The company on Tuesday said it acquired an existing on-airport facility and has begun hiring to support its initial manufacturing operations, which it expects to begin later this year. Joby called the acquisition the “first step” in its plan to build facilities capable of churning out up to 500 aircraft per year in Dayton, beginning in 2025.

The manufacturer also said Tuesday that its plans are expected to include the design and construction of a larger greenfield factory at the airfield.

“We’re pleased to be able to acquire an underutilized facility at Dayton International Airport and repurpose it as a modern, high-tech manufacturing center to serve as our initial manufacturing footprint in the region,” said Didier Papadopoulos, president of aircraft OEM at Joby. “Later this year, we expect to begin subtractive manufacturing of titanium and aluminum aircraft parts as we continue to grow our workforce in Dayton.”

Joby’s tiltrotor eVTOL is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers on up to 100 sm (87 nm) trips, cruising at 200 mph (174 knots). The company anticipates commercial launches in cities such as New York and Los Angeles in 2025 in partnership with Delta Air Lines. It will operate the aircraft itself, unlike many eVTOL air taxi competitors.

Joby will outfit its newly acquired facility to manufacture aircraft parts, which will be sent to the company’s Marina, California, pilot production line: a 120,000-square-foot facility at Marina Municipal Airport (KOAR).

Didier Papadopoulos, president of aircraft OEM at Joby, said on the company’s earnings call last month that one aircraft is in final assembly at the Marina facility, with two more expected to roll out shortly after. JoeBen Bevirt, CEO of Joby, estimated the site will produce about a dozen aircraft by year’s end.

“We expect to reach a production run rate equivalent to one aircraft a month by the end of the year as we continue to ramp production in support of certification and commercialization,” said Bevirt on the company’s earnings call.

Joby last year hosted flight services at Marina for the U.S. Department of Defense—under a $131 million contract with AFWERX, the innovation arm of the Air Force—conducted using a prototype aircraft.

An intended expansion to the site would double its annual production capacity, increasing it to 25 aircraft per year as the company works on its scaled manufacturing plant in Dayton.

Joby’s 140-acre site at Dayton International Airport will be capable of producing up to 500 eVTOL aircraft per year when full-scale operations begin in 2025, according to the manufacturer. It plans to invest as much as $500 million and create up to 2,000 jobs.

Toyota, Joby’s largest investor, will advise the company as it prepares for scaled production. Last year, the automaker agreed to supply powertrain and actuation components for its air taxi.

According to company projections, the Dayton site will one day be large enough for Joby to build 2 million square feet of manufacturing assets.

“I am deeply appreciative to the Dayton community, and Ohio more broadly, for the warm welcome we have received as well as the high level of interest in joining our team,” said Papadopoulos. “We look forward to continued collaboration and to growing our presence in the Miami Valley region as we build the future of flight in the birthplace of aviation.”

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One included a section about the North American XB-70 Valkyrie, a nuclear strike bomber prototype designed in the 1950s to fly long distances at Mach 3above 70,000 feet. I considered it the ultimate aircraft, and when I read that the single surviving example lives in the Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, along with other rarities like the Convair B-58 Hustler, I committed to a visit.

Decades later, my wife and I were leafing through real estate listings when we came across a lovely Queen Anne house labeled as the “steal of the week,” located in Dayton. This was around the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers’ first powered flight, and the city was enjoying an uptick in national attention.

The experience reminded me that I had yet to visit the museum or other attractions in town—and rekindled my interest in making the trip.

Getting There

It took a while, but I recently loaded the Commander114B and took off toward Dayton, which has gained steadily in appeal as a destination in recent years, especially for aviation fans. We flew first to Dayton/Wright Brothers Airport (KMGY), where a small museum houses a collection of artifacts linked to the Wrights and the earliest days of controlled, heavier-than-air flight.

It made sense to stop at the museum first because it is open for just a few hours on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The non-towered airport also provided a good place to collect my thoughts before plunging into the busy airspace around Dayton International (KDAY) and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

The museum’s main attraction is a replica of the Wright Model B aircraft developed several years after the famous 1903 Wright Flyer. The B illustrates how aircraft design changed as early aviators, self-taught and dependent on trial and error, gradually figured out what worked best.

For example, the two-seat B has wheels—an obvious advantage over its predecessors. Its elevator sections are mounted on its tail instead of forward-mounted, as on earlier models. In short, it looks more like today’s image of an airplane.

Soon I headed for the Air Force museum, a much larger, busier place with an airport environment to match. The museum is next to Wright-Patterson, which is next to Dayton International. For a pilot accustomed to largely non-towered airports within northern New Jersey, upstate New York, and New England, the notion of taking off from Wright Brothers and immediately calling Columbus Approach—because I was already crossing the 20-mile mark—seemed daunting. The radio traffic was so thick that I had to circle before I could reach the controller.

I felt more secure after receiving a squawk code, but the radio never quieted down, and that distracted me just enough to mistake the Air Force base for my destination. You might think the row of C-17 transports parked on the ramp would have given it away, but no. Lucky for me the controller was patient and assured me that if I looked to my left I would see that I was indeed on a left base for 24L at Dayton. The 7,285-foot runway helped mask the excess speed I carried to touchdown, and the long taxi to the FBO, Wright Brothers Aero, was uneventful (the Wright name pops up often in Dayton). I asked the ground controller for a progressive, but it was an easy straight shot on Charlie. Everything worked out fine.

Worth the Wait

In about 15 minutes after topping off, I was walking into the Air Force museum—something I had looked forward to for decades. Though I missed out on the experience as a child, that did not seem to matter because I immediately felt like a fourth-grader upon entry. I had not felt that thrillingly overwhelmed tingle since my first day at the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum in 1976. Back then I wanted to run from one end of the place to the other in order to see everything before closing time.

