The Wings of Honor Museum in Walnut Ridge has received a $20,000 gift from an anonymous donor. The World War II museum, which is located at Walnut Ridge Regional Airport, plans to use the funds to complete the interior of a recent addition to the facility and to construct additional exhibits.
“This generous gift enables us to make a significant expansion of our World War II exhibits and help current and future generations better understand that momentous time in our history,” said museum director Harold Johnson.
“World War II was a horrible war that impacted, and forever changed, the lives of most American families,” said Johnson. “The Wings of Honor Museum tells the story of that war and its impact, including contributions made by the thousands of men and women who served at the Walnut Ridge Army Flying School.”
The current Walnut Ridge Regional Airport is located at the site of the Army flying school, which helped train pilots for service in the war.
Numerous aspects relating to WWII are already covered in the museum’s exhibits, including the prelude to war, the attack on Pearl Harbor, wartime mobilization and production, the home front, the Tuskegee Airmen, aviation cadets and other facets.
Johnson says the museum’s expansion will feature exhibits on Arkansas’ contribution to the war and greatly expanded exhibits on both the European and Pacific theaters of WWII, including narratives, graphs, maps, photographs, videos, uniforms and weapons,
Construction of the museum’s addition is well underway, and work on the exhibits will commence in coming weeks, Johnson said. The addition is expected to be open for visitors later this year.