NATIONAL AVIATION HERITAGE AREA 
Newsletter
June 12, 2014 
National Museum of USAF breaks ground
Photo of ceremonial ground breaking at National Museum of USAF
The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force broke ground Tuesday, June 3, on a major addition. The $35.4 million building will house aircraft from the museum's Presidential, Research and Development (R&D) and Global Reach collection, as well as a new and expanded Space Gallery, according to the museum's news release.

Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James spoke at the ceremony. "As the Air Force's window to the public, the museum is where the people come to learn about the history, mission and evolving capabilities of America's Air Force and about the airmen who are truly the foundation of everything we do," she said. 
New book prompts search for descendants of Wright Company factory workers
NAHA is using the launch of a new book about the Wright brothers to connect with descendants of the Wright Company's factory workers.

NAHA is inviting descendants of men and women who worked in one of the two factory buildings to attend the launch of the new book by Timothy R. Gaffney,
The Dayton Flight Factory, at Books and Co. at the Greene at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, July 2.

 Descendants will have an opportunity to be recognized and briefly tell about their relatives and the work they did in the factory. They will also be invited to participate in Wright Factory Families, a project by NAHA and Wright State University Libraries' Special Collections and Archives to create a new collection focused on the factory workers.

NAHA will also invite descendants to an exclusive tour of the factory at a later date. Read NAHA's news release for more details. (Gaffney is NAHA's communications director but wrote the book as an independent project.)
Local service members return for air show
Photo of Lt. Cdr. John Hiltz, Blue Angels No. 2
Lt. Cdr. John Hiltz
The Blue Angels are returning to the Vectren Dayton Air Show Presented by Kroger this year with the help of 10 Navy personnel from Ohio and northern Kentucky who are serving coveted assignments on the jet demonstration team. The air show will also be a homecoming of sorts for two cadets on the Air Force Academy's Wings of Blue parachute team.
 
Lt. Cdr. John Hiltz, a native of Fort Mitchell, Ky. and a 1998 Covington Catholic High School graduate, will make his second flying appearance at the air show, flying as Blue Angels No. 2.

Performing with Wings of Blue will be Air Force Academy Cadet First Class Cameron Potts of Dayton, a 2011 Carroll High School graduate, and Cadet Ryan Haas of Crescent Springs, Ky., near Fort Mitchell. Haas is a 2011 St. Xavier High School graduate. Read the air show's news release for more details.
Repairs scheduled for Wright Memorial
Photo of airplane flying over Wright Memorial at Wright-Patterson AFB
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base wants the public to know the monument area of the Wright Memorial will be closed between July 7 through Aug. 15 while a contractor makes repairs.

Dedicated in 1940, the Wright Memorial is set in a shady, 27-acre park overlooking the Huffman Prairie Flying Field, Huffman Dam and Wright-Patterson's airfield. The park's centerpiece is a 17-foot-tall granite monument surrounded by stone steps and a plaza.

The project consists of carefully removing the existing pink granite steps from around the large vertical monument stone, according to Wright-Patterson's cultural resources office.  The steps will be stored on site and protected while the contractor repairs the foundations and ensures proper drainage under the steps.

The granite steps will be reinstalled and reseated with new mortar and grout made to match the historic materials. Because of the historic nature of the monument and its eligibility for the National Register of Historic Places, the base has coordinated the project with the State Historic Preservation Office in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act.
USAF Marathon medal wins award
Photo of 2013 USAF Marathon medal The bimonthly running magazine Marathon and Beyond has named the 2013 Air Force Marathon medal one of the top 25 medals in the nation, the USAF Marathon office announced
June 4.

Every year, a panel of running industry experts chooses the top 25 marathon medals in the nation from hundreds of submissions. The panel recognized the 2013 Air Force Marathon medal for its patriotism and reverence.

The Air Force Marathon honors a different aircraft each year by featuring them on the medals and the runner shirts. The 2013 featured aircraft was the C-130J 'Super Hercules' and the 2014 medal will feature the F-35A 'Lightning II'.
Rail fest coming to Carillon Historical Park
Photo of people riding on miniature steam locomotive at Carillon Historical Park
Dayton History at Carillon Park on June 20-21 will be host to the ninth annual Rail Festival presented by the James F. Dicke family.

The festival will get underway at 9:30 a.m. Saturday and run to 5 p.m. Sunday's hours will be noon to 4 p.m. Additional support for educational programming comes from the Mary H. Kittredge Fund of the Dayton Foundation. Visit railfestival.com for more details including admission fees.
NAHA staff guests on WHIO radio program
Photo of NAHA Executive Director Tony Sculimbrene and Communications Director Tim Gaffney
Tony Sculimbrene (right), Tim Gaffney

Ron Rollins, senior editor of the Dayton Daily News, invited NAHA staff to discuss the Wright Company factory on his radio program, "Miami Valley Voices".

Rollins recorded the half-hour program with NAHA Executive Director Tony Sculimbrene and Communications Director Tim Gaffney last week, and it aired Sunday morning at 8 a.m. on WHIO 1290 AM.

Thanks to the Internet, you can still listen to the program if you missed it Sunday. Visit this link to listen to the podcast.
NATIONAL AVIATION HERITAGE AREA
NAHA logo
The National Aviation Heritage Alliance (NAHA) is a private, not-for-profit corporation designated by Congress as the management entity of the National Aviation Heritage Area.

The Heritage Area encompasses an eight-county area in Ohio (Montgomery, Greene, Miami, Clark, Warren, Champaign, Shelby and Auglaize counties.)

NAHA's vision is to sustain the legacy of the Wright brothers and make the Dayton region the recognized global center of aviation heritage and premier destination for aviation heritage tourism.
www.visitNAHA.org

PO Box 414 * Wright Brothers Station * Dayton, OH 45409
[email protected] * 937-443-0165
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Show your pride in Ohio's aerospace industry and support aviation heritage. Your registration provides $15 to support NAHA's activities.

www.leaderinflight.org
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