It can take several days to see everything in a museum like this, and since I had only hours, I had to work from a short list of must-see items that included the Convair’s B-36 Peacemaker, Boeing’s B-47 Stratojet and B-52 Stratofortress, and the aforementioned B-58 and XB-70. While I would have taken the 450-nautical mile trip just to see the Valkyrie, I was treated to an immersive look at the evolution of military aviation, from the earliest kite-like aircraft that Wright, Curtiss, and other manufacturers first sold to the armed services to the stealthy F-22 Raptor.

I like being able to get close to the aircraft, and the folks at the museum seemed to understand this need. Looking up into the bomb bays and wheel wells of antique airplanes is a rare treat. Walking underneath the XB-70 gave me an appreciation not only for its size but for the smoothness of its beautifully crafted parts. It is a breathtaking machine with an impressively smooth finish to it. While I was almost always close enough to touch the exhibits, museum staff appeared to trust that I would only look.

The Air Force museum’s collection is vast and varied. The exhibits unfold in chronological order, which helped to mitigate my concerns about possibly missing something. But as I looked for items on my mental list I was continuously drawn to aircraft I knew only from photos or simply had never seen, like the Curtiss O-52 Owl. The Owl had a high, strut-braced wing, radial engine, and main landing gear that retracted into the fuselage, leaving the wheels and tires partially exposed. It looked like the offspring of a Grumman Wildcat fighter and a Piper J-3 Cub. Another surprise was the fleet of presidential aircraft, including Independence, the DouglasVC-118 that carried Harry S. Truman. It is a military version of the DC-6 airliner. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Columbine, a Lockheed VC-121E that you might call a Super Constellation, is also on display. So is the Boeing VC-137C, or 707, that transported eight sitting presidents over 36 years before a modified 747 replaced it.

Topping off the experience, visitors can walk through the presidential airplanes and see their interiors through acrylic glass. I had a wonderful time comparing the interior decor of the piston aircraft with the later 707 version of Air Force One. They all seem rather modest next to modern business-jet cabins.

Other Attractions

As with many smaller cities across the U.S. that are revamping their images, there is plenty to do in Dayton, from exploring the life and work of poet and author Paul Laurence Dunbar, another famous Daytonian, to visiting galleries, entertainment venues and a variety of restaurants, or taking in Minor League baseball games. America’s Packard Museum is a worthwhile stop for anyone interested in the development of automobile transportation.

There is also more aviation history to explore in places like the John W. Berry, Sr. Wright Brothers National Museum, National Aviation Hall of Fame, and the National Aviation Heritage Area, which includes the building that housed the Wright Brothers’ bicycle shop. The buildings that housed the Wrights’ original airplane factory were damaged in a fire that broke out during my visit to Dayton. Preservation and city officials are assessing the damage and looking at options for the factory complex, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Visitors to Dayton can also tour Hawthorn Hill, the mansion where Orville Wright lived following his success in aviation. The house is sometimes called the “first pilot’s last home.” And this might be cheating, but a 20-minute drive north of town will get you to the Waco Air Museum, which celebrated 100 years of the aircraft company September 15 to 17.

I felt a bit sad leaving Dayton when I knew there was more to see, but the trip home turned out to be another highlight. After delays for rain storms and low ceilings, I flew back to New Jersey in ideal sunny and clear conditions. I also received on-the-job training in talking with ATC as the Dayton Tower switched me to Columbus Approach, who handed me off to Indy Center. From there, I talked with Cleveland Center, Pittsburgh Approach, Johnstown, Harrisburg, Wilkes-Barre, and New York, before being released to my home airport in Sussex, New Jersey (KFWN).

By the halfway point, I felt comfortable with the rhythm of radio calls and began to enjoy the back-and-forth. I no longer worried about possibly saying the wrong thing on the air. All that practice also wiped away any apprehension I might have felt about calling New York Approach out of the blue or requesting clearance through any Class B airspace I happen to encounter.

Airborne excursions will be easier from now on.

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Cleveland Clinic, considered one of the top hospital systems in the world based on rankings by outlets such as U.S. News & World Report and Newsweek, is partnering with drone delivery provider Zipline to fly certain medications directly to patients’ porches, patio tables, or front steps starting in 2025.

Deliveries will be made using Zipline’s Platform 2 (P2) delivery system, which is designed to complete 10 sm (8.7 nm) trips to dense, urban areas in about 10 minutes.

The largest drone delivery provider on Earth in terms of sheer volume, Zipline has completed more than 800,000 deliveries of some 8.3 million items to date, per the company’s website. The bulk of these are on-demand healthcare deliveries of cargo such as blood, vaccines, and prescription medications.

Already, Zipline is partnered with several U.S. retailers and healthcare providers, including Walmart, Cardinal Health, and MultiCare Health System. It added agreements with Michigan Medicine, Intermountain Healthcare, and OhioHealth earlier this year. The company currently flies in Arkansas, Utah, and North Carolina, with plans to expand into other states in the months ahead.

Earlier this month, competitor Amazon Prime Air added prescription drone delivery to its service in College Station, Texas, as more firms begin exploring the use case.

“This technology will help us achieve our goal to expand our pharmacy home delivery program and provide easier, quicker access to prescribed medications in our communities,” said Geoff Gates, senior director of supply chain management at Cleveland Clinic.

Starting next year, Cleveland Clinic will coordinate with local government officials to check its compliance with safety and technical requirements for launching the drone delivery service. It will also begin to install Zipline docks and loading portals at locations in northeast Ohio, mostly facilities at its main campus in Cleveland and in nearby Beechwood.

Initially, the service will deliver specialty medications and other prescriptions—which typically would be shipped via ground delivery—from more than a dozen Cleveland Clinic locations. Eventually, it’s expected to offer emergency or “rush” prescriptions, lab samples, prescription meals, medical and surgical supplies, and items for “hospital-at-home” services.

