The Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum has a companion facility just outside Dulles International Airport in Chantilly, VA. It is called the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center and is the home of an enormous collection of aircraft that belong to the Smithsonian but can’t be displayed in the NASM.

Udvar-Hazy is undoubtedly the premier historic aircraft exhibition facility in the world. It’s a huge facility and is at least a full-day visit. Among its collection of historic air and spacecraft are the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay, an Air France Concorde and the Space Shuttle Discovery.

In keeping with traditional Smithsonian traditions, the entrance itself to Udvar-Hazy is a piece of artwork in itself. A very special feature of the Center is the National Aviation and Space Exploration “Wall of Honor” that is situated along the entryway to the Center.

The “Wall of Honor” serves as a permanent memorial to the thousands of people who have contributed to our aviation and space exploration heritage. These names are inscribed on the airfoil-shaped wall that will continue to be expanded in years to come.

The Piedmont Aviation Historical Society has reserved a panel on the Wall of Honor so the names of former employees can be permanently engraved along with the thousands of individual names already engraved along the Wall. We have joined other organizations, such as the F-86 Sabre Pilots Association, the Distinguished Flying Cross Society and the Retired United Pilots Association, with a dedicated foil for Piedmont Airlines.

For a tax deductible contribution of $100 the name of former Piedmont employee will be engraved on the dedicated Piedmont Airlines panel. To be eligible, the name must be that of a living or deceased Piedmont Aviation or Piedmont Airlines employee who was employed between July 1940 and August 1989.

Piedmont employees and their surviving family members should seriously consider participating in this plan so visitors to the museum will see the beautiful plaque honoring Piedmont Airlines, Tom Davis and the employees of Piedmont Airlines; “The Model of How Good an Airline Can Be.”

To have your name or the name of another qualifying employee added to Piedmont’s panel on the Wall of Honor, use this URL and follow the instructions shown below to process your registration:

http://airandspace.si.edu/wallofhonor/

Click on -Register Now- and follow the four-step process:

1) Under Step 1, skip down to -No Account? No Problem- and follow the next steps.

2) Under the heading -Please add my honoree's name to the panel reserved by the following organization:- Be sure to click the down arrow to open the drop down menu and select “Piedmont Airlines.”

3) Proceed to Step 2 and complete the process.

After you have registered:

Once Wall of Honor names are entered into the museum’s database, they become searchable on their web site at:

http://airandspace.si.edu/getinvolved/giving/wallofhonor/find_honoree.cfm

It will show “Engraving Pending” if the name has not yet been engraved on the foil but will change to the actual location once the engraving is complete.

You can submit a profile and picture by emailing the information it to the museum at wallofhonor@si.edu and it will be added to the database and can be accessed through the web site. Profiles are limited to 500 words or less. After a profile has been added to the database, it can be accessed by clicking on the honoree’s name.

WHEN: Saturday, February 2, 2013

TIME: 5:00pm - 9:00pm

WHERE: The Blue Hangar, Sugar Valley Airport, Mocksville, NC

WHAT’S HAPPENING: Pickin’: The “Wicker Pickers” (Carl & Shirley) will lead off the pickin’. BYI (Bring Your Own Instrument) to join in

BBQ: BYM (Bring Your Own Meat to Grill) and we’ll provide the rest: buns, steak sauce, condiments, baked potatoes & fixings salad and desserts. Beverages - Sweet & unsweetened tea, coffee and water

Fun activities for the whole family!

Saturday, May 18 was a busy day at the museum with the Antique Truck Show hosted by the Piedmont Carolinas Chapter of the Antique Truck Historical Society and, of course, the monthly work session on the Potomac Pacemaker.

Eleven dedicated volunteers were there for an abbreviated work session followed by a luncheon meeting hosted by the NCTM Foundation. The meeting, with Walter Turner of the NCTM and Capt. Bill Wilkerson, was held to discuss the Potomac Pacermaker project as Bob Reed steps down as project coordinator on July 1. Bill is joining the NCTM Foundation’s board to represent the aviation interests and will be leading the project until new leadership is in place.

Despite the abbreviated work session, a great deal was accomplished this session. John Sink and Paul Deffenderfer removed the glue that held insulation on the nacelle cowling inner ring.

Charlie Hall and Walt Ryerson continued work on the cockpit seats. Charlie was able to use cargo compartment lining material to form the new backing in the seat frame.

Andy Ray and Martha Jackson spend several hours polishing the blades and spinner hub on one of the propellers. When completed, the engine and prop currently being restored will be put on display near the viewing platform at the far end of the Back Shop. The other engine and prop are on display in the aviation area of the Roundhouse.

Bill Wilkerson and Bob Loehne discussed the structure of the center wing section which will be receiving some major sheet metal work. That process will be greatly improved when the center section is flipped up on it’s front for a few months later this summer.

Bill Behrendt worked again in the cockpit area and successfully removed the switch panel that controlled the heater system. Like so many other assemblies, each rivet had to be drilled out or cut and punched out. All of the removable parts have now been cleared out of the cockpit area.

