A Whole Lot of Horsin' around in Ohio
Gathering of Mustangs and Legends
"The Final Round-Up"
Site selected.
September 27 - 30, 2007
A Once in a lifetime Aviation Happening
is about to happen again.
Similar in many ways to finding a host city for the Olympics, Stallion 51 Corporation wanted to find the perfect location to reunite the 1999 participants of the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends (GML). An exhaustive search was conducted with multiple great locations vying to host what has been dubbed, the "Mustang Woodstock" with the decision coming down to three very strong finalists; Front Range Airport, Rickenbacker Int'l Airport and Jeffco County Airport. This week, GML Event Director, Angela West revealed, "We are proud to announce, Rickenbacker Int'l Airport located in Columbus, OH has been selected as the host airport for the Gathering of Mustangs Legends to be held September 27 - 30, 2007".
The 1999 Gathering of Mustangs and Legends in Kissimmee, Florida at Stallion 51's base of operation, amassed 65 Mustangs and 12 Legends together for what was considered one of the great aviation events of the 20th Century. Since then Stallion 51 has been in search of the right time and place to recreate the magic. "We are extremely excited with this historic location along with the community and corporate support", said Lee Lauderback, President of Stallion 51 Corp. "The skies over Columbus will once again be filled with the unmistakable sounds of this awesome fighter and the heroes who gave so much to defend our country's freedom".
Columbus, OH is the home of the 447th composite Group/332 Fighter Wing, These Tuskegee Airmen who flew the Mustang in WWII, and safely escorted the bombers during their daring raids over Germany. Rickenbacker International Airport (Lockbourne Army Air Base during WWII) was also a B-17 training base during the war and produced many of the B-17 crews that the Mustang airman protected as they flew missions over Europe. Rickenbacker International Airport will be celebrating its 65th anniversary in 2007 while hosting an expected 100 Mustangs and 51 Legends.
"On behalf of the Central Ohio community we are honored that this historic event will be held at Rickenbacker Int'l Airport," said Elaine Roberts, A.A.E., President CEO, of the Columbus Airport Authority, which operates Rickenbacker. "The rich military and aviation history of the airport, Columbus's convenient location and easy access to major highways, the welcoming nature of the community along with a strong military presence at Rickenbacker combine to create the perfect setting for this major aviation event."
The Gathering of Mustangs and Legends-The Final Round Up has been greatly anticipated and will include a massive 51-plane Mustang formation, solo and formation Mustang demonstrations, USAF Flight Demonstrations and numerous other aerial activities and demonstrations, an aviation auction, as well as ample opportunities to photograph the planes and meet the Aces, Legends and Heroes who flew the P-51 Mustang.