Cleveland Clinic has been lauded for its supply chain (for which it earned the top spot on Gartner’s 2021 ranking) and innovative use of technology, in particular. That makes it somewhat unsurprising that the hospital system would add an emerging technology like drone delivery, which is already changing the healthcare landscape in regions such as Africa. Zipline’s drones, for example, have delivered blood, vaccines, and other medical supplies in Rwanda since 2016.

“We are always looking for solutions that are cost effective, reliable and reduce the burden of getting medications to our patients,” said Bill Peacock, chief of operations at Cleveland Clinic. “Not only are deliveries via drone more accurate and efficient, the technology we are utilizing is environmentally friendly. The drones are small, electric, and use very little energy for deliveries.”

Zipline’s P2 drones, or Zips, include a detachable delivery “droid.” The droid docks on loading portals that can be installed directly on buildings, sliding back and forth between the building’s interior and exterior through a small opening—like a fast-food restaurant employee handing off meals through a drive-thru window.

When a prescription is ready to be delivered, a Cleveland Clinic technician will load the droid, which can carry up to 8 pounds of cargo. The small capsule then slides out of the window, undocks from the loading portal, and docks with the Zip, all on its own.

The drones will cruise at around 70 mph (61 knots) at an altitude near 300 feet, and customers will be able to track their orders in real time. Once it arrives at the delivery address, the Zip will deploy the droid, which uses a mix of onboard perception technology and electric fans to quietly and precisely steer itself to a dropoff point as small as a patio table. The Zip will then fly back to a Cleveland Clinic site and dock itself.

“Zipline has been focused on improving access to healthcare for eight years,” said Keller Rinaudo Cliffton, co-founder and CEO of Zipline. “We’re thrilled to soon bring fast, sustainable, and convenient delivery to Cleveland Clinic patients.”

Zipline announced P2 in March, but the system is not yet in action. However, the company expects the new hardware and software will enable quicker, quieter deliveries. 

In addition to the upgraded Zips, easier integrations with retailers, and other technology upgrades, a big benefit of P2 will be flexibility. The new drones will be able to fly up to 24 miles in a single direction and land on any dock in the network, allowing Zipline to send additional capacity to locations experiencing high volume (or divert it from sites that aren’t).

Already, the firm has several P2 customers lined up, including the government of Rwanda, Michigan Medicine, MultiCare, and American restaurant chain Sweetgreen. It will continue to deploy its Platform 1 (P1) system—which airdrops packages using a parachute—for certain clients.

Zipline is one of five U.S. drone delivery companies—the others being Prime Air, UPS Flight Forward, Alphabet’s Wing, and Causey Aviation Unmanned, a longtime partner of Israel’s Flytrex—to receive Part 135 air carrier certification from the FAA. The firm’s approval authorizes commercial operations spanning up to 26 sm (22.5 nm), including beyond the visual line of sight (BVLOS) of the pilot.

In September, Zipline obtained an FAA BVLOS exemption for its services in Utah and Arkansas with P1. The waiver allows the company to remove visual observers from those routes, which it said it will begin doing later this year. Three other firms, including Flight Forward, received similar permissions.

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Hosted by the National Aeronautical Association (NAA), the 117th conference took place in Dayton, Ohio, marking the first time in 40 years for it to be in the U.S. Activities included committee meetings, awards banquet, special drone event, and visit to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

“From aviation’s earliest days, FAI has taken a leading role in supporting and promoting the art, sport, and science of aviation,” said former NAA president and CEO Greg Principato. “As a founding member of FAI, the National Aeronautic Association is proud to welcome FAI, for the first time, to the ‘Birthplace of Aviation’: Dayton, Ohio. The Wright brothers themselves played key roles in both organizations, so it is natural that the aviation world should reconvene in Dayton.”

Among the awards highlighted at the conference was the inaugural FAI Aeromodeling Commission (CIAM) Legends Medal, which recognizes “pilots who have won the title of FAI world champion in any aeromodeling or spacemodeling competition at least three times.” For its first year, 59 recipients were identified by FAI from its records of almost 800 world championships dating to 1951. Over a dozen medals were presented at the event.

Also awarded at the conference was the Louis Bleriot medal for “the highest records for speed, altitude, and distance in a straight line established in the previous year by light aircraft.” This year’s medal went to Germany’s Klaus Ohlmann who, on April 20, 2022, set a world record for fastest speed in a powered airplane over a closed circuit of 500 kilometers. Ohlmann, 71, averaged 207.65 kph (112.12 knots) on the course in the electric e-Genius, an aircraft developed by the University of Stuttgart’s Institute of Aircraft Design.

The FAI General Conference is open to the organization’s  delegates, designated representatives of international affiliate members, FAI-elected officers, presidents of honor, honorary patrons, designated representatives of corporate patrons, companions of honor, and delegates appointed by presidents of commissions. 

The next conference is set for November 20-21, 2024, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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The birthplace of the earliest airplanes will soon be home to some of the most futuristic aircraft under development.

Dayton, Ohio—where the Wright brothers lived, worked, and opened the nation’s first airplane factory in 1910—on Monday was announced as the site of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft manufacturer Joby Aviation’s first full-scale manufacturing plant. 

The company passed over potential locations in Michigan, North Carolina, and Marina, California, which had hoped to lure back the company for more after it opened its pilot production line there a few years prior. Joby has had a presence in Marina since 2018 and will continue to expand its facilities there.

While the Marina plant is capable of producing tens of aircraft per year, Joby’s new manufacturing hub will be capable of delivering up to 500 air taxi units annually. The 140-acre site at Dayton International Airport (KDAY) has enough space for the company to one day build 2 million square feet of manufacturing assets.

Construction on the plant is expected to start next year, with full-scale operations beginning in 2025. In the meantime, Joby plans to use existing nearby buildings to begin initial activities. It will invest $500 million in developing the site, which is expected to create up to 2,000 jobs.

