French Valley Air Museum Hosts 'Black Hawk Down' Commander

A museum devoted to restoring and flying Vietnam War era aircraft is bringing veterans to Murrieta, reuniting them through their common bond.

Thursday, former service members and their families turned out to at French Valley Airport for a book signing by retired Army Col. Danny McKnight.

McKnight was the ranger battalion commander in the October 1993 Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia. His character was portrayed by Tom Sizemore in the 2001 blockbuster movie "Black Hawk Down."

He's recently published a book, "Streets of Mogadishu," which is a personal account of the mission and others leading up to it.

"'Black Hawk Down' is just one chapter in my book. This is the rest of the story. We did six missions before that," McKnight said.

"It is important to tell people that there were other things we did."

The book signing was the first real event for the air museum, which relocated to new hangars at the French Valley Airport two years ago.

The move allows the nonprofit organization to give greater public access. From 2001, it occupied hangars at the airport that were too tucked away, said Pat Rodgers, executive director and chief pilot.

"We definitely want the public to know we are here," Rodgers said. "We have worked long and hard to open."

Rodgers, 59, has spent most of his life around military aircraft. At age 15, he worked at an air museum in Ontario. He went on to join the Army and then the Air Force. As a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War, he flew the UH-1 and the OH-58.

He comes from a long line of airmen. His father was retired Air Force and his great-great-great-grandfather, Cmdr. John Rodgers, was the second pilot in the Navy and learned to fly from the Wright brothers.

In 1912, Cal Rodgers, a cousin of his great-great-great-grandfather's, was the first person to fly an airplane from coast to coast. The airplane, a Wright Model B, now sits in the Smithsonian.

Rodgers set his own record when in 2006 he flew a Bell OH-58 Kiowa from San Diego to Savannah, Ga. in the fastest recorded time for that model.

His latest acquisition is the Sikorsky UH-34 Seahorse, one of the oldest and largest military helicopters. Rodgers rescued it from an airplane graveyard in Tucson, Ariz.

"Just about all we have is combat aircraft, so it gives this place a little more meaning," he said.

To further the museum's mission, "Wings of Yesterday Flying Today," Rodgers and a team set out in four of the restored helicopters on a 23-day flight to Washington, D.C.

The documentary "Flying Thunder: Flight to the Vietnam Wall," which will be shown at the Temecula Valley International Film & Music Festival in September, chronicles the trip.

Because it is necessary to stop every 1 1/2 hours to refuel, the crew met many veterans along the way at local airports.

"We called ahead and a lot of the cities were waiting for us. They invited all their veterans to meet us," said Shayne Meder, a retired Air Force master sergeant who does marketing and aircraft maintenance for the museum.

"The helicopter is the healing unit for veterans," Meder said. "A lot of them haven't seen one since Vietnam."

Robin Osborn drove from Alpine to Murrieta to attend the book signing and check out the museum. Her father is retired Navy, and others in her family have served.

She left with three signed copies of McKnight's book. One will serve as a Christmas present for her father.