Forces (SOF).

The Exhibits The museum offers free admission, a main exhibit gallery, temporary gallery, four-story tall theater, video theater and a motion ride named "The Pitch and Yaw" simulator. It is located in Historic Downtown Fayetteville on the corner of Bragg Boulevard and Hay Street, adjacent to the city's Freedom Memorial Park and the recently built North Carolina Veteran's Park. The main gallery is designed as a self-guiding tour, in chronological order, through the history of the airborne and special operations soldiers, from 1940 to the present. The temporary gallery changes throughout the year and displays a myriad of exhibits pertaining to the United States Army, airborne and special operation units through their history and conflicts from World War II to the present. For a nominal fee visitors can watch the made-for-museum movie "Descending from the Clouds" or ride the 24 seat "Pitch and Yaw" motion simulator. The Airborne & Special Operations Museum Foundation supports the museum with marketing, advertising and financial support for its programs and exhibits.

The Congressional Medal of Honor A wall in the lobby is dedicated to the 73 individuals who have received the Congressional Medal of Honor for their actions while assigned to an airborne or special operations unit. Click here to see a list of the 73 airborne and special operations Medal of Honor recipients.

U.S. Army Airborne Units and Special Operations Units Another wall in the lobby reviews the history of the establishment of airborne units and special operations units, with histories of the major units and even more comprehensive listings of units. Additional information is available at the computer kiosks in the lobby or at Roll Call Unit Histories.

HOURS Closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Years Day and Easter.
 * 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday through Saturday
 * 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday
 * Closed on Mondays, but is open on all Federal holiday Mondays.

Theater and Simulator: Inside the museum are two opportunities for visitors to get a little more into the action. * The movie, Descending from the Clouds, in the Yarborough-Bank Movie Theater, is $4 a ticket Tickets are available in the gift shop.
 * The Motion Simulator "Pitch and Yaw" is $5 a ticket.
 * Combination ticket for both is $8. Any patron under 38 inches tall can ride the simulator for half-price.