Back in his favorite work area, the rear cargo compartment, Bob Loehne removed the sheet metal lining above the bulkhead doorway. Bob has done an outstanding job of removing most of the sheet metal lining which is done rivet by rivet.

The next workday is Saturday, June 15 at 8:30am.

Robert H. Reed
NCTM Project Coordinator
PIEDMONT AIRLINES
Potomac Pacemaker
118 Church Steeple Drive
Advance, NC 27006

If you live in the INT or GSO areas, you are invited and welcomed to join the INT group for lunch at 11:30am at Hill’s BBQ on the first Thursday of each month or in GSO for breakfast at Olympic Restaurant in Colfax at 8:30 on the second Thursday on the month.

To be added to the email reminder list which is sent 2-3 days prior to each meeting, simply send an email request to:

Bob Reed
RobtHReed@aol.com

Check EVENTS for latest location.

To volunteer to work on The Potomac Pacemaker Restoration Project, contact Bob Reed, the Project Coordinator, so that you can be added to the list maintained by the NC Transportation Museum (NCTM). His contact information is as follows:

Bob Reed
118 Church Steeple Drive
Advance, NC 27006
Telephone: 336-940-5046
Email: RobtHReed@aol.com
Alternate Email: PiedmontHistory@aol.com

A Section Coordinator will be assigned to each section of the aircraft to be worked upon and volunteers can choose which sections they prefer. If no preference is made, contact the Project Coordinator for a work assignment.

Bring your personal tools if you believe you will need them. After the first time working on the aircraft you will have a good idea of what tools you should bring. Arrangements will be made so that you can leave tools or other material at the work site in a secure locker. You will need to provide the lock. Specialty tools will be available at the work site. In addition, it is strongly advised that you have a pair of heavy work gloves, safety glasses, and a respirator/mask of some type especially if working in the fuselage.

The third Saturday of each month will be scheduled as a work day; however, other work days may be established from time to time by the Project Coordinator.

Contact the Project Coordinator or the Section Coordinator each time you plan to work, including the third Saturday of each month.

Volunteers may work any day, Monday through Saturday by contacting the Project Coordinator so arrangements can be made with NCTM for you to enter the work site. The project is being done in a large building called the Back Shop. Access to the Back Shop is restricted to museum staff and volunteers. Identification Badges will be provided by NCTM and should be worn at all times while working on the project.

Restoration has begun on N56V to eventually be a centerpiece display for the North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer, North Carolina.

This particular Piedmont Airlines DC-3 saw it’s last flight years ago at Charlotte, North Carolina. About that time, some new-fangled technology had come along called the turbojet that made demand stall for the old reciprocating propeller-driven queen of the skies. The venerable old girl sat for years at Charlotte and became essentially a derelict.

Some years later, the Potomac Pacemaker was given to City of Durham as a display attraction when they updated a city park. This park was home to the airplane for for a long time until it was removed several years ago in serious disrepair.

The North Carolina Transportation Museum decided to accept N56V as a potential indoor display attraction for a planned major renovation of “the Back Shop”, a huge carnivorous building located on the museum property. The airplane was moved in pieces into this building where it sits today.

In April 2010, major renovation began to restore N56V to museum display status. It sits in major sub assemblies including the fuselage, the wings, the tail section, the center “wing box” section, and the engines. Work is being done by volunteers who formally meet for a full day of work one Saturday per month with other work being done throughout the month and by students of the Aviation Program at Guilford Technical Community College.

We do not have a formal timeline when the airplane will be finished, but it will undoubtedly be a couple of years at best. The plane is dirty, corroded in many areas and will require enormous work from thorough metal cleaning to seat refinishing to freeing up frozen controls, recovering of the control surfaces and rebuild of the cockpit area. The Guilford Technical Community College Aviation Program has been and will continue to be a major contributor of both work and expertise. Their help and involvement is greatly appreciated. The Piedmont Aviation Historical Society is also closely involved with this long-term project.

Jetpiedmont.com will keep you posted on major milestones for the restoration of N56V. If you are interested in helping with the project, simply show up at 9:00am at the North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer on the third Saturday of the month. WEAR OLD CLOTHES and bring gloves – you’ll get dirty but you’ll have fun!

PIEDMONT: Flight of the Pacemaker is a wonderful book. It is one of those ‘must haves’ if you ever worked for Piedmont. You will enjoy it even if you did not work for Piedmont. It is about a lot of people who worked together toward a common goal to pull off one of the greatest success stories ever. It is both captivating and fun. It is a genuine pleasure read and to have.

PIEDMONT: Flight of the Pacemaker is a 9x12 hardcover 400-page volume is loaded with over 600 photos in 16 very easy-to-read and insightful chapters. You can read a little or a lot at one time. Each chapter is complete within itself. The whole thing is very well done.

Copies are available directly from the Piedmont Aviation Historical Society (PAHS) and in select book stores. If you care to order your copy directly from PAHS, just click the link and download the order form.

Makes a great gift, too!

Andy Ray
JETPIEDMONT.COM Forum Moderator