Millard Municipal Aiport, Nebraska

Afterward, it’s not hard to find a good steak, but Omaha has more to offer than one aviation museum and steak. It’s also home to a world-class zoo, a financial oracle, and tasty sandwiches.

Millard Municipal is a lively general aviation airport, with most operations being from flight training, so keep your eyes open in the pattern. One weekend of the year is particularly busy at Omaha airports, and that’s during the annual Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholder meeting. The “oracle of Omaha’s” company draws shareholders from across America and worldwide. It’s often held on the same day as the Kentucky Derby, so some pilots rush to the airports after the meeting to fly to Louisville for the run for the roses.

Oracle Aviation FBO

Oracle Aviation is the airport’s sole FBO and provides amenities such as crew and passenger lounges, pilot sleep rooms, Wi-Fi, a conference room, and courtesy car. The staff will organize rental cars or limousines, hotel reservations, and offer suggestions for finding that perfect steak. Full-service fuel is available 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., or self-service, 24/7.

Oracle is an FAA-approved flight school with single-engine Cessnas and Pipers, a twin-engine Piper Seneca, and a Beechcraft Duchess. They can also arrange spin training in a Pitts Special and flight training in Cirrus aircraft.

Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum

The Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum exhibits America’s aircraft and missile arsenal from the Cold War years. It’s located 16 miles southwest of Omaha on the road to Lincoln. The museum is worth the trip with a 300,000-square-foot building that houses display hangars, theater, museum store, and an aircraft restoration gallery.

More than 50 aircraft are exhibited, including many Cold War nuclear bombers, such as the Convair B-36 Peacemaker, Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, Convair B-58 Hustler, Rockwell B-1 Lancer, and British Avro Vulcan. Also on exhibit are the eyes in the sky, a Lockheed U-2 and SR-71 Blackbird. Out front stands an Atlas missile that was designed to deliver nuclear weapons.

Boys Town

Stroll through “Boys Town,” established in 1917 as a home for wayward boys by the Rev. Edward J. Flanagan. It became famous through the 1938 movie Boys Town, starring Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney, which depicts a highly fictionalized version of its founding. You can visit Flanagan’s tomb in the chapel on campus. Boys Town is located 10 miles west of Omaha on US-6 West.

General Crook House Museum

George R. Crook (1828-1890) was a U.S. Army officer best known for leading the campaign to capture the Apache leader Geronimo. The 1879 house was built by Crook when he commanded Fort Omaha.

Malcolm X Birthplace

The Malcolm X Center preserves the site where civil rights leader Malcolm X was born in 1925. The small visitor center is open Fridays and Saturdays, and on other days by appointment.

Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium

Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo is ranked as one of the best zoos in the world. Its “Desert Dome,” an indoor exhibit of three desert environments housed under a huge geodesic dome, allows visitors to view desert animals year around. At the 28-acre African Grasslands exhibit, visitors can view antelope, elephants, giraffes, lions, and rhinos in a natural environment from an aerial tram. The kids will enjoy riding the Omaha Zoo Railroad, an excursion train that travels through the zoo grounds powered by a historic steam locomotive.

Meaty eats

Omaha residents are proud of their steak houses and, of course, Omaha Steaks is based there.

For a completely different meaty treat, stop at the birthplace (allegedly) of a sandwich usually associated with New York City delicatessens, the Reuben.

Reubens are made of corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, with Russian or Thousand Island dressing on rye bread, and grilled in a skillet. One origination story claims it was first made in the 1920s for players at a weekly poker game held in Omaha’s Blackstone Hotel. It soon landed on the hotel’s lunch menu and its fame spread when it won a 1956 national sandwich contest. In Omaha, March 14 is “Reuben Sandwich Day.” The hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is currently the Kimpton Cottonwood Hotel. Dennis K. Johnson is an aviation writer and pilot.