A very special aircraft has been donated to the Kelch Aviation Museum, a 1930 Fleet model 7 biplane!
Lovingly restored and flown by the late Terry Bolger, the Fleet 7 was donated by Terry’s widow, Mary Jeanne Bolger. It was important to the Bolgers that the Fleet wouldn’t disappear into a private collection or be hung from a hangar ceiling as a static display.
The Fleet will be on display at the museum and continue to be flown regularly, a beautiful example of vintage aviation for everyone to enjoy. “This is exactly what he would’ve wanted,” Mary Jeanne Bolger, Terry’s widow, said. The photos on his office wall show what a varied and joyful adventure aviation was to him: pretending to be an airplane with a flock of grade schoolers, sharing open cockpit flights with handicapped folks, and countless cross country flights with old and new friends.
Terry Bolger’s stunning restoration was completed in 1996 and was a common site at flying events across the Midwest. We are thrilled and honored to care for his airplane and share his love of vintage aviation.