Posted on 08/08/2004 9:28:07 AM PDT by BenLurkin
PALMDALE - It took more than six years and thousands of volunteer hours to transform a dusty corner into the Palmdale Plant 42 Heritage Airpark, a showcase for the many noteworthy aircraft conceived, designed, tested and built at the nearby facilities.
Lovingly restored aircraft were silhouetted against the setting sun Friday night as guests gathered beneath an elegant tent to celebrate and officially dedicate the airpark and recognize the tremendous efforts of volunteers and donors to make it a reality.
"There aren't many monuments dedicated to what (aerospace workers) have done," Mayor Jim Ledford said. "This is the beginning. This is the cornerstone of the much larger park we envision."
"It's quite an accomplishment," said long-time volunteer Dick Madison. "It makes the whole bunch of us quite proud. It's hard to believe."
Ground-breaking at the park, along Avenue P between 20th and 25th Street East, was in October 1998, although the effort actually began more than a year earlier. Since that time, an estimated $4.5 million in materials, donations and volunteer man-hours have been poured into the site.
"Aerospace employees did not have anyplace to go to take their families, their grandchildren, to say 'Look at what I did for a living, what I am doing, what is my passion,' " said Assistant City Manager Carol Seidl, who has led the airpark effort for the city since its inception.
Restoration materials, tools and even some of the aircraft themselves have been donated to the cause. The Palmdale Holiday Inn even donated old mattresses, "the best thing to put between a flatbed truck and a (airplane) fuselage for transport," Seidl said.
The lion's share of the effort has come from a dedicated group of volunteers, mainly retired aerospace workers who spent their careers at Plant 42 or similar facilities. They are assisted by assorted groups of current aerospace employees, Eagle Scouts, college students and others.
Last year alone, volunteers put in more than 14,000 hours of labor, Seidl said.
The airpark includes a special dedication in memory of one such volunteer, the man known as the "Founding Ram-Rod."
Retired Lockheed Martin employee Albert "Pinky" Pinkham, who died in April, was one of the first volunteers to tackle the airpark project.
"From that moment on, Pinky devoted himself to this airpark," Seidl said. "Al has left quite a legacy and we will fondly remember him."
Pinkham was flight test manager for the U-2 program. In his honor and memory, volunteers restored a U-2 vertical tail and engine, on display near the entrance to the airpark.
"He's been involved in every major piece of restoration out here," said Tim Hughes, public works project manager for the airpark. "He's been the backbone."
Two additional long-time volunteers who have passed away - Jack Fabbri and Bill Schmidt - will soon be remembered with plaques in the same area.
Since the park's unofficial opening in November, more than 5,000 visitors have passed through its gates.
The nine aircraft are connected by meandering walkways that allow visitors to get up-close and personal which each artifact, viewing from all angles. Plaques give the name, general description and specifications for each. Soon, each display will also include a plaque detailing the characteristics and history unique to that particular airplane.
Lights illuminating each aircraft give the park an otherworldly glow after sunset.
A grassy picnic area, benches and wind-screen mark the western edge of the park. Visitors may also take in the 3,500-square-foot restoration workshop, shown sparkling clean during Friday's dedication.
The aircraft on display include F-86 Sabre, NASA's C-140 Jetstar, A-4 Skyhawk, T-38 Talon, A-7 Corsair II, F-4 Phantom II, F-100 Super Sabre, F-104 Starfighter and F-105 Thunderchief. A scale model of the B-2 stealth bomber, built especially for the airpark by Northrop Grumman, soars over the entrance.
All of the aircraft were flown, tested, designed, produced or modified at Air Force Plant 42.
The work to date is only the first phase of the envisioned airpark. The entire site occupies more than 26 acres, running for a half mile along Avenue P. Plans call for over 40 different aircraft to be displayed when it is complete.
In addition to more aircraft, the site will eventually include a 15,750-square-foot display building, which will house memorabilia and artifacts from each of the plant's tenant companies and the Air Force contingent itself, Hughes said.
"Nowhere else in the world can you see old Plant 42 birds rest, and new Plant 42 birds fly," he said.
The airpark is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
Adjacent is the Blackbird Airpark, operated by the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum and sharing similar hours.
A great place to visit.......the Reagan Library is first.
Ping.
It was so cool seeing all those SR-71s lined up on the ramp.
ping
Photos please. I doubt that I & my family will ever get there anywhere in the near future.
I'd like to see a TR-3A..
..but considering it's still classified...
We could show it to you, but we'd have to fire you(for effect) from a howitzer afterward.
I'll settle for them accidentally flying it over my house.
Here in cow country NY, the locals would think it's a UFO and run for cover...
..Or try to blast it with a squirrel gun.
"You ain't probin' ME ya grey skinned freaks!"
*chuckle*
Thanks for the ping PE.
Much obliged for the ping, MR. PE
Speaking of Blackbird Airpark, Wings/Airpower magazine had a 4 part series on the YF-12A/SR-71?M-21 about a year or so ago. Pretty cool to think that the Blackbirds and its variations were designed with slide rule, pencil and paper.
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
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