Sioux Falls S.D. (KELO AM) - The Joe Foss Squadron of the Commemorative Air Force is putting on a WWII style hangar dance as an initial fund raiser for their unit on Monday, 12 August. The Commemorative Air Force is the largest owner and operator of historic privately owned aircraft and the Joe Foss Squadron is the newest unit.
John Mollison has been drawing historic aircraft since he was three is all about history and believes history teaches us character, ethics and wisdom. He has interviewed a lot of people who have been at the crux of history and done well such as Medal of Honor winner Joe Foss and Senator George McGovern who won the Distinguished Flying Cross.
“I like to interview people and draw their airplanes,” said Mollison. “It’s a privilege to learn from people who have been through it all like Joe Foss and George McGovern. Through a love of history and aviation, the idea of a hangar dance came up to raise funds for the squadron.”
Mollison said, to have a squadron in the Commemorative Air Force, you have to have an Airplane. We have an L-5 Sentinel, a two seat puddle jumper which flew generals over the battlefield to give them an idea what is going on. When needed, the L-5 could also be used as an air ambulance to quickly get the wounded help quicker than ground transportation.
“The hangar dance is going to be a fundraiser for the squadron and we wanted to have a party,” said Mollison. The Commemorative Air Force Squadron, Texas is going to bring in a B-29; the plane that dropped the Atomic Bombs on Japan. There will be another four-engine plane, the B-24 that George McGovern flew, two P-51s and a lot more WWII surprises.”
Mollison said this party got out of hand in a great way! We didn’t expect a classic air show to come to Sioux Falls for our hangar dance, but the support has been terrific. People will be able to tour the B-29 and there are going to be raffles to get a ride on these vintage aircraft.
“The dance starts at 5:30 P.M. and goes to 10:00 P.M. and I want to stress the WWII Veterans are free,” said Mollison. “We want to assure that those people who played such a roll in America’s history are totally welcome.
Tickets are fifty-dollars and can be purchased on line at www.cafjoefoss.com