“We’re building the future of aviation right where it all started, in Dayton, Ohio,” said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby. “The Wright brothers harnessed revolutionary technology of their time to open up the skies, and we intend to do the same—this time, bringing quiet and emissions-free flight that we hope will have an equally profound impact on our world.”

Joby plans to begin hiring for its Ohio facility in the coming months. Early roles are expected to focus on the build-out of the site and the machining of parts that will first appear on the Marina production line.

In addition to Joby’s half-billion-dollar investment, as much as $325 million in state and local incentives are available to support the project, including from the state of Ohio, JobsOhio, and local political subdivisions.

“When Lieutenant Governor [Jon] Husted spoke at the DDC’s annual meeting in February 2022 and challenged us to land an eVTOL manufacturing facility in the Dayton region, we were ready,” said Jeff Hoagland, president and CEO of the Dayton Development Coalition. “Twenty years ago, we developed a strategy aimed at supporting an emerging industry that not only aligned with the missions at [Wright-Patterson Air Force Base], but represented the opportunity for private industry investment, as well. Our region’s eVTOL tagline has urged companies to leverage the region’s network of resources and, ‘Come here to test, stay here to build.’ Joby is doing exactly that.”

Adding to those incentives, Joby said the U.S. Department of Energy invited it to submit a Part II application under the Title XVII loan guarantee program, which would support the construction of the facility as a clean energy project.

Toyota—Joby’s largest investor that has poured more than $400 million into the firm to date—will advise Joby as it prepares for scaled production. The automaker also supported the design and launch of the company’s Marina facility and recently agreed to supply powertrain and actuation components for its eVTOL.

Bevirt and Joby have really hammered home the Wright brothers connection. On Monday morning, the company will hold an event at Hawthorne Hill—once home to Orville Wright—to celebrate the launch. The event will be capped with a ceremonial flyby of a replica Model B Flyer, the world’s first production airplane.

Outside of the aviation pioneers, Dayton is also home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force Research Lab (AFRL), a key resource for Joby as it has developed its aircraft. Joby is registered as a company in Ohio that operates electric aircraft technology simulators in the Dayton-Springfield area.

A Blow to Marina

The company’s local ties may have tipped off some observers to its eventual choice. But it nonetheless deals a blow to Marina, which had showered Joby with incentives in a bid to get it to expand its presence. The California city reportedly offered a $226 million package including grants and tax incentives in May. Joby’s 120,000-square-foot facility at Marina Municipal Airport (KOAR) currently allows the company to produce prototypes and conduct flight testing.

Detroit’s Coleman A. Young International Airport (KDET) was also under consideration, but it and Marina were reportedly ruled out as potential options in August. By that point, Joby had narrowed its selection down to Dayton and a location in North Carolina, where Toyota operates its U.S. battery manufacturing plant.

On the company’s second-quarter 2023 earnings call in August, Bevirt said there has been a “remarkable amount of interest” in hosting the facility. Per TechCrunch, the state of Ohio tried to sweeten the deal with a $110 million incentive package, which may have moved the needle.

“Joby’s selection of Ohio as the site for its first scaled aircraft production facility followed an extensive competitive site selection process and is contingent upon standard due diligence, state and local approvals of incentives, permitting and other legal and regulatory matters as customarily accompany such investment projects,” the company said in a press release.

The company clarified that its Santa Cruz headquarters (which debuted in June), research and development facilities, and pilot production line will all remain in California. Reportedly, it’s also still planning an expansion of the Marina facility. It currently has 150 open job positions in the state.

Looking Ahead

With the goal of flying aerial ridesharing networks—à la Uber—in New York and Los Angeles in 2025 in partnership with Delta, Joby has a few more crucial steps to achieve. Type certification is the big one.

But things are certainly looking up for the top company on SMG Consulting’s most recent Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) Reality Index, a ranking of manufacturers based on their ability to produce thousands of units per year of a commercial product.

Joby earned that spot in part because of the rollout of its first production prototype aircraft from its Marina production line in June. The tiltrotor eVTOL is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers over a distance up to 100 sm (87 nm), cruising at 200 mph (174 knots). Joby says the aircraft’s quiet noise profile will make it barely audible within a city’s soundscape.

The company in June also received an FAA special airworthiness certificate for its production model, a key milestone that allowed it to begin flight testing. Early next year, it will deliver the first two of nine air taxis to Edwards Air Force Base in California as part of its $131 million contract with AFWERX Agility Prime, the vertical lift innovation arm of the Air Force.

Per SMG, Joby is by far the most well-backed company in the AAM industry, with more than $2.25 billion in funding. That’s more than double rival Archer Aviation and dwarfs the next-highest competitor, Germany’s Lilium.

The main thing holding Joby back would perhaps be scale. Players such as Vertical Aerospace and Embraer subsidiary Eve Air Mobility have racked up mass eVTOL orders in the hundreds, with total orders in the thousands. Joby is not taking orders for its aircraft, instead relying on a network of service partners.

In addition to its partnership with Delta in the U.S., the firm has commercial operational deals in place with Japan’s ANA Holdings and South Korea’s TMAP and SK Telecom to bring services to those countries. It also has an agreement with Uber, part of its acquisition of the firm’s AAM arm Uber Elevate, to integrate its ridesharing service into the company’s app.

A comparatively early entry into service in 2025 would help assuage market share fears in the U.S.. The company will likely have an easier time garnering commercial partners once they’ve seen its aircraft in action.

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National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, Dayton, Ohio

“Many have asked about the National Museum of the United States Air Force curators’ favorite artifacts,” a museum spokesperson tells FLYING. But with more than four dozen curators, the list is not a short one.

“Members of museum’s curatorial team, consisting of more than four dozen professionals in the Research, Collection Management, Exhibits, and Restoration Divisions, are consistently drawn to artifacts that embody the people, events, organizations, places, and technologies that have shaped the history and heritage of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force,” the spokesperson said.

