From the Museum Director
The Wings of the North Air Museum is always in motion! While we wait for the George HW Bush Boeing Stearman to return from some repairs, we have borrowed a couple more really great machines. One is a 1942 Taylorcraft L-2 “Grasshopper” painted in World War II colors. The other is also a 1942 model but it is a Willys Overland army Jeep. These are on display side by side in our restoration hangar next to the museum. Both vehicles are on loan to us for a limited time so make sure to stop by soon to see them.
Our Speaker Series continues with free presentations on the first Thursday each month at 6:30pm in the museum. Our speaker on February 5 was Mark Copeland from the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force in Savanah, Georgia. He spoke to more than fifty people about the first daytime bombing raids on Berlin during World War II. The carnage and loss of life on both sides was epic. Our April speaker will be Kristin Holsworth talking about her grandfather, Buzz Kaplan, who was a pilot, adventurer, and goodwill aviation ambassador around the world for Owatonna and Minnesota.
Business at the museum has been steady, even during our chilly weather. The one area where we need some improvement is private parties, events, and meetings. These are excellent sources of extra income and can be booked for any day and time except when the museum is open to the public. Please help us by mentioning our event space to your family, company, club, church group, school group, homeowners association, etc. We can do groups of up to 50 or more. Email [email protected] for details.
Of course, the museum is also the hub for our restoration projects, the AirFair, the sweepstakes, and new projects like a car show this summer. Volunteers and sponsors for all these activities are crucial to keeping us moving closer to the ultimate goal of a larger museum hangar on Flying Cloud. More on than later!
Restoration Hangar
The BT-15 is moving along. All the flight controls are on and rigged. We have begun the process of fitting the tailcone as well as the horizontal and vertical fairings. After these are fitted we will move on to fitting the 4 main side panels. Work is continuing on fitting the forward and aft control panels and finding or making the the correct and placard for those panels. We are also re-making all of the lower wing inspection panels. We only had 3 of 15 and the three we had were in rough shape. The pilots pre-flight check list has been revised several times and is now ready for lamination. We are continuing to clear items from the original maintenance log and we are in the initial planning stage of creating an actual log book for our BT-15
Wanna help us fund the rest of this project? Donate on our website: https://www.wotn.org/donate
AirFair
AirFair planning meetings kicked off in January. We are still actively seeking volunteers to help shape this year’s event. With the nation celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States, we’re especially eager to hear your ideas on how to make this AirFair a truly memorable tribute.
We are busy working to get sponsorships, and aircraft. We are expecting to have the same setup as last year and use the JetLinx hangar. We are working to confirm the C-130 and additional military aircraft. We heard from those attending last year that they would like to see more flights, so we are also working on those. We hope to more than double the number of aircraft we had last year.
We are looking forward to another great year for the AirFair. We continue to grow and want to see you and your friends this year. Please come out and learn about the airport, aviation and celebrate flying and the USA.
If you’d like to get involved, please join us at 6:30 PM on the third Thursday of each month. Your creativity, energy, and enthusiasm play a vital role in making AirFair a success, and we welcome all who want to contribute.
Sweepstakes
WIN A 1950 AERONCA 7EC CHAMP OR $25,000!!!
Sweepstakes has officially started. We have a fantastic Grand Prize this year. The 1950 Aeronca 7EC Champ in a beautiful red and white livery. This is a 2 person tandem taildragger with 7466+ total time with only 142 hours on it since major overhaul in 2006. Come by the museum to check it out.
Check www.wotn.org/sweepstakes for details. All sales are done online. Entries are currently available. The big drawing will be at our fall pancake breakfast at the Wings of the North Air Museum on Saturday, September 12, 2026. There are 10 other drawings starting in June for a new ipad and continue every other week. The lucky winners of these prizes go back in the barrel for all the final drawing for the Aeronca. So purchase your entries early for a chance in all 11 drawings! You do not need to be present to win. GOOD LUCK!!!