The Iowa Aviation Museum is holding its 30th annual Wings Fly-In/Drive-In and Hall of Fame induction Saturday in Greenfield. The museum’s Kris Schildberg says this year’s Hall of Fame inductee is Jim Zangger, who’s been involved in aviation for decades in northwest Iowa, as his family ran an airport in Larchwood.
“Jim began his flying lessons really early, and by the age of 10, he already had time logged in,” Schildberg says. “The funny story is, on his 16th birthday, he flew the plane to the county seat, got out and walked over to get his driver’s license. He already had his pilot’s license.”
The day’s events kick off with a pancake breakfast at 7:30 a.m. Everyone who attends the breakfast and induction ceremony also receives admission to the Iowa Aviation Museum for the day. Schildberg says the museum’s staff has been hard at work keeping the exhibits pristine.
“We’ve got over 900 biographies in the back room of people with aviation ties,” Schildberg says. “We just keep adding to it. We’ve got a wonderful display in the front room, including a Norden bombsight. Our aircraft are all vintage-related and they are gorgeous, and we’ve got a wonderful library and the Hall of Fame in the back room.”
Tickets for the event are $10 for adults and $5 for school-age children. Pilots in command and children younger than preschool are free.
(By Ryan Matheny, KMA, Shenandoah)