By Annie Rowe

SDN Staff Writer

Don’t ask John Rogotzke why Snyder and Scurry County need an air museum, unless you have the time to be educated. He will be happy to explain the intricacies of the history of aviation for as long as it takes.

“The airplanes and mobile equipment that we currently have on display are a true slice of history. And the displays that we have planned will eventually knock the socks off anyone who visits,” said Rogotzke.

Rogotzke, along with a handful of volunteers, has transformed the old hangar at Scurry County Airpo rt into a useful center for meeting the needs of the Scurry County Pilots Association and the Caprock Chapter of the Texas Air Museum.

The Texas Air Museum began with a 12x16-foot wooden building with plastic models. It has grown to include five hangers in different locations throughout the state with eight outdoor restored and displayed military aircraft.

“The Scurry County Airport is the finest airport of its size in the state. It’s a gateway for Snyder that will bring lots of visitors. It’s very important that we develop this to its full potential,” he said.

The airport’s hangar is undergoing an extensive remodel that includes a new meeting room and temporary quarters designed to serve as accommodations for visiting corporate pilots.

“We believe that by making such a facility available it will draw more business from out-of-town,” said Rogotzke, adding that the remodeling work has been the result of numerous volunteer hours.

“The work that has been done on the hangar has been 100 percent volunteer. We’ve had over 650 hours logged, and we still have about 300 more hours to finish the project.”

Seeing the dream through to fruition is the main goal for Rogotzke and museum member Bruce Stewart.

“We need volunteers to help out,” said Rogotzke “It’s as simple as that. Everything that had been done so far has been from a group who cares about the museum. We need anyone interested in the project to help carry it through.”

“And we want anyone interested in volunteering to know that any amount of time that can be donated is great. If they want to work for an hour and then look at the displays for an hour, that’s fine with us,” added Stewart.

Donations to the Texas Air Museum are tax deductible and Rogotske is looking to fill a list of items for the museum.

“Most of the items we have in the museum have been donated. We’ve been given some display cases that will need to be sanded and refinished. We need more of those display cases and the physical labor to help get all this in order.”

The necessity of completing the hangar and museum is the Fourth Annual Fly-In on June 19 sponsored by the Scurry County Pilots Association, Texas Air Museum and the Snyder Chamber of Commerce. The public is invited to attend the event, which will include breakfast, entertainment and hundreds of different types of modern and antique aircraft.

“The fly-in will be fun for everyone, not just pilots. There will be so much to see and plenty of food and entertainment,” said Rogotzke.

Those interested in becoming a volunteer at the Texas Air Museum are asked to contact Rogotzke at 573-2069 or Stewart at 573-8019.

“It’s very rewarding to be a part of this,” Stewart said. “You really get out of it what you put into it.”