“Choosing a favorite aircraft is a tough one. Each curator typically provides a different response—some have more than one, and their favorite aircraft could be located in preservation storage, on display at the museum, or on loan and display to another organization or institution,” they added. “Regardless of the choice, our curators hope guests will pay special attention to some of these aircraft listed below when visiting the museum onsite or online.”

Among the aircraft that curators considered to be favorites:

B-17F Memphis Belle

X-15-A2

F-104C Starfighter

SPAD XIII

P-26 Peashooter

P-51D Mustang

Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero

Fokker DVII

F-86 Sabre

F-100D Super Sabre

A-1E Skyraider

MH-53M Pave Low IV

VC-137 (SAM 26000)

Visitor Favorites

“The National Museum of the United States Air Force has 19 acres of indoor exhibits and features more than 350 aerospace vehicles and missiles,” the spokesperson said. “Among the most popular exhibits and aircraft that visitors flock to include:

• Early Years Gallery: The Wright 1909 Military Flyer, the first military heavier-than-air flying machine.
• World War II Gallery: The B-17F Memphis Belle, which is part of the “Crippling the Nazi War Machine: USAAF Strategic Bombing in Europe exhibit. The famed B-17F Memphis Belle became the first heavy bomber to return to the U.S. after flying 25 missions over Europe. The Belle’s 26th mission was a widely-publicized war bond and morale-boosting tour with more than 30 stops across the U.S.
• Korea and Southeast Asia War Galleries: The “MiG Alley” exhibit tells the story of early jet combat between F-86 Sabres and MiG-15s over Korea. The B-52D looms over the Southeast Asia War Gallery and was part of key air campaigns such as Operation Rolling Thunder and Operation Linebacker I and II.
• Cold War Gallery: YF-117 stealth fighter, B-36 Peacemaker bomber, SR-71, and B-2. The size, shape and speed of these four aircraft pushed the boundaries of aerospace engineering through the Cold War. The museum’s B-2 is the only B-2 on display in any museum.
• Space Gallery: The Space Shuttle Exhibit features NASA’s first Crew Compartment Trainer (CCT-1). As a major exhibit component in that gallery, visitors can walk onto a full-size representation of a NASA space shuttle payload bay and look inside the CCT-1 cockpit and mid-deck areas. 
• Presidential Gallery: The VC-137C, also known as SAM (Special Air Mission) 26000, was used by eight presidents—Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Clinton. The Presidential Gallery gives visitors the opportunity to view an historic collection of presidential aircraft, and walk through four of them.
• Global Reach Gallery: C-130E Hercules (Spare 617), anchors the “A Force For Good: Department of the Air Force Humanitarian Missions” exhibit. Demonstrating the history and role the Air Force plays in humanitarian operations to assist people domestically and around the world, the exhibit includes: aerial deliveries, goodwill missions, relief and rescue, firefighting, and critical care responses. Artifacts on display include diving equipment used during the Thai Cave Rescue, and firefighting tools used to combat wildfires in Alaska. You can also see a fully assembled Transport Isolation System.
• Research and Development Gallery: XB-70 Valkyrie bomber. The futuristic XB-70A was originally conceived in the 1950s as a high-altitude, nuclear strike bomber that could fly at Mach 3 (three times the speed of sound). Any potential enemy would have been unable to defend themselves against such a bomber. It is the only Valkyrie still in existence.
• Throughout the museum: the “Women in the Air Force” exhibit. The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force honors women with an exhibit highlighting their achievements in civilian and military aviation with emphasis on the U.S. Air Force and its predecessors. The exhibit covers historical issues, changes in laws and attitudes, and women’s contributions. Specific women and groups from all eras and various career fields are noted to emphasize the impact women have played in establishing current positions in the Air Force.

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The deal is valued at $3.1 billion, which the company says is nearly 11 times (10.8X) than the $288 million adjusted earnings expected for 2022. When the deal closes, the Ohio-based company said it would use the proceeds to continue growing its fleet and operational footprint, which includes MRO facilities and a private terminal.

Excited to share, #Flexjet a global leader in subscription-based private aviation, is going public. See the vision for the next chapter. https://t.co/scVEqed3XC

— Flexjet (@Flexjet) October 11, 2022

• READ MORE: The Aviation Business Trend of 2021? SPAC Mania

Kenneth Ricci, chairman of Flexjet, said in a statement that his company’s profitability would serve as a “launch pad to accelerate our growth,” and that Flexjet was “making this decision at a time when we believe the marketplace is expanding at a more aggressive rate.”

Flexjet’s ‘Accelerated Growth’

Flexjet has seen significant growth this year. Even amid talks of an economic slowdown, potentially reducing business aviation traffic—and a broad trend of companies that went public via SPACs struggling to appeal to investors—the company remains on track. 

• READ MORE: Update: What Would a Recession Mean for Aviation?

In April, Flexjet said it would hire 350 pilots to fly the 50 new jets it will add to its fleet this year, which will stand at 254 by year’s end. It partnered with GE Digital Maintenance in May to improve its flight data and predictive maintenance capabilities. In June, by acquiring the Associated Aircraft Group (AAG), Flexjet launched a private helicopter division to offer complimentary helicopter hours—using Sikorsky S-76 helicopters—to its Gulfstream G650 fractional owners.

On the pilot side, the company is known for its “Dedicated Crew,” a unique pilot operating model that assigns pilots to a specific tail number. As pilots have flocked to the airlines as compared to Part 135 operators, Flexjet says it has been able to attract and retain pilots. Its average new-hire pilot has more than twice the flight hour minimum required for application. 

The company says 36 percent of its 1,000 non-union pilots have been with it for more than 15 years. 

Preservation of #Flexjet culture is a priority in this next chapter and is a key focus among our 3100+ employees. pic.twitter.com/FtpjSFx9GZ

— Flexjet (@Flexjet) October 11, 2022

More broadly, Flexjet employs more than 3,100 people globally, including 450 certificated maintenance technicians across nine locations in the U.S., United Kingdom, and Italy. To minimize extended aircraft-on-ground situations, it also has a network of 20 mobile maintenance support units in the U.S. and a network of partner facilities across the globe.

