MEDIA RELEASE

For Immediate Release:

Hagerstown, Remembering Our Aviation Heritage…..A New Documentary Film
Premier To Take Place on Sep. 18th at Rider Jet Center at Hagerstown Regional Airport

(Hagerstown, MD Sep. 8, 2004) -- The unique and untold story of Hagerstown’s aviation past unfolds in a new documentary film by Vintage Video Productions. With many never-before released images, and an extensive collection of rare local film footage, this documentary is sure to pique the interest of Fairchild and Hagerstown aviation enthusiasts everywhere!

"This new movie chronicles nearly 70 years of aviation manufacturing effects on Hagerstown," says John Seburn, President of Vintage Video. The film begins in 1916 with Giuseppi Bellanca and his design of airplanes for the Maryland Pressed Steel Company located on Pope Avenue. Closure of the company led an employee, Lew Reisner to begin the Reisner Aero Service in 1921, which became the Kreider-Reisner Aircraft Company when local shoe manufacturer Ammon Kreider joined the company in 1925. The two produced the famous Challenger series of airplanes before being purchased by Sherman Fairchild in 1929.

The Great Depression and the Second World War, secured a permanent bond between the community of Hagerstown and Fairchild that would last over five decades. These five decades saw the production of many memorable aircraft such as the F-24, the PT-19 Trainer, the C-82 Packet, and C-119 Flying Boxcar as well as the last great airplane to roll out of the factory in Hagerstown….the A-10 Thunderbolt II, affectionately named the Warthog. Each of these gained for Fairchild recognition and fame, but more importantly formed and molded the people and the places in the community of Hagerstown.

Hagerstown's connection with aviation does not end with manufacturing, but lives on in the commuter airline business that still serves it to this day. The Hagerstown Commuter started by native son Richard (Dick) Henson in 1962 went onto transform the industry, becoming the Allegheny Commuter and then the Henson Piedmont Regional Airline. Additionally, the Hagerstown Regional Airport is named the Richard A. Henson Field.

Dedicated to the preservation of Hagerstown's aviation heritage, this film presents a vital piece of Hagerstown, Maryland's history, and commemorates the hard work and dedication of the many tens of thousands who worked and lived in the aviation industry. The documentary took months to produce, assemble, and edit.

According to John Seburn, "In the spirit of the preservation of our proud aviation heritage, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this film will be donated toward the creation of a transportation history room at the Washington County Free Library, for the purpose of collecting, protecting and making available Hagerstown related aviation documents, books, photographs, and more."

There will be a FREE PREMIER SHOWING on September 18 at 4:30pm at the Rider Jet Center, Hagerstown Regional Airport. For further information on FREE SHOWING ONLY call 301-739-3250 extension 128 or visit: www.marylandmemories.org.

Documentary Film Contact Info: Vintage Video Production c/o John Seburn, 11414 Williamsport Pike, Greencastle, PA 17225. Additional film INFO & to ORDER: Phone: 717-597-9695 Email: john@vintagevideo.com. Or order online at: www.vintagevideo.com. Film Available Mid-October. $29.95 VHS or DVD.

For more information about the Fairchild Reunion event scheduled for Sep. 18th, and the premier of the new aviation documentary, see: http://www.marylandmemories.org/proof/fairchild/index.html.

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