Warbird Information Exchange

Wings of Eagles lands three planes
Donations expand collection for refocused Big Flats museum.

By Jeff Murray
jmurray@stargazette.com
Star-Gazette

BIG FLATS -- The Wings of Eagles Discovery Center, which made headlines a few years ago when it sold two of its high-profile aircraft, is adding three new planes to its collection.

The three historic airplanes, which were donated to the museum, will be unveiled to members and the public at the Wings of Eagles' annual holiday dinner Saturday.

The new additions:

•A 1929 American Eagle, a popular early biplane.

•A scale replica of a Japanese Baka Bomb, a fighter plane used by Japan on suicide missions during World War II.

•An L-5 Sentinel, a spotter plane of late World War II/Korean War vintage.

"These are fairly valuable pieces of equipment, and we're thrilled to have them added to our collection. They stretch the spectrum of aviation we have at the Wings of Eagles," said museum Executive Director Mike Hall.

The planes were donated by private owners and don't duplicate anything in the museum's collection, he added.

In fact, the aircraft, especially the American Eagle, represent time frames not currently in the museum's collection, which numbers close to 40 planes, Hall said.

In 2005, the Wings of Eagles Discovery Center had to sell its centerpiece attraction, a World War II vintage Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, nicknamed Fuddy Duddy, to help pay off its crippling $3.1 million debt and become more financially stable.

Less than three months later, the museum sold its Consolidated PBY-6A Catalina flying boat to the American Airpower Museum on Long Island. The Catalina was also an expensive aircraft to maintain and fly, Hall said.

The new planes might not be as big or flashy as the two that were sold, but each comes with its own unique story, he said.

"The American Eagle takes you back to the exciting first days of people thinking you can have an airplane. We hadn't previously had anything of that era," Hall said. "This is a plane that can help you trace (aviation) history back to its early days.

"The (Baka) poses the question: How would people place themselves in a plane for a suicide attack? That's even relevant today with 9/11," he said.

"The (L-5 Sentinel) flies, and it has a glider tow hook on it. It's in really good shape. The fact that it's a tow plane makes it extremely valuable to us. Our soaring school had an excellent summer."

For the past few years, the Wings of Eagles Discovery Center, formerly known as the National Warplane Museum, has been evolving from a repository for old warbirds to a general aviation museum and education center.

The move was necessary after the warplane museum closed temporarily in 2001 and endured declining attendance and continued financial woes after it reopened in the spring of 2002, museum officials said.

Changes taking place now are essential if the museum is to remain viable, said Chemung County Executive Tom Santulli, who was deputy executive when the county lured the National Warplane Museum from Geneseo.

"The new direction of the Wings of Eagles is going to really determine whether they continue to move forward," Santulli said. "Fortunately, they are starting to make progress. We've got a long way to go. If we're going to be a viable tourist attraction, along with an education center, offering courses in aviation and aerospace, it is where they need to be."

Several more developments that will help cement the museum's reputation as a major community and educational resource are in the works for 2008, Hall said.

"It's exciting. It seems like it takes forever," he said. "It's not your granddad's warplane museum, that's for sure. This weekend is sort of a peek at where some of that's going."