The company’s fleet includes 142 super-midsize, large-cabin, and ultralong-range jets. The company is seen as the rival to its neighboring Ohio counterpart, NetJets, which has a much bigger fleet, with more than 750 jets.

What Does Flexjet Offer?

The company provides various marketing solutions and branded storefronts to service private and business jet operators. Customers can leverage fractional jet ownership and private leasing through the flagship brand, Flexjet. Through its Sentient Jet storefront, there are jet cards for customers needing fixed hourly rates. Its FXAIR and PrivateFly brands offer on-demand charter programs, and Sirio focuses on full aircraft ownership. Collectively, Flexjet says its subscription-based recurring revenue model has provided predictable revenue and cash flow, which is a metric the company is betting public investors will desire.

• READ MORE: Best Charter Jet Service for Your Next Getaway

“Having capital and currency will position us to expand market share at an accelerated pace in an opportunistic environment,” Ricci said.

The company says its clients stem from a customer base of ultra-high-net-worth individuals and Fortune 500 corporations that make up approximately 10,000 contracts. Moreover, the company says it has maintained a 97 percent retention rate of members and that more than a third of its fractional customers—35 percent—have more than a decade’s long account. The company has undoubtedly benefited from the switch that travelers are making to private and business jet travel, especially following the pandemic—it says 55 percent of customers have been members for more than five years.

Terms of the Deal

Business-wise, Flexjet told investors via its presentation that in 2021, its revenue grew to $1.72 billion and is expected to reach $2.3 billion this year. Its 2019 adjusted earnings were $97 million, meaning the company could nearly triple that this year if it meets its $288 million projections.

Serial entrepreneur Todd Boehly will commit up to $300 million from his Eldrige Industries company to backstop the deal. Boehly co-owns a range of entertainment brands, and sports teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Chelsea Football Club, 

Boehly, CEO, CFO, and chairman of Horizon—the SPAC—said, “I’ve known Kenn and the team for nearly a decade. Their ability to profitably grow Flexjet to what is estimated to be over $2 billion in revenue through an unrivaled product offering and desirable subscription-based business model sets the team apart.”

The post Flexjet Plans SPAC IPO Valued at $3.1 Billion appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

My frustrated instructor directed me to a nearby grass strip. “This might help,” he said, noting that “grass is more forgiving.” He was right. Despite a slight crosswind, my first turf landing was straight and smooth. The natural surface seemed to embrace the airplane’s wheels rather than repel them like asphalt did.

• FAA Acknowledges Some Pilots Prefer Operating ‘On the Grass’

Grass strips have also worked wonders over the years for nervous passengers, including my wife, whose attitude toward flying took a positive turn after our first visit to a turf field in upstate New York. While some of the effect might be psychological, there is no doubt that grass runways have an appealing feel that makes them attractive destinations. Below are a few inviting grass fields that are ideal for backcountry beginners.  

Lee Bottom Airport (64I)

Hanover, Indiana

Few grass runways are more inviting than this field on the Ohio River, roughly halfway between Louisville, Kentucky, and Cincinnati, Ohio. For starters, the strip is just over 4,000 feet long and 100 feet wide, so pilots who are new to grass should feel comfortable there. The airport is also an example of what many pilots would like to see more often—an unpaved airport that has grown steadily and is open to the public. It hasn’t been easy, though. The airport was a gritty aircraft salvage yard and later the site of a lumber business before becoming a general aviation hub. A vintage video tells the story.

Smiley Creek Airport (U87)

Smiley Creek, Idaho

The generous size of this strip, 4,900 feet long and 150 feet wide, does not make it an easy destination. After all, the airport is nestled in mountains at an elevation of about 7,900 feet msl, so you should be up to date on mountain-flying skills and have a strong sense for how your aircraft will perform at high elevations and higher density altitude levels. Still, as mountain runways go, this one is not especially daunting, and the scenery seems well worth the extra flight-planning effort. The Idaho Division of Aeronautics publishes a guide to help pilots prepare for the trip.

Shelburne Airport (VT8)

Shelburne, Vermont

You could make a case for Shelburne as an ideal place for a student to learn to fly because it has the feel of a sleepy, old-fashioned country airport. However, it is just a few nautical miles from Burlington Airport (KBTV) and is tucked under the 1,500-foot floor of the big field’s Class C airspace. That gives learners plenty of opportunities to hone their radio skills by talking with ATC. For travelers to the Burlington area, Shelburne is a great alternative to the airlines.

Sunbury Airport (71N)

Sunbury, Pennsylvania

On approach to Sunbury, you might wonder why there is a public airstrip on an island in the middle of the Susquehanna River. The answer: Because the mail must go through. According to the Northumberland County Historical Society, the U.S. Department of Commerce established an emergency landing field there in 1920 after poor visibility repeatedly forced airmail pilots to land on a farmer’s field on the island. The field’s 250-foot width makes it especially attractive today, but pilots should beware of groundhog holes on the runway’s southeast edge.

Columbia Airport (O22)

Columbia, California

Pilots who are new to landing on grass and might be a bit tentative about trying this airport’s 2,607-foot turf strip can opt for the 4,673-foot asphalt runway. Columbia is known for its fly-in camping facilities that lead to many aviation groups organizing events there. Visiting pilots can pitch tents at one of 20 campsites that include picnic tables and barbecues. You are also free to camp under your airplane’s wing. Airport officials say the $10-per-night camping fee includes the overnight aircraft tiedown charge.

The post Keep On the Grass: Five Turf Runways for Aspiring Backcountry Pilots appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Their goal: To transform the historic Port Columbus Airport terminal and control tower, opened in 1929, into the Ohio Air & Space (OAS) Hall of Fame and Learning Center.   

