EAA AVIATION CENTER, OSHKOSH, Wisconsin — (June 29, 2015) — Ford Motor Company is once again supporting the Experimental Aircraft Association’s youth aviation programs by unveiling and donating for auction a one-of-a-kind Mustang on July 23 during the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in.
The Apollo Edition Mustang is a specially designed and built 2015 Ford Mustang that is the premier item available during the live auction at EAA’s Gathering of Eagles gala, which supports the organization’s year-round youth aviation programs. Ford is the exclusive automobile sponsor of EAA and EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the annual event that is July 20-26 at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh. The event draws 10,000 aircraft and an attendance of 500,000 to Oshkosh each year.
“Ford has helped EAA build unmatched pathways for young people to discover the world of flight through its support of the Gathering of Eagles, our youth programs, and AirVenture,” said Jack Pelton, EAA chairman of the board. “With its eighth Mustang donation inspired by aviation, Ford continues to excite with its specialty vehicles, which reflects the depth of Ford’s commitment to EAA, its members, and the future of flight.”
The unique Mustang to be auctioned at Oshkosh draws its design cues from NASA’s Apollo program that successfully sent and returned men to the moon. Ford Design Manager Melvin Betancourt led the design and engineering teams that developed this unique car.
“The Ford Apollo Edition Mustang salutes man’s greatest technological achievement, with the ingenuity, precision, and power that defined the spirit of American innovation,” said Edsel B. Ford II, a member of the Ford Board of Directors. “Inspired by the Apollo program, Ford Motor Company committed itself to including exhilarating power, cutting-edge technology, and extraordinary craftsmanship in this automobile, which will support the next generation of pilots in EAA’s aviation education programs for young people.”
EAA’s Gathering of Eagles is held annually at the EAA AirVenture Museum, drawing more than 1,000 aviation enthusiasts who support the aviators, engineers, and flight professionals of tomorrow. The event has drawn such personalities as actors Harrison Ford, John Travolta and Morgan Freeman, sports luminaries Arnold Palmer and Jack Roush, and aviation legends such as astronauts Jim Lovell and Gene Cernan.
