CROWDS FLOCK TO SEE A.F. ONE PAVILION MORE THAN 7,000 ARE DRAWN TO EXHIBIT'S OPENING WEEK.

Byline: Angie Valencia-Martinez Staff Writer

SIMI VALLEY - Rose McGrady of Simi Valley was a flight attendant with Western Airlines when she first met then-Gov. Ronald Reagan.

She walked over to him, greeted him with a smile and said, ``Please run for president.''

Monday, she found herself inside the former president's airplane.

``To be here is a dream come true,'' she said.

McGrady is one of more than 7,000 visitors drawn to the opening week of the Air Force One Pavilion at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.

This weekend, library officials expect more than 4,000 people to walk through the three-story, 87,000-square-foot pavilion, featuring a gleaming Boeing 707 that transported Reagan to 26 foreign countries during his two terms in the White House. It also ferried six other presidents around the globe. The exhibit also contains a Marine One helicopter, a presidential motorcade and a pub Reagan visited in Ireland, that has been transported to his library.

The library is experiencing double its daily average attendance since the exhibit's grand opening earlier this week.

The $32 million exhibit is the latest addition to the Reagan Library since it first opened in 1991.

``We are very pleased by the attendance of our opening week of the pavilion,'' said library spokeswoman Melissa Giller. ``Being able to have people at the library walk through Air Force One, as President Reagan wanted, is very fulfilling.''

The library's tour groups are booked through the weekend. The tour of the Air Force One exhibit lasts an hour to 90 minutes.

But most people tend to go it alone. Patrons are introduced to a 10-minute film when they first enter the Boeing 707. It takes about two to three minutes for visitors to make their way through the ``flying White House.''

While inside, visitors are not allowed to take pictures, touch items, sit in the passenger seats or bring in food or drinks.

``But you do get to walk through it and get an up-close look,'' Giller said.

Minor regulations didn't stop throngs of visitors from enjoying their visit.

``It's cool,'' said Jane Cox of Santa Clarita. ``It's history. This is how he got around.''

Already, library officials are working on their next big exhibit, which will pay homage to former first lady Nancy Reagan and will feature her stories, dresses and more.

Also, the Christmas exhibit will be displayed Nov. 15 and will be housed inside the pavilion for the first time.

Last year, roughly 325,000 people visited the presidential library. Officials don't yet have estimates of what the newest addition will mean to the library's annual attendance.

Angie Valencia-Martinez, [phone]

angie.valencia(at)dailynews.com