AIR HERITAGE AVIATION MUSEUM
HIGH FLIGHT
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air….
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace.
Where never lark, or even eagle flew —
And, while with silent lifting mind I have trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
– Put out my hand and touched the face of God.
by John Gillespie Magee Jr.
John Magee was a 19-year-old Fighter Pilot who was killed in combat at the Battle of Britain in 1940.
Read more about John Magee on Wikipedia.
OFFICERS AND BOARD MEMBERS
Bringing the Past into the Present
Air Heritage of Western Pennsylvania originated in 1983. In 1990, as a result of rapidly multiplying opportunities and membership, our name was changed to Air Heritage Inc. Through a chance meeting in the late 80’s at the Latrobe Air Show with aircraft collector David Tallichet, a few of our members repaired a tail wheel of his B-17. This led to discussions that night over dinner of the feasibility of Air Heritage Inc. restoring some of his many aircraft. It was not long after that that an agreement was drawn up that Air Heritage Inc. would supply free labor to restore Mr. Tallichet’s aircraft, in return Air Heritage Inc. would receive a 120’ x 120’ hangar financed by Mr. Tallichet. The dedication of our volunteers had already been proven in the restoration of the B-17G “Nine-O-Nine,” which suffered extensive damage from a crash during the 1987 Beaver County Air Show. Air Heritage Inc. reached an agreement to restore a collection of rare WWII aircraft. Today, Air Heritage Inc. dba Air Heritage Aviation Museum owns and operates three airworthy Warbirds, and we have several aircraft that are presently under restoration at our facility at the Beaver County Airport, as a result, our museum is a true “working museum.” Please stop by and visit and see for yourself!
HISTORY OF AIR HERITAGE AVIATION MUSEUM
April 1986
Air Heritage Association was formed as an aviation historical research and aircraft preservation organization. Beaver County Airport was selected as their base of operations. Meetings were held in donated hangar space.
June 1987
Air Heritage acquired an L-21B, a military version of a Piper Super Cub. It became available through the Pennsylvania Federal Surplus Property Program. The L21B originally went to the Italian Army in 1956 as part of the Federal Government Lend Lease Program. It was returned to the United States 20 years later and put into storage. This was Air Heritage’s first restoration. Utilizing donated hangar space, it was painted in the original Italian Army Unit colors. The L-21B is still flying out of Air heritage today.
August 1987
A B-17 known as “Nine-O-Nine” crashed off the end of the runway at the Beaver County Airport Air Show sustaining substantial damage. Museum volunteers spent many hours helping to repair the B-17 to make it airworthy again. The “Nine-O-Nine” left Beaver County Airport in 1990 fully repaired.
1988-1989
David Tallichet, a collector of WWII aircraft, was at an air show at the Latrobe Airport with his B-17. The tail wheel was flat and needed other repairs. A group of Air Heritage Aviation Museum volunteers made the necessary repairs. David Tallichet liked their work and he offered to build a hangar for the museum if they would restore some of his aircraft.
April 1990
David Tallichet’s company, Military Aircraft Restoration Corporation MARC), donated two hundred thousand dollars to Air Heritage Aviation Museum for the construction of the hangar facility. In return, the museum agreed to restore designated MARC aircraft and provide MARC with a 20-year lease on the hangar. The hangar opened in August of 1990.
May 1994
An agreement was signed between MARC and Air Heritage Aviation Museum for the Fairchild C-123K Provider. The C-123K tail number 54-664 arrived at Beaver County Airport in May 1994.
1995
Started restoration of a B-25 for the U.S. Navy. The C-123K “Thunder Pig” attended its first air show.
1997
Air Heritage Aviation Museum secured two Gruman OV-1 Mohawks from Hunter Army Air base in Savannah, Georgia.
1998
The B-25 was delivered to the Nay Museum in Pensacola, Florida in January
2003
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired a T-28 Trojan from state and federal surplus. The intention is to restore this aircraft to flying status
2005
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired a T-34 mentor BG-295 from state and federal surplus program.
2007 August
David Tallichet passed away. MARC, his company, decided to consolidate his assets. The A20-H, P-39, and Stinson (owned by MARC) were moved out of the hangar.
2008
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired two aircraft for static display:
In July, an F-15A Eagle, tail #76-0012 was acquired. A lot of effort was expended by a few volunteers to disassemble the aircraft at Robins Air Force base in Georgia and truck it back to the museum. It was re-assembled and painted and makes an impressive display. A British Royal Air Force trainer, the Provost T-3, was donated by a private owner. This aircraft was located in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. It also had to be dis-assembled, trucked, and re-assembled at the hangar.
2008 – September
A 1946 Funk B was acquired from a private individual. This aircraft is under construction and our intention is to finish with this being in flying status.
2010
The Hangar agreement with Tallichet’s organization (MARC) expires. The hangar is now owned exclusively by Air Heritage Aviation Museum.
2011
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired a 1959 Cessna 150 and a BD-4 from the University of West Virginia. Both aircraft were used in their ethanol and STOL experiments. The Cessna 150 was restored to flight condition in the standard category. The BD-4 was put in storage for a static status.
A 1935 Fairchild 24 was donated to the museum by a private individual. This aircraft is currently under construction and our intention is to finish with this being in flying status.
2012
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired an F-4C Phantom through the Federal Surplus Program. Once again, many volunteer man-hours were spent dis-assembling this aircraft at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Museum near Dayton, Ohio, transporting it, and re-assembling it at the Air Heritage Hangar. It now sits proudly outside of our hangar next to the F-15 Eagle.
2013
A private individual donated a 1966 Mooney M20E to Air Heritage Aviation Museum.
Air Heritage Aviation Museum acquired a 1943 Douglas C-47B Skytrain. The C-47 has a rich history of flying WWII missions.
2017
The C-123 was featured in a series on TV called Blindspot. It was also featured in the movie America Made starring Tom Cruise. This movie was filmed in Canton, Georgia (KCNI)
2024
Air Heritage Aviation Museum has the last airworthy Fairchild C-123K Provider “Thunder Pig” left flying in the world. Our goal: Keep the C-123K flying for generations to come in honor of our Vietnam Veterans and in memory of those brave soldiers who we lost in the war!!!
August 23, 1987, the B-17 Flying Fortress Nine-O-Nine ran off the end of the runway on landing during an airshow at the Beaver County Airport.