THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WORLD WAR II AVIATION
* * *
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO
|
|
Rep. Lamborn Recognizes Service Academy Nominees
U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), in a ceremony at the Museum's Pavilion on March 6,
recognized the achievements of 50 young men and women he has nominated to the four service academies.
This may be "the most rewarding thing I get to do as a congressman," he told an audience 149 invited guests. "It restores our faith in our young people and in the future of our country to see some of the outstanding young men and women who want to serve our country."
|
|
An interviewing committee selected the 50 for Colorado's 5th Congressional District from a field of 80 who want to attend West Point, the Naval Academy, the Air Force Academy or the Merchant Marine Academy.
"Every one of them is bright and talented and hard-working and capable," said Lamborn, who has presented nomination certificates at the Museum each year for the last several years.
Thirty of the 80 on this year's initial list "are members of the National Honor Society; 37 have some kind of leadership role, like being on the student council or a class officer or captains of a sports team, 11 are doing Junior ROTC programs" and "all are active volunteers for their communities in non-profits, such as the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity [and] Springs Rescue Mission.” Lamborn said.
He thanked all those who went through the rigorous application process and wished them the
best as they continue through the final stages of the appointment process.
The Covid virus complicated the act of choosing the finalists this year. Instead of face-to-face
interviews, applicants were interviewed remotely.
Lamborn, who presented certificates to each of the nominees, said he visited West Point
recently and found 14 of his earlier nominees there. The number is greater than that of other
congressional districts, which Lamborn said was "a testament to the 5th Congressional District of Colorado, how supportive we are of national defense."
"We have the best participation for attending service academies of any congressional district in the country,” he said. “I think we're tops. It's such a great place, and it's an honor for me to represent it in Congress."
Lamborn called the Museum "a great facility. It's really a jewel for Coloradans and for our
country."
Bill Klaers, president and CEO of the Museum, congratulated the nominees and thanked
Lamborn for helping the Museum get its "national" designation several years ago. "This is America's National Museum of World War II Aviation for the United States," he said. "That’s a huge deal, not just for the Museum but for the city of Colorado Springs and for State of Colorado."
"This is the fourth or fifth time we've hosted the academy nominations with the Congressman,
and were excited to do it," Klaers said.
The March 6 ceremony was "a big step because the last event we did last year, before Covid, was this event. It’s the first event that we've been able to put on inside" since that time. Klaers credited board member Mark Earle and the Museum's staff their efforts in organizing the affair.
Klaers said he expected construction to begin this summer on the next half of the Pavilion,
another 40,000-square-foot building. Then, "within the next two or three years, we'll be starting the Aviation Hall project, which is our educational facility." It will include an airframe and powerplant school.
"We're really excited about all of this that we’ve got coming up in the future," he said.
|
|
Battle of the Bismarck Sea Presentation
Airpower was pivotal in protecting New Zealand and Australia
Saturday, March 20
Museum opens 8 a.m.
Presentation 9 a.m.
After the attack of December 7, 1941, on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Army and Navy quickly overran many states in the Southwest Pacific in their quest for oil and other resources. One ultimate Japanese aim was to close the crucial sea lanes between the U.S. and its Allies in New Zealand and Australia.
|
|
Land-based U.S. and Australian airpower deployed against Japanese naval forces in the Battle of the Bismarck Sea was a key element of the Allied campaign to hold the line against the Japanese onslaught. This little-known air and sea battle helped turn the tide in New Guinea. The eventual victory in New Guinea opened the way for the liberation of the Philippines and the final push toward Japan. This little-known air and sea battle not only turned the tide in New Guinea but opened the way for the liberation of the Philippines and the final push toward Japan.
This presentation by Colonel Gene Pfeffer, USAF (Retired), Curator and Historian for the museum, will tell the story of this important, but little-known battle. Three of the types of aircraft on display at the museum played key roles in the battle: the P-38 Lightning, the B-25 Mitchell, and the PBY Catalina.
Standard admission prices are in effect. Masks and social distancing required.
The purchase of advance on-line tickets is encouraged. Advance ticket prices are:
Adult $13
Child (4-12) $ 9
Senior & Military $11
WWII Veterans Free admission
The National Museum of World War II Aviation
775 Aviation Way, Colorado Springs, 80916
719.637.7559
|
|
Museum Takes Another Step in Opening Process
The Museum has completed the last step in the state and county 5-Star Certification process and was approved for participation, according to Museum Advisory Board Member Mark Earle.
|
|
"Under this program, the Museum is allowed to operate one level lower than the current setting on the COVID-19 Dial Frame," he said in a March 3 notice to volunteers. "As you know, the current setting is Level Yellow, so we are allowed to operate one level lower than that, or Level Blue." Next is Level Green, and so on. "The new 5-Star Certification requirements have been incorporated into the latest version of the Museum’s COVID-19 Policy....", he wrote.
"Under the 5-Star Program, the masking, distancing or sanitization requirements will remain the
same. The primary difference is the occupancy limit for the overall Museum and the Pavilion."
These limits are now in effect, he said: Entryway/Gift Shop 15; Homefront Exhibit 10; KRS
Pavilion Hangar Bay 175; WestPac Restorations 50; Hangar 2/2A 50; Hangar 3 50; Total Campus 175.
|
|
Col. Steve Pisanos Recognized for His Many Contributions |
|
Col. Steve Pisanos (USAF-ret.), known as "The Flying Greek" and honored by an exhibit at the Museum, posthumously received an award recognizing his service and contributions to his community, the United States, and the world.
