Will Erect A 16-Foot Sculpture This Fall

The Salina Airport Authority is planning a public viewing area at the airport that will include a tribute to record-setting pilot Steve Fossett.

At a meeting Wednesday, Salina Airport Executive Director Tim Rogers said that the board can utilize funds from an endowment and a construction fund held by the Greater Salina Community Foundation.

The foundation account has some $341,000 available, according to a report from the Salina Journal newspaper.

The viewing area will be constructed west of Beechcraft Road in a portion of an airport parking lot. The area will provide a view of the 12,300-foot runway.

The sculpture, to be built by B&B Metal Arts of Hoisington, KS, will honor Fossett for his many accomplishments in aviation. He was the first person to fly nonstop around the world without refueling in the Virgin Atlantic Global Flyer. He held multiple aviation records in airplanes, gliders and balloons.

Fossett was fatally injured in an aircraft accident in 2007.

The planned memorial will include storyboards telling some of his story, as well as showing the routes of his flights.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.salinaairport.com