Youth Group Overnight Adventure on October 10
The USS Hornet is inviting the public to come aboard the ship for a celebration of the 250th Birthday of the United States Navy [1] on the weekend of October 10-13. The event takes place during San Francisco Fleet Week, so in addition to all the other activities aboard the ship, the Hornet flight deck provides a good view of the Blue Angels flying overhead, across the bay and over the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Bridge.
[2]The USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum [3] is collaborating with Fleet Week, so in addition to activities aboard the ship, the Hornet will station its jet cockpit at Pier 30-32 in San Francisco on October 10, 11, and 12.
In addition to the many fun and interesting activities planned for the celebration of the Navy’s anniversary, the Hornet will host a Friday night Youth Group Overnight Adventure [4] aboard the ship for ages 7 and older. (See details below).
US Navy 250th Birthday
The first two ships officially brought into the Navy were the USS Hornet and the USS Wasp in 1775. The USS Hornet CV-12, which is now used as a museum in Alameda, served with distinction in World War II, the Cold War, the Vietnam War, and as part of the space race as the Apollo 11 and 12 recovery ship.
The Hornet will host many exciting activities for guests as part of the US Navy birthday festivities, including:
- Opening the cockpits of the SeaKing Helicopter and the S-2 Tracker so guests can explore the inside.
- Opening the rear door of the Avenger for guests to see what the setup was like for the rear two crewmen.
- Opening the Mobile Quarantine Facility for guests. It’s normally opened only during Apollo anniversary events.
- Reopening the Hornet Legacy exhibit, which tells the story of all eight ships named Hornet, from the Revolutionary War to the USS Hornet CV-12 now in Alameda.
- And, of course, catching a glimpse of the Blue Angels from the Flight Deck each day.
A speaker from the Navy will give a presentation about some part of the Navy’s 250-year history every day.
Youth Group Overnight Adventure
On Saturday night, October 10, the Hornet will host a Fleet Week-themed overnighter for youth ages 7 and up, who can spend the night on the retired Navy warship and find out how the USS Hornet sailors lived and worked on this city at sea.
A perfect group activity for scouts, youth groups, schools, friends, and families, the Fleet Week Overnight Adventure will take participants on a tour of the ship’s key areas and discuss the history, science, and engineering behind them. The tour offers a chance to participate in several hands-on science stations and demonstrations interspersed with seeing sailors’ living spaces.
The experience includes:
- Sleeping in restored, original sailor sleeping compartments.
- Dinner and breakfast in the original Enlisted Crew’s Mess.
- Learning about this famous aircraft carrier’s daring exploits.
- Touring key areas of the ship and the historic naval aircraft on display.
- Learning about NASA’s Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 missions that put the first men on the moon.
- Earning an overnight crew patch and certificate.
Admission to this event is $95 per participant.
Tickets
Admission to the USS Hornet is $25 for adults, $15 for seniors and students, $12 for youth ages 7-17 (6 and under are free). Guests who receive SNAP benefits are eligible for a reduced admission cost of $2 through Museums for All [5]. Please bring your EBT card to present to the Admissions Desk if you would like to receive this reduced rate.
All active duty and veteran military personnel will be allowed aboard for free the entire weekend.
There’s plenty of free parking.
The USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum is located at 707 West Hornet Avenue.