Summer fun is back! Tickets are on sale for Aviation Heritage Park’s Hangar Party, the hottest event of the summer. Join us at the Bowling Green-Warren County Airport on June 18, 5pm-10pm. Tickets are $40/adults, $15/children six-12, five and under are free. The price of admission is all-inclusive and covers the outdoor event, a BBQ meal, beverages (including beer), flyovers, displays and music. Visit HangarPartyTickets.com for info and to buy online.
This year AHP welcomes The Sidewinders to the stage from 8pm-10pm for your listening and dancing pleasure. This special group of performers frequently appears with Bowling Green’s Orchestra Kentucky, performing as The Rewinders and the Retro Singers. We know you will enjoy vocalists Billy Duvall and Lisa Oliver Grey, Bhrett Puckett on guitar, Dave Allen on bass, Adrian Hile on keyboard and Webb Hendrix on drums.
Party gates open at 5pm. Tickets are on sale now. Use a credit card or Paypal to buy tickets at HangarPartyTickets.com. (Note: You will not receive a ticket when ordering online. Your name will be on the Will-Call list at the party gate.) Cash purchases (only) are available locally at Ford’s Furniture, Nat’s Outdoor Sports, Chuck’s Liquor on Three Springs Road, and Barbara Stewart Interiors.
The Hangar Party is a fun evening full of things to see and do. The ramp of the airport will be filed with static displays of beautiful private aircraft. Factory Ten Aerospace Composites will have an exhibit. This year’s event will feature a flyover by a team of highly skilled Swift pilots – Don Abbott, Jerry Kirby, Jim Roberts and Paul Mercandetti. These guys have over 68,000 flight hours and 212 years’ experience amongst them.
Be sure to visit the Men of Steel, a group of Patton Museum Leadership Volunteers based out of Ft. Knox, Kentucky. They will host a display of uniforms, headgear, insignia, field gear, small arms and photos from several eras.
Can you believe it was 13 years ago when General Dan Cherry’s F-4 Phantom was placed at the corner of Three Springs and Smallhouse roads – the beginning of Aviation Heritage Park. This year’s event is to introduce the park expansion – the Aviation Heritage Park Museum. The Hangar Party will give attendees an opportunity to see some sneak-peek displays about regional aviators, hometown heroes yet to be honored at the park. These exhibits will give a taste of what is to come in 2023 as the new Aviation Heritage Park Museum opens its doors.
The “Veterans” section of our website, AviationHeritagePark.com, has started highlighting the stories of regional unsung heroes. Read about aviators like Lt. Cmdr. David Berry, who received three Distinguished Flying Crosses for his heroic actions during WW2 – and Lt. Col. John C. Carmichael, who flew P-51 Mustangs and the F-86 Sabre in Korea and later flew and trained pilots in Vietnam. Maj. Jesse Birchett was a Thunderbolt pilot during WW2 and CWO Bill Basham was awarded two Distinguished Flying Crosses for heroism flying Cobras in Vietnam. These warriors and more will receive the honor they deserve.
AHP’s mission has been simple – to honor the aviators of Southcentral Kentucky who made significant contributions to aviation history. Today, Aviation Heritage Park serves as a community asset with an expanded mission: to preserve the rich and significant history of aviation in Southcentral Kentucky and to inspire future generations to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math using STEM and STEAM curriculum standards.
In 2021 the Bowling Green community’s dream of an aviation museum evolved into a reality as an 11,000 square foot facility took shape. The museum will not only be home to new exhibits, bringing more distinguished aviators’ stories to life, but will also house a restoration workshop, archive and an education center.
Adding to the museum progress during 2021, the Red River Valley Association (RRVA) formally joined with AHP to build the museum. The RRVA is a nationwide group of combat pilots past and present that thus far have made contributions from 30 different states, gaining AHP construction funds and national recognition. They have announced Bowling Green as the location for their 2023 week-long convention, which typically sees upwards of 500 attendees. Aviation Heritage Park is in the final phase before the museum can officially open. Join us in our mission, a Mission Forward to complete the museum and open its doors.
-submitted by Carabeth Pitchford
