Please join us at the ACHS Fall Meeting to hear Karl Stoltzfus, Sr., owner of Dynamic Aviation in Bridgewater, Virginia, tell the story of “Columbine II: the first Air Force One.”
The Columbine II, as the Lockheed Constellation aircraft was called, was built in 1948 and was part of the phenomenon of Presidents going airborne. Eisenhower flew over 50,000 miles in the plane. After it was retired from presidential service, the Columbine II began a long journey of its own, serving a spraying company and then making appearances on the air show circuit. From the 1990s until 2014 it remained forgotten in the Arizona desert
In 2014, Karl Stoltzfus, Sr., of Dynamic Aviation in Bridgewater, purchased the Columbine II. Stoltzfus is the son of Chris Stolzfus who formed a pioneering aviation company in 1936. Today Dynamic Aviation has an enormous range of aviation capability and provides aviation services around the world.
After Stoltzfus purchased the presidential aircraft, it underwent a year of maintenance and repairs in Arizona before being flown to Bridgewater. The Dynamic Aviation team has continued the restoration process since Columbine II’s arrival. Eventually the plane will be displayed in an aviation museum in Bridgewater.
The program is free and open to the public
Columbine II’s arrival in Bridgewater generated excitement. as crowds gather to watch the plane fly overhead and see it on the ground.Karl D. Stoltzfus Sr., founder of Dynamic Aviation, purchased the Columbine II in 2015. The Columbine II, a Lockheed Constellation, was the first aircraft with the callsign “Air Force One” and flew President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s from 1953-1954. The callsign was adopted after a near mid-air collision with an Eastern Airlines flight, which had the same call numbers, in the skies over New York in 1954. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Andrew Lee)The first Air Force One which flew Dwight D. Eisenhower, returned to flight on March 19, 2016, taking off from Marana airport in Marana, Arizona. On March 22nd, Columbine II began the cross-country journey to Bridgewater, Virginia to undergo a complete restoration.
