Mayor Phil Gordon, Vice Mayor Dave Siebert and City Council members will host a dedication ceremony for SPAD XIII, a restored World War I era aircraft, at 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 7, at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, Terminal 3, Level 2, near the escalators.
The vintage aircraft has 80 percent original parts from three original SPAD XIII aircrafts. The SPAD XIII was designed in 1917 to offset the twin-gun German fighters during WWI combat and one of the most famous planes flown during the war. SPAD is an acronym for the French company that made airplanes – Societe Pour I’Aviation et ses Dervives “Society for Aviation and its Derivatives.”
“This plane was known for being a superb fighter,” said Vice Mayor Siebert. “It was flown by several leading American aces including Congressional Medal of Honor recipients Eddie Rickenbacker and local hero Frank Luke Jr., known as the ‘Arizona Balloon Buster’.” Luke Jr. was the first aviator to receive a Medal of Honor. Luke Air Force Base in the west Valley was named after him.
The plane was restored by GossHawk Unlimited, an internationally-respected company located in Casa Grande, Ariz. that specializes in the restoration of vintage and war-bird aircrafts. There are only five surviving originals of the SPAD XIII and the plane on display has the markings of Frank Luke Jr.
At the ceremony, five paintings from artist Robert T. McCall will also be unveiled. The paintings honor local aviation notables including: Frank Luke Jr. (WWI); Vernon Haywood, a member of the 99th Pursuit Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Corps also known as the Tuskagee Airmen that destroyed more than 250 enemy aircraft (WWII); Ruth Dailey Helm, who flew fighter planes and B-25 bombers for the Women Air Force Service Pilots (WWII); Arthur Van Haren Jr., who served in the U.S. Navy with Fighting Squadron 2 as a fighter-pilot during World War II; and Frederick E. Ferguson, who during the Vietnam War flew his Bell UH-1 helicopter picking up wounded soldiers in the village of Hue, earning him the Congressional Medal of Honor.
In addition to Phoenix officials, remarks will be given by Luke Commander Noah T. Jones and Don Luke, nephew of Frank Luke Jr.
For more information, visit phoenix.gov/skyharborairport or call 602-273-2105.
