The Commemorative Air Force says it wants to take warbirds mainstream with a new headquarters complex in a major urban area. At a news conference at AirVenture Wednesday, CAF President Steve Brown said the idea is to take the organization uptown while preserving and honoring its rural roots. “We want to add,” he said. “We don’t want to subtract anything.” The current headquarters is in Midland, Texas, a city of 160,000 about halfway between El Paso and Dallas, and is home to the organization’s museum and annual airshow. Brown said the facilities and airshow will continue in Midland but the new national headquarters will have its own attractions and be located in a major metropolitan area.
Brown said the new complex will include an “aviation attraction” along with storage and maintenance facilities for the cream of the crop of CAF’s fleet of 158 flying aircraft. A primary role of the new digs will be to educate young people on the legacy of their forbears in allowing them to take for granted the lives they enjoy. “Our mission is education, such that Americans will value and support the contributions of military aviation in assuring our nation’s freedom,” he said. The potential sites have been narrowed to a short list of eight and include Alliance Airport in Fort Worth, Collin County Airport in McKinney, Dallas Executive, Ellington Field in Houston, Lackland/Kelly in San Antonio, New Century in Kansas City/Olathe, Kansas, North Texas Regional in Dallas and Smyrna/Rutherford County near Nashville.