Steve's son Jeff accepted the first Calamos Service Award on October 28, 2020, the 80th anniversary of the day that, in 1940, the prime minister of Greece answered the Axis forces' pre-dawn demand for surrender with one word: "Oxi" or "No".
The award was announced at the annual October gathering of the Washington Oxi Day Foundation at the Press Club in Washington, D.C. The foundation brings together senior U.S. policy-makers, international opinion leaders, influential Washingtonians and prominent Greek-American leaders. It commemorates the day Greece refused to surrender, and celebrates those who display the "Oxi Day Spirit" of freedom and democracy.
John Calamos, chairman and founder of Calamos Investments and chairman of the National
Hellenic Museum in Chicago, for whom the Calamos award is named, said Steve embodies the ethos of Oxi Day.
The foundation "has brought back to life stories of the Greek David versus Goliath courage that changed the trajectory of the Second World War," said the narrator of a video played at the gathering. The event honored several awardees, including Steve Pisanos.
"The courage of the Greek people against Hitler's Axis forces and the Holocaust...was recognized by American and world leaders to have changed the course of history....," the narrator said.
Steve's son Jeff said "courage...is defined as a man with no fear. That was my father."
Steve passed away on June 6, 2016, at the age of 96. Born in Athens, he came to the U.S. in
1938. He initially worked as a baker, and saved his money for flying lessons. He served as a fighter pilot with the British Royal Air Force and the U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II. He was credited with shooting down ten enemy aircraft while flying with the American 4th Fighter Group. He also flew in Vietnam.
After World War II, Steve became a test pilot, flying captured enemy airplanes including
Germany's Me 262 jet. He also tested the first American combat jet, the P-80. During a visit to the Museum in 2014, he said the P-80 "would have done well" against the Me 262.
Steve also tested such aircraft as the F-102. He was involved with the development of various
weapons, and helped integrate the F-4E into the Hellenic Air Force.
|
|
In an interview at the Museum on the day of the presentation, Jeff said his father's "proudest
moment...was May 3, 1943, in London, England. He was the first American citizen naturalized on foreign soil."
Steve's last assignment, in 1970, was Chief of the U.S. Air Force Mission in Athens, Jeff said. "He thought that that was the greatest assignment he could ever receive. It was a full circle for him -- from Athens to the United States, and back to Athens.”
By the end of Steve's career, in 1974, he had received 33 decorations and distinctions. His autobiography, "The Flying Greek," was published in 2008.
The Museum’s exhibit includes a range of memorabilia and a mannequin of Steve in RAF uniform, donated by Jeff.
Gene Pfeffer, the Museum's historian and curator, said Steve's life encompassed several dimensions:
First, he was "an Eagle Squadron member [in England], a [U.S.] 4th Fighter Group member, a double ace," and fought with the French Resistance after the engine of his P-51 quit during a mission to Bordeaux, France. He provided intelligence to the U.S. Office of Special Services and ultimately escaped through enemy lines. Also in this dimension, Gene said, were his contributions as a test pilot, his service in Vietnam, and his return to Greece as a USAF colonel and his many decorations.
Second is his partnership with the Museum to ensure that his "legacy of heroism is not lost to time," Gene said.
Third, he said, is “the role of the Museum itself in preserving the legacy of airmen like Steve from the greatest generation."
|
|
Did You Know...
Amy Johnson, the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia, and who set many long-
distance flying records in the 1930s, disappeared during a ferry flight in War II, a subject that has been discussed for many years.
She disappeared while flying for Britain's Air Transport Auxiliary, a civilian organization that
ferried Royal Air Force and Royal Navy planes between factories, maintenance units and front-line squadrons. During the war, more than 1,200 men and women from 25 countries ferried some 300,000 aircraft of 147 different types, according to the ATA Museum in England.
Jacqueline Cochran, the famous American aviator who helped found the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), flew to England and volunteered for the ATA for several months before the U.S. entered World War II. She recruited American women pilots and brought them to England where they joined the auxiliary. Cochran's experience with the ATA prompted the U.S. Army Air Corps to invite her back to the U.S. to help launch the WASP program.
|
|
Amy Johnson joined the newly formed ATA in 1940. On Jan. 5, 1941, while flying an Airspeed Oxford for ATA from Prestwick, Scotland, to RAF Kidlington near Oxford, she went off course in bad weather. Reportedly low on fuel, she bailed out and her aircraft crashed in the Thames Estuary near Herne Bay, according to Wikipedia.
A number of vessels saw her parachute coming down and saw her alive in the water, calling for help, Wikipedia says, quoting initial reports. There was a heavy sea and strong tide. It was snowing and cold. Ropes were thrown to Johnson from one ship but she was unable to grasp them, and was lost beneath the vessel. The captain dived in but failed to find her. He himself became unconscious in the cold, and died in a hospital days later.
In 1999, Wikipedia says, it was reported that Johnson's death may have been caused by friendly fire. One man said her plane was shot down when she failed twice to give the correct identification code. "Sixteen rounds of shells were fired and the plane dived into the Thames Estuary," said this man, Tom Mitchell of Crowborough, Sussex. "We all thought it was an enemy plane until the next day when we read the papers and discovered it was Amy. The officers told us never to tell anyone what happened."
In 2016, Wikipedia says, a historian claimed the son of a crew member stated that Johnson had died because she was sucked into the blades of the ship's propellers; the crewman didn't observe this, but believes it is true, according to Wikipedia.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
