The Army Corps of Engineers selected five contractors to present their design-build proposals for the expansion of the National Museum of the US Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, announced museum officials. This is the second phase of the request-for-proposal process for the museum’s fourth building, which is scheduled for opening in late 2015, according to the museum’s Aug. 8 release. The five contractors are: Whiting-Turner Contracting of Greenbelt, Md.; M.A. Mortenson Construction of Minneapolis; Turner Construction of Washington, D.C.; Hensel Phelps of Chantilly, Va.; and Archer Western/Butt Construction of Chicago. They have until Oct. 2 to submit their proposals; the construction contract is scheduled for award in late 2013, states the release. The planned 224,000-square-foot hangar would house aircraft from the Presidential gallery, including President Kennedy’s Air Force One, the research and development gallery, including the XB-70 bomber prototype, as well as vehicles from the space gallery, among others. (Dayton report by Rob Bardua)
Billy Mitchell: Lessons a Hundred Years Hence
Dec. 16, 2025
Exactly 100 years ago, on Dec. 17, 1925, Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell was convicted by court-martial for violating an order that required approval before he could engage with the media. Mitchell’s provocative thoughts and unorthodox methods sought attention for a cause that he saw as uniquely American.