“Ohio Air & Space will be an education force multiplier for all ages,” says Ron Kaplan, the executive director of the nonprofit 501(c)3 organization leading the project. “OAS will serve as a clearinghouse for Ohio youth education and collegiate aviation programs, providing a direct connection to our aerospace and technology industry partners that are committed to developing their future workforce.” 

OAS has already formed some key partnerships toward this effort, including The Ohio State University, Youth Aviation Adventure, the Buckeye Tigers, a local FAA ACE Academy sponsored by the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals, NetJets, and Flight Safety International. As the facility gets closer to becoming reality, Kaplan says he looks to partner with educational institutions across the state. 

Living Aviation History

The art-deco-style Old Port Columbus terminal was home to the first scheduled coast-to-coast airline passenger service: Transcontinental Air Transport’s (TAT) Lindbergh Line, according to Robert F. Kirk, author of Flying the Lindbergh Line and The Building of an Airport: Port Columbus. The airline flew passengers from New York to Glendale, California, using Ford Tri-motors and a unique rail-to-air-to-rail-to-air route.

“The deeper you dig, the more amazing its history becomes,” Kaplan says. “On dedication day, Amelia Earhart was there and Henry Ford was there and Edsel was there. It’s like a who’s who of the era. Amelia worked for TAT…in a technical capacity. But Lindbergh was like their technical adviser and actually mapped out the route and thus picked that site, which became Port Columbus.” 

Kaplan says trains were integrated into the cross-country route for two reasons: Overnight flying was dangerous at the time; and “the train industry was, of course, wary of aviation taking their business, so including them was useful to fundraising the airline.” The TAT route eastward consisted of New York to Columbus, Ohio, by train; and Columbus to Indianapolis, to St. Louis, Missouri, to Kansas City to Wichita, Kansas, to Waynoka, Oklahoma, by airplane. Then, Waynoka to Clovis, New Mexico, by train; Clovis to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Winslow, Arizona, to Kingman, Arizona, to Glendale, California, by airplane. “[It took] 48 hours!” Kaplan says.

TAT was ultimately absorbed by Maddux Air Lines, which eventually became TWA. When it opens, the hall of fame and learning center’s exhibits will include a display chronicling the history and evolution of Port Columbus. OAS already has a number of artifacts, thanks to the late Don Peters, a TWA captain and aviation history buff who donated his holdings to OAS, including his uniforms. “He also gave us some images, some amazing aerial shots of Port Columbus in the ‘30s and early ‘40s,” Kaplan says. 

The former director of enshrinement and outreach for the National Aviation Hall of Fame in Dayton, Ohio, Kaplan says OAS will enrich science and technical learning with the stories of Ohio’s aviation and space pioneers, such as the Wright brothers; astronauts Neil Armstrong and John Glenn; Jerrie Mock, the first woman to fly around the world; and the Tuskegee Airmen, which were based at Rickenbacker Air Force Base—to name a few. 

In his book about the building of Port Columbus, Robert Kirk writes that it took “brave, intelligent, far sighted individuals to push the limits of imagination, machines, human stamina, and vision…to build a great airport with a successful design for people and machines of flight.” 

Creating the hall of fame and learning center that will ultimately occupy this historic building will take a similar effort, according to Kaplan. 

Transforming a Landmark

Old Port Columbus was abandoned as an air terminal in 1958, when the then-new Columbus International Airport (KCMH)—named for John Glenn in 2016—was built. Since that time, the facility, which is operated by the Columbus Regional Airport Authority, was mostly used for office space by various businesses, Kaplan says. Today, it sits on the southeast corner of the KCMH property—outside the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) perimeter. 

Touring the historic terminal in 2014, Kaplan, says he was astonished at what he saw. “I had to put on booties and a mask to tour it, it was such an environmental disaster,” he says, owing to a failing roof and black mold throughout the building. In 2015, the terminal was listed as an “endangered” Columbus landmark. Thankfully, a community fundraising effort helped stabilize it in 2016. “They raised enough money to put a new roof on…they had a company come in and essentially gut the building down to the bare walls, floors, and ceilings of concrete tile,” Kaplan says.

A Columbus native, Kaplan remembers the building from earlier days. “I have a history with that building,” he says. “I was in there in 1991, awaiting a ride on the Collings Foundation B-24.” At the time, Ed Gillespie, a former chief test pilot for North American Aviation turned aviation consultant, was leasing the building for office space. As Kaplan waited for his ride on the restored aircraft, he sat next to two Tuskegee Airmen in the control tower, which had been converted to a lounge. “For that barnstorming event, it was open and being used by people waiting on their rides,” he says. He learned later that the two Tuskegee Airmen were  Alex Boudreaux, the first African-American commercial air traffic controller—whose first commercial job as a controller was in that same tower—and Capt. Harold Sawyer, who flew 130 combat missions and scored two victories during World War II. Both have now passed away.

Four years ago, Kaplan was thrust headfirst into the renovation project. Aware of previous attempts to save the terminal and tower, he says he felt it was important that the building serve the aviation community and not become the home of a “pest control company…or a microbrewery.” 

Kaplan had just left his long-term contract working for the National Aviation Hall of Fame when then Ohio Speaker of the House Cliff Rosenberger, who was a big fan of aviation history, asked to meet with him. “He wanted to know what my plans were…one thing I mentioned was that the [Port Columbus] terminal was at risk but that they had stabilized it and it was an historic site that the state should get involved in saving,” Kaplan recalls. “A couple weeks later, I got a text from the speaker…and he said how much money do you need for the Ohio Air and Space Hall of Fame.” 

Kaplan wasn’t a stakeholder in the project at the time, but he quickly became one. That year, 2018, the state provided a $550,000 grant for the renovation of the terminal building, and the OAS effort was officially born.  

