CITY TO CELEBRATE FLIGHT STREET FAIR TO HONOR AIR PIONEERS.LANCASTER - Lancaster Boulevard will be closed to traffic Saturday for a daylong aerospace celebration featuring unveilings of monuments to five former test pilots and a mural of state Sen. W.J. ``Pete'' Knight, as well as an aviation street fair. The Lancaster Aerospace Celebration will combine the city's 12th annual induction ceremony for the Aerospace Walk of Honor The Aerospace Walk of Honor in Lancaster, California, USA, is a continually-growing venue for honoring test pilots who have significantly contributed to aviation and space research and development. and the Lancaster Old Town Site Association's unveiling of its third aviation hero mural. This year's mural features Knight, who was a record-setting X-15 rocket plane rocket plane n. 1. An aircraft powered by one or more rocket engines. 2. An aircraft designed to carry and launch rockets. pilot and decorated Air Force officer before he entered politics. The event, held along Lancaster Boulevard between Sierra Highway Sierra Highway is a road in Southern California, United States. It runs from Tunnel Station near the north limit of the City of Los Angeles, where it intersects with San Fernando Road and Foothill Boulevard, as well as Interstate 5, and continues north to Mojave, mostly paralleling and 10th Street West, will kick off at 11 a.m. with a street fair featuring aviation displays, music and food booths. Organizations participating in the street fair include the Civil Air Patrol  The U.S. Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is the civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). It was created on 1 December, 1941 by Administrative Order 9, with Maj. Gen. John F. , the Experimental Aircraft Association, the 99s, Boeing Co., Lockheed Martin For the former company, see . Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is a leading multinational aerospace manufacturer and advanced technology company formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta. , Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is an aerospace and defense conglomerate that is the result of the 1994 purchase of Grumman by Northrop. The company is the third largest defense contractor for the U.S. , NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. and Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. . At noon, the city will unveil the monuments to the five new Aerospace Walk of Honor inductees. The unveilings will be held at the new Civic Plaza, at Lancaster Boulevard and Sierra Highway. Originally, an F-117 stealth fighter was supposed to fly low over the boulevard to cap the ceremony, but all such flybys of public events have been canceled nationwide, Air Force officials said. At 1:45 p.m., the Lancaster Old Town Site will unveil the Knight mural on the side of the Wells Fargo Wells Fargo armored carriers of bullion. [Am. Hist.: Brewer Dictionary, 1147] See : Protectiveness Wells Fargo company that handled express service to western states; often robbed. [Am. Hist. Bank building at Lancaster Boulevard and Elm Avenue. Knight, a former Edwards test pilot and an inaugural inductee of the Aerospace Walk of Honor, is known as ``the fastest man alive'' for a record-setting 4,520-mph flight in an X-15 rocket plane in 1967. A banquet for the Aerospace Walk of Honor inductees will be held at 6 p.m. at the Essex House Convention Center, 44916 10th St. W. Tickets are $75 and can be purchased at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center A performing arts center, often abbreviated PAC, is a multi-use performance space that can be adapted for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre. , 750 W. Lancaster Blvd. The Aerospace Walk of Honor salutes pilots who have made outstanding contributions to aviation or space and who have connections to Edwards Air Force Base. This year's honorees are Carl Bellinger, Frank Birk, James Gannett, Larry McClain and John Myers. Bellinger and Birk are both deceased. Bellinger's achievements included helping develop and flight test the P-47 Thunderbolt, a fighter that saw extensive use during World War II. Birk was the chief test pilot for the B-1 bomber program and later led the B-2 stealth bomber flight test program. Ganett was a leader in commercial aviation flight test and flew a variety of Boeing jetliners. McClain was involved in the early testing of the F-117 fighter and later served as Northrop Grumman's manager of flight tests for the B-2. Myers flight tested the P-61 ``Black Widow,'' America's first successful night fighter, and flight tested Jack Northrop's N9M flying wing. Because of the celebration, Lancaster Boulevard will be closed to traffic between Fig Avenue and Sierra Highway starting at 6 a.m. Saturday and should reopen around 5 p.m. For the monument unveiling, Sierra Highway will be closed between Jackman and Milling streets from about 11:45 a.m. Saturday to about 12:45 p.m. CAPTION(S): 7 photos Photo: (1) MYERS (2) McCLAIN (3) GANNETT (4) BIRK (5) BELLINGER (6 -- color) no caption (Aerospace Walk of Honor) (7) Tim Schmunk, below, and Modesto Rivera install a Walk of Honor plaque for pilot John Myers. Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer |
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