Annual Online Giving Event Shows Restoration Status of 12 Classic Warbirds

The Commemorative Air Force has begun its annual fundraising event in support of its preservation mission, selecting 12 of its projects in progress to focus their efforts. The group highlights the work of its volunteer members who maintain and repair the irreplaceable vintage aircraft, each a unique piece of history. Each of the 12 days will focus on the history, the current state, the needed work, and the individual story of one of the group's 170-strong fleet. 

Donations to the group will go towards the Restoration Grant Fund, and are tax deductible when paid to the 501c3 organization. The fund has brought 20 aircraft airborne once again, bringing more than 75% of the CAF fleet to airworthy status. To date, the fund has brought in more than $100,000 for aircraft projects and supported the continued existence of 50 separate vintage aircraft. Donors who give $25 or more will receive a holiday ornament featuring the B-24 Diamond Lil as a token of appreciation. Donations to the grant fund may be made online or sent to the CAF's Dallas, Texas headquarters.

The group's recently published Dispatch highlights the extensive costs that come with operating vintage, out of production warbirds. The Beechcraft 18, SNB Expeditor, requires magneto replacements to the tune of $3,200, a relatively cheap cost compared to the B-25 Mitchell's brake rotor replacements at $7,560. Those, of course, both seem like a bargain against a tire replacement for the B-29 Superfortress, an eye-watering $38,000. Some aircraft, such as the N2S-1 Stearman, will see their donations made throughout December 2021 matched dollar-for-dollar by generous donors.

In an echo of the aircraft's underappreciated, post-war life when their creators couldn't wait to trim costs and get rid of them, few private entities have loved them enough to manage the costly requirements to keep them airborne. Today, everyone loves to see these priceless objects d'art and history in motion, taken before audiences and responsibly managed as a public good, not an investment to be socked away in a dry desert hangar to appreciate in private. The Commemorative Air Force is the only organization in the world that provides the breadth, the love, and the care these rare aircraft need to thrive. 

To support the CAF, see the status and targets of each plane's restoration, visit the CAF Campaign at: 12 Planes of Christmas

FMI: www.supportCAF.org, Digital Dispatch Magazine