A New Vision for Old Port Columbus

Kaplan and the OAS’s nine-member board of directors are now fundraising to turn the empty building into a state-dedicated space to honor Ohio’s aviation history. The OAS will announce later this week a $275,000 grant from the city of Columbus to support the renovation project and the nonprofit’s workforce development efforts, Kaplan says, adding that the organization is now “within striking distance with enough money to start phase one.” 

He says donors and aviation enthusiasts from all over the country have stepped up to support the project. One such donor, Margi (Marsh) Bauer—who grew up in Columbus but who now lives in central California—says the terminal building is a treasure worth saving. Visiting the area a few years ago for a high school reunion, she says she drove around the area reminiscing. “Along the way, I drove past the old original air terminal. And I remembered it. It had slipped from my memory a little bit….I thought, oh my gosh, I just couldn’t remember how beautiful this art deco building is.”

Bauer’s family’s home was a close neighbor to the airport and, consequently, it left an indelible mark on her. “Growing up in Columbus where there are no oceans or mountains or fun things to do, really, the family entertainment was to go out to the airport in the afternoon or after dinner and watch planes come in and out….We just loved flying and the airports,” she says. 

When Bauer, who is a board member for the Estrella Warbirds Museum in Paso Robles, California, heard about the formation of the OAS Hall of Fame and Learning Center and the future plans for the Old Port Columbus terminal, she was all in.

“This is something after my own heart,” she says. 

Kaplan says several of the project’s donors have similar stories, and others just want to see the rare example of 1920s art deco architecture preserved.

OAS already has design plans. A three-story building with 3,300 square feet per floor, the ground level will be dedicated to the hall of fame exhibits; it will also serve as an event venue and will include a staging area for catering services, Kaplan says. The second floor will serve as a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) learning space, where aviation education groups can meet and local school children can participate in hands-on learning projects. The basement will be used for offices, storage, and archives. 

Broken into two construction phases that will total roughly $4 million, the project’s first phase will include all new plumbing, electric, and mechanicals—and will build out the ground floor for the hall of fame exhibits, a welcome center, and a gift shop. An elevator will also be installed—which is a major undertaking in an historic building, Kaplan says. Upon the completion of phase one, he says the hall of fame will open, as fundraising and construction continues on phase two—the renovation of the top floor (the STEAM learning center) and the basement. 

Kaplan is especially excited about the OAS’s corporate partnerships with NetJets and Flight Safety International, the latter which will help to source, maintain, and present simulators that will be accessible to the general public on the main exhibit floor and used for training students in the learning center. He’s also excited about the economic impact the facility will have. “We will employ over a dozen people and, of course, serve as a catalyst for very important workforce development activities, specifically in the aviation, aerospace, and technology industries.

“My friends in the aviation industry are virtually screaming for help as they struggle to fill positions; these kids are going somewhere and doing something for a living; to be able to attract and point them to rewarding careers in aviation—not just as pilots—would be rewarding to me.” 

For more information visit the OAS website.

The post ‘Birthplace of Aviation’ To Get Hall of Fame To Celebrate Flight appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Of the sites, 63 have “national park” as part of their official names, and this is the category from which we chose our list of six with nearby airports that make them ideal destinations for general aviation pilots. Of course, there are many more that are just as flyable.

The idea is to avoid being overwhelmed by the number of choices and just start planning visits. See how many you can fly to in a year, and then keep going.

Be sure to check the National Park Service website for information about park conditions, temporary road closures, guided tours, and suggestions that can help you plan the visit.

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone Airport (KWYS), West Yellowstone, Montana

This is the biggie, the top dog, the first national park, having opened in 1872, and the one people tend to think of first. It covers 2.2 million acres and has a diversity of wildlife and landscapes, and a wealth of geysers. The airport has an 8,400-foot runway and sits only about three miles from the west entrance to the park. The airport closes for the winter, so check its status before planning to fly in. 

Glacier National Park

Glacier Park International Airport (KFCA), Kalispell, Montana

Known for Going to the Sun Mountain—a peak of more than 9,600 feet in the Lewis Range—the park also has a road of the same name with dramatic scenery. Hikers can explore more than 700 miles of trails. During the summer, Blackfeet, Salish, Kootenai, and Pend d’Oreille tribal members share knowledge of their history and culture as part of the “Native America Speaks” program, which marks its 40th anniversary this year.

Grand Canyon National Park

Grand Canyon National Park Airport (KGCN), Tusayan, Arizona

Just about everyone wants to see this magnificent hole in the ground. To make the most of your flying privileges and the airport’s convenient location, it is best to avoid visiting during busy times like spring break or during peak hours in the summer. Lines at entry points tend to get long between 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. The airport is two miles from the park entrance and seven miles from the South Rim, which is currently open (the North Rim is still closed for the winter season). 

Everglades National Park

Miami Homestead General Aviation Airport (X51), Homestead, Florida

Boating, fishing, and paddling canoes and kayaks are among the popular activities for visitors, who need to be especially careful to respect the many species that live in the area. The instruction to “stay at least 15 feet from alligators and crocodiles” leaps off the page listing various warnings about wildlife. The airport is less than 10 miles from the park’s eastern entrance. 

Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Kent State University Airport (1G3), Kent, Ohio

Known as a refuge for native wildlife and plants, the park also has a transportation history theme. Visitors can walk or ride bikes on a trail that is part of the old Ohio and Erie Canal towpath. The park’s trails total more than 125 miles and include part of the statewide Buckeye Trail. The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railway offers rides through the park on a vintage train from the 1940s.

Acadia National Park

Hancock County/Bar Harbor Airport (KBHB), Trenton, Maine

It’s less than 10 miles from the airport to the park, which borders bustling Bar Harbor but offers quiet escapes on miles of forest hiking trails. Acadia is a particular joy for bicyclists, who can tour for hours on the park’s 45 miles of carriage, a gift from John D. Rockefeller, Jr., built between 1913 and 1940. You can also ride or drive up Cadillac Mountain for dramatic views of the harbor and surrounding hills.

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