From the Museum Director
The summer has been busy at the Wings of the North Air Museum. In addition to our normal weekend hours, we have hosted several private tours and other events in the museum and we made appearances at other locations to promote WOTN. The July 6th Pan-O-Prog pancake breakfast on the Airlake Airport was HUGE! They served over 2500 people and we saw a very nice increase in the sale of entries for our Aeronca Sweepstakes thanks to our volunteers who manned a table at the breakfast. Another nice boost in sales followed our own AirFair on July 12 where we had the Aeronca on display.
The museum recently hosted three groups from senior living facilities in Eden Prairie and Bloomington. These are fun to do and they bring in some additional income for the museum. We also hosted a group of 50 middle school students as part of a City of Minnetonka Parks and Recreation Department summer program. In addition to the normal tour, our restoration crew gave them a hands-on demonstration of riveting. Our most recent event was a 70th birthday party for a Vietnam veteran whose family really appreciated the aviation-themed venue. The museum is a great place for events of all kinds. You can help by mentioning our availability to your friends and families.
After Labor Day we will be restarting our monthly movie nights in the museum. On the second Thursday of each month we will show an aviation themed movie for all WOTN volunteers and their friends and families. We’ll even provide the popcorn and you can BYOB! Keep an eye on our Facebook page for the title of our September 11 flick!
On Saturday, September 27, we will be holding our annual fall pancake breakfast when we will have the drawing to give away the 1950 Aeronca or $30,000! Please help promote entries for the sweepstakes! Tickets must be purchased no later than three days prior to the drawing but the winner does not need to be present. The sweepstakes helps fund both the museum and our restoration program. We hope to see all our volunteers and supporters at the breakfast to celebrate another successful sweepstakes!
Sweepstakes
Our sweepstakes is soon coming to an end, get your tickets now. Our grand prize drawing will be September 27th. Don’t miss out. Be like our winners and buy your tickets before it is too late. We have four winners.
Our first winner, Aaron Rosenbury from Lakeville, Minnesota won the PJ2+ Com radio. Museum patrons Oliver and Wylde help draw this winner on July 19. Our second drawing on August 2, was conducted by Milo and Walter who selected the entry from Thomas Grohl from Warren, Ohio who won the Yaesu FRA-850L Transciever. On Aug 16th our third drawing for the Clarity Aloft Headset went to Mark McKibben of Owings, Maryland, the entry was pulled out of the hopper by Asher and Tanner. Our latest winner was Thomas Hayek from St. Louis, Missouri who won the Garmin Aera 660 GPS.
Congratulations to our winners, they are all back in the hopper for our grand prize drawing.
There are still tickets available. Your odds will be 1 in 2500 or better. Get your tickets by following this link.
Click here to purchase tickets.
Restoration Hangar
BT-15 Progress The repairs on our tailcone have now been completed, and the stripping and polishing process has begun. There 6 separate repairs that were required but in doing so we added two doublers which will make our tailcone stronger that it was when Vultee produced it. Hub caps have been installed, the historically accurate color paint is being determined and will be applied. The rudder trim tab is installed and rigged and the rudder rigging is almost completed as well. The next step will installing both elevators and their trim tabs as well. Then the rigging of each of those will take place. The stencils are being researched and painted on the aircraft as we locate the proper locations for each. The battery box has been manufactured and is almost complete. Once this step is complete and we can install the battery and we can begin our electrical check outs.
Wanna help us fund the rest of this project?
Donate on our website: https://www.wotn.org/donate
AirFair
Thank You for Making the Inaugural AirFair a Soaring Success!
We’re thrilled to share that the first-ever Wings of the North AirFair was a resounding success—thanks to all of you! With beautiful weather and an enthusiastic crowd of over 3,500 attendees, the day was a true celebration of aviation, community, and service.
We extend our deepest gratitude to our sponsors, volunteers, vendors, and guests who made this event possible. Special thanks to JetLinx and Premier Aviation for providing a stunning hangar space that housed our aircraft and vendors with style and protection. Early support from the American Legion Posts in Chanhassen (580), Bloomington (550), and Waconia (150) was instrumental in helping us plan and execute the event.
Additional thanks go to the Airport Foundation, Lion’s Club, and Bloomington Event Center for their generous contributions. As the event drew near, Youngstedts Auto Service and Suburban Waste Services stepped up to support our final preparations—please consider supporting these local champions in return.
Our volunteers worked tirelessly to create a memorable experience for families across the region. The C-130 Hercules was a crowd favorite, with a line that never quit and an aircrew that stayed until every visitor had a chance to explore. The static aircraft display featured a diverse lineup including a US Customs & Border Protection helicopter, a glider, a home-built RV, and the Civil Air Patrol. The T-6 Thunder flights added excitement to the skies, while a beautifully restored Spartan Executive surprised and delighted attendees.
We did experience a few last-minute aircraft cancellations due to maintenance and weather concerns—including visibility issues caused by Canadian wildfire smoke. Nonetheless, the energy and enthusiasm were sky-high.
Thanks to Savage Hy-Vee, we celebrated each military branch with custom-decorated cakes. The Navy, Navy League, and Civil Air Patrol hosted engaging tents and displays—did you catch the submarine? MAC had a snowplow for kids to decorate while the Eden Prairie Fire Department and Police showed off a collection of hardware including a fire engine and drones, only MAC was able to fly one on the airport.
We heard your feedback: more flying, more aircraft, and even more excitement. We’re already planning for next year and working to expand our event.
From all of us at Wings of the North—thank you for helping us launch this incredible tradition. We look forward to building on this momentum and welcoming you back next year for an even bigger and better AirFair.
