The museum has an exciting new way to involve visitors, members, classrooms and more with our diverse helicopter collection. The program is entitled Adopt-A-Copter.

The fun and informative Adopt-A-Copter, slated to launch in mid-September, aims to educate about helicopters and their contributions while offering people a chance to learn more about certain ships. Six of our copters are available for adoption:  the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey; Bell AH-1F Cobra; Bell 204/TH IL Huey; Boeing CH-46E Sea Knight; Hughes 269A/TH 55A Osage, aka “Stubby, the Travelling Helicopter;” and Hughes 369 (OH 6/OH 6A) Cayuse, aka “Cheerful Chopper.”

Each individual Adopt-A-Copter costs $50.00 plus $1.00 per adoption for shipping and handling. It comes with an Official Adoption Kit that contains a Certificate of Adoption, glossy photo with details about the adopted helicopter, interesting facts about helicopters and paper helicopter cut-outs for the adopter’s enjoyment.

The adoption is purely symbolic, and signifies only that a donation has been made to AHMEC, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, for the general support of its activities in rotary wing aviation preservation and education. Adoptive “parents” retain no physical rights to the copters, the facility or anything pertaining to the museum.