The Art Pratt Foundation of Old Mission Rotary recently issued a grant to the Flying Leathernecks Museum. The grant for $6,000 was accepted by retired Colonel USMC Victor Bianchi and retired Brigadier General USMC Mike Aguilar. The funds will be used for electronic equipment for their oral history programs and presentation capabilities.
The Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum is a United States Marine Corps aviation museum has been operating at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar since 1999.
Unfortunately, The museum can no longer use the land on the air station and has been closed. The museum leadership are looking for a new home with both a physical location and a larger online presence.
The museum contains exhibits and artifacts relating to the history and legacy of United States Marine Corps Aviation. The outdoor exhibits included 31 historical aircraft, multiple military vehicles and equipment. Indoor exhibits featured photographs, artifacts and artwork from the early days of aviation to the present. The museum maintains and restores vintage aircraft used by the United States Marine Corps (USMC) through work performed by employees and volunteers. In the last 12 months, 28,000 people from around the world came to the museum.
Photo Caption: One of the many impressive aircraft displays at the Flying Leatherneck Museum is the "Lady Ace 09," the CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter evacuated Ambassador Graham Martin from the rooftop of the American Embassy in Saigon in 1975 during the last hours of the Vietnam War.