As the former American Airlines 1984-2000 slogan exclaimed, there is “something special in the air” at the Frontiers of Flight Museum 2015 Gala.  This year’s high-flying event will celebrate the past, the present and the exciting future of DFW International Airport and honor its intrepid leader, Sean Donohue, on Saturday, May 16 with the VIP reception starting at 6:30 p.m.

Sam Coats, Vice Chair, DFW International Airport Board, is at the helm as Honorary Chair of the Frontiers of Flight Museum 2015 Gala. Dallas’ premier aviation event celebrates accomplishments in aviation and supports the Museum’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs, reaching more than 10,000 students each year.  Visit: http://www.flightmuseum.com/2015-gala/.

NBC 5 Today Anchor Deborah Ferguson and WBAP Sports Anchor Steve Lamb will lead the crew as the 2015 Gala emcees, ensuring that all have a fun-filled experience.

The evening lifts off with special appearances by the Liberty Jump Team, a WWII military style exhibition parachute group of active duty and veterans that honors veterans of all foreign wars. They will embark on a special ops mission in “Dirty 1/2 Dozen,” a short film produced for the 2015 Gala with cameos by a few familiar local faces and a big surprise at the end. Visit: http://www.flightmuseum.com/dirty-12-dozen/

Joining the crew as the keynote speaker is Amelia Rose Earhart, president of Fly With Amelia Foundation, and the youngest woman to fly around the world in a single engine aircraft.

The Frontiers of Flight Museum 2015 Gala, themed “Global Colors: Past and Present,” will celebrate DFW International Airport’s service to the North Texas community through its global connection to the world and pay tribute to the 2015 recipient of the George E. Haddaway Award, Sean Donohue, CEO of DFW International Airport. Donohue will be recognized for his 28-year career as a leader in the aviation industry and for the significant impact the airport has made to the Dallas-Ft. Worth area since opening in 1974.

Auctioneer Matt Blevins joins Murad Auctions on board with great travel packages including:

• Private plane trip to Fredericksburg to visit the Pacific War Museum
• Trip to Miami for the Dolphins-Cowboys game
• Deer hunting in the Bosque country
• Trip and dinner with Amelia Rose Earhart
• Dinner with Apollo 7 Lunar pilot Walt Cunningham
• Private trip in a P-51C Mustang
• SR-71 "Blackbird" Simulator with SR-71 pilot and instructor Colonel Richard Graham
• Plus the pre-event raffle for a luxurious private jet trip for six in the U.S., Canada or Mexico

Visit: http://www.flightmuseum.com/my-private-jet-trip/

Joining Coats on the Frontiers of Flight Museum 2015 Gala Committee are: Eric Stroud, Hugh McElroy, Cheryl Sutterfield-Jones, Gina Ginsburg, Jess Hall, John Billimek and Heather Dickie. Attire is black tie optional.

Coats is particularly interested in using his role as the 2015 Gala chair to help further the Flight Museum’s mission to support education.  “One of my primary objectives is to work with the Museum in support of its STEM education initiatives that prepare students for opportunities in aviation and space,” says Coats. Some of those initiatives include:

• A series of recently received grants that have allowed the Museum to expand its educational and outreach programs to over 12,000 students and develop and expand the STEM content and leadership programs for young women. 

• Ongoing community sponsorships that support the Museum’s Flight School at Dallas Executive Airport.  “This provides high-quality scientific instruction and introduction to career opportunities in the aviation industry to economically underserved children living in Dallas,” says Coats.

• A successful partnership with Blue Sky Education Foundation and Dallas ISD that introduced a hands-on six-week Science of Flight program last year to fourth and fifth graders in 14 DISD schools.  The program has been expanded to 23 DISD schools this year.

The Museum is a learning laboratory using aviation and space flight to encourage and promote student excellence in STEM education.  In addition, the Museum has over 30 aircraft from the Wright Flyer to the one-of-a-kind Flying Pancake, the Apollo 7 spacecraft, 11 galleries, and over 35,000 historical artifacts on display. The Living History program features the portrayal of prominent personalities in aviation history who present both on-site and in the community. 

Supporters of the 2015 Frontiers of Flight Museum Gala include:

(National $25,000)

• Suzanne and Jan Collmer
• Gena and Dan Hamilton
• Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport

(Regional $10,000)

• Bell Helicopter
• Breitling Energy
• Shackelford, Melton, McKinley & Norton, LLP
• The Alinda Hill Wikert Foundation

(Commuter $5,000)

• Airbus Helicopters
• ALON USA
• American Airlines
• Associated Air Center
• Blue Sky Educational Foundation/Angela and Jim Thompson
• Boeing
• Bracewell & Giuliani
• Burns & McDonnell
• Dallas Love Field
• Dallas Airmotive
• Averille and Stewart Dawson
• Dickie+Associates
• Mary and Bob Dilworth
• Gina Ginsburg
• Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation
• Herbert Minerals, Ltd.
• HMS Host
• Hunt Consolidated
• Jani-King
• OsteoMed
• Purewater Baths
• The Rhodes Group
• SAFRAN Labinal Power Systems
• Signature Flight Support
• Southwest Airlines
• Southwest Airlines Federal Credit Union
• Cheryl Sutterfield-Jones and Ron Jones
• TAC Air
• UPS
• University of Texas at Dallas Special Collections
• Cindy and Tony Weber Foundation

($2,500)

• Pete Huff
• Charles Schandelmeier
• David Seals
• Tucean and David R. Webb, Jr.

(In-Kind Sponsorships)

• Blurry Cowboy Productions
• Commemorative Air Force
• D CEO
• D Magazine
• Dallas Business Journal
• Events by Bill
• Giddy Up Pictures
• Karl Johnson
• David Johnston
• Kelly Productions
• la Madeleine
• MPS Studios
• Liberty Jump Group
• McAlister’s Deli
• NBC 5
• Omaha’s Surplus
• Smash Burger
• Cindy Weber

•Sponsors as of March 31, 2015.

Five sponsorship levels are available. For more information contact: Jess Hall  at (214) 350-3617 or email at hall@flightmuseum.com or visit http://www.flightmuseum.com/2015-gala-sponsorships/. Individual patron tickets are $250 and, based on availability, may be purchased the latter part of April. For more information visit: http://www.flightmuseum.com/2015-gala/.