Museum to host F-105 dedication ceremony Published Oct. 1, 2007 By Nick DeCicco 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Master Sgt. Terry Juran has battled wind, rain, sun and birds for months to get the F-105 at Travis' Jimmy Doolittle Air and Space Museum ready for its big day. Yes, birds! The animals have run afoul of the outdoor museum's aircraft collection, nesting in every nook, hole and cranny they can find on the planes. "Sergeant Juran runs a rookery most of the time," joked Dr. Gary Leiser, museum director. Sergeant Juran said chasing off the birds is an ongoing cycle. "You'll clear out a nest and about a week later, somebody will have rebuilt a new one, if not the original tenant," he said. Dr. Leiser and Sergeant Juran are hoping the only birds present for the F-105's Oct. 20 dedication ceremony will be the aircraft sitting on the pavement in front of the museum. On that day, at 10:30 a.m., the plane Sergeant Juran has spent the last several months painting and preparing will be unveiled. One side of the plane - a washed brown and forest green camouflaged fighter - will bear the name of a man who once piloted it, the late Maj. Gen. James C. Wahleithner. General Wahleithner, a past Retired Officer's Association president and a former commander of the 349th Air Mobility Wing, died in July 2002 in a plane crash. The general amassed more than 10,000 flying hours in 14 different aircraft, including the F-105. Restoring the F-105 has been a months-long process that will culminate in the ceremony. One of General Wahleithner's sons, Maj. Jay Wahleithner, 70th Air Refueling Squadron, is scheduled to speak. Also, Wahleithner family members will put his name on the side of the plane by the cockpit. Earlier this summer, General Wahleithner's children and grandchildren spent the day prepping the Thunderchief for painting during a family picnic. "This just kind of seemed like a unique situation" Sergeant Juran said. "He has 11 kids. At least half of them have been in the Air Force and three of them have been stationed at Travis, so there's quite a Wahleithner legacy here." For more information, call the museum at 424-5605 or visit www.travisairmuseum.org.