Gas prices may be at an all time high but you can make Father's Day a special event and stay close to home. MAPS Air Museum is a day anyone would enjoy, but as a WWII veteran my dad took a walk back in history as we visited the museum. It is a history lesson for all ages and a walk down memory lane for anyone that has been in the military.

Located on the west side of the Akron Canton Airport in Green is the hangar that was donated to MAPS by the Akron Canton Airport in August 2001. The hangar had been built to support an Ohio Air Guard base, which was established in 1952. It became home to P-51 Mustangs, T-6 Texans, C-119 and C-47 aircraft during its years of military service.  The hangar served as a base until the early 1960s, when all the aircraft were moved to Clinton County, Ohio. The hangar was then transferred to the Ohio National Guard, where it housed the UH-1 Huey, AH-1S Cobra and OH-58A Kiowa helicopters until the late 1980's when it was turned over to the Akron Canton Airport after the Ohio National Guard built their new facility on West Airport Drive. Until its transfer to MAPS, Indiana-based Chautauqua Airlines used the hangar as a repair facility.

Today the hangar is home to a history of flight from the likes of the Martin Glider to fighter jets like Top Gun. The Martin Glider is unique to our area as Canton native William H. Martin built it in 1908. It was one of the first mono-wing designs in aviation and its first flight was on January 12, 1909. His wife Alumina weighed less than he so she was the glider's first pilot. Want to know what powered this glider to soar for more than 100 flights? It is all there at the museum.

The MAPS Air Museum is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating people about the history of aviation and its impact upon society. Working with restoring, preserving, and exhibiting the museum displays the impact of aviation on the culture of man. The restoration building is quite interesting and it takes a lot of work and time to restore these priceless pieces of our American history.

If you are a collector, the gift shop will place special orders from a list of vendors and catalogues. The MAPS Museum Gift Shop is the largest such facility in northern Ohio with a huge selection of aviation related books, videos, models, pre-built die-cast, and apparel.