Deadline To Purchase Tickets Is July 1

Plans are proceeding for the “Hangar One Celebration” of the Port Columbus Airport’s 90th anniversary taking place on Saturday, July 13, 2019. The Celebration takes place from 5 PM to 8 PM in Hangar One, located on Hamilton Road just north of East Fifth Avenue.

The 24,000 square foot hangar was constructed to service the Ford Tri-Motors of Transcontinental Air Transport (TAT), which inaugurated operations from the original Port Columbus air terminal in July of 1929.

Displays will highlight the history of the original Port Columbus air terminal, (which guests will be able to tour during the event), and will include several vintage automobiles. Weather permitting, among the expected aircraft for static display are Ohio-built biplanes, a 1930 Great Lakes and 1940 Waco UPF-7; a North American P-51D Mustang similar to those flown in WWII and Korea by numerous Ohio fighter pilots; and a 1980 Cessna 180, similar to the type flown by record-setting Columbus pilot, Jerrie Mock, when in 1964 she became the first woman to fly solo around the world, from and to Port Columbus Airport.

Among the luminaries at the 1929 Port Columbus dedication was famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart, who - as portrayed by Abbey Bauer - will be available for photos with guests. Presentations will be made by cast member(s) from the Walt Disney Company sharing the story of their restoring the Grand Central Air Terminal, TAT’s western terminus in Glendale, California; pilot and historian, Robert Kirk, author of both the TAT history, “Flying the Lindbergh Line: Then and Now,” and the just released “The Building of an Airport: Port Columbus;” and Ron Kaplan, founding director and chairman of the newly established Ohio Air & Space Hall of Fame and Museum. Kirk is a decorated Vietnam War veteran who flew 197 Air Force combat missions in the F4D Phantom. Kaplan is an aviation artist, journalist, and former executive director of the National Aviation Hall of Fame.

Prior to the Hangar One Celebration, the public is invited for free tours of the original Port Columbus terminal, located at 4920 East Fifth Avenue, on July 13th from Noon to 4 PM. The art deco style structure was dedicated on July 8, 1929, built on a site personally selected by Charles Lindbergh, and served as Columbus’ main airport terminal until 1958. Though the terminal is currently vacant and awaiting renovation, volunteer docents and displays will be available inside to share the history of Port Columbus with the public. The terminal, a national historic landmark, was the eastern-most air “port” for Transcontinental Air Transport. Often referred to as “The Lindbergh Line,” TAT offered passengers a time-saving combination of travel by rail and plane from New York to Glendale, California in just 48 hours.

Thanks to the preservation efforts of Preserve Original Columbus Airport Terminal (POCAT), a volunteer group organized to save the aging structure, in 2016 funds were raised to remediate mold, remove interior debris, and install a new roof. The non-profit OASHOF intends to renovate the terminal and property as its permanent home. The State of Ohio awarded the OASHOF a grant of $550,000 in 2018 to aid the nearly $2 million terminal renovation effort. Hangar One is currently being utilized by the CRAA for John Glenn International Airport operations but has been made available for this milestone event.

Hangar One Celebration tickets may be ordered in advance at www.ColumbusHistory.org. The deadline for reservations is July 1, 2019. Any proceeds will benefit the Columbus Historical Society, Columbus Landmarks and the Ohio Air & Space Hall of Fame and Museum.

(Images provided with Hangar One news release)

FMI: www.ColumbusHistory.org