VERO BEACH — A ribbon cutting ceremony next Friday will honor a local World War II pilot, according to a Vero Beach Regional Airport news release.
The ceremony will be from 9:30 a.m. to about 10:30 a.m. August 18 at the airport terminal lobby, 3400 Cherokee Drive, north of 20th Street and west of U.S. 1. It will honor the legacy of the airport and celebrate the late Lt. John Carney with a historical display, the release states.
The mayor of Vero Beach, Laura Moss, will join John Carney’s wife, Ms. Alma Carney, as she officially cuts the ribbon. The public is invited and refreshments will be served.
The display is artifacts that are a time capsule of Lt. John Carney’s experience as a pilot trainee at Vero Beach Naval Air Station and his experience during World War II and the Korean War, the release states. The Indian River County Historical Society presented the artifacts to the airport staff.
Ms. Carney agreed to allow the airport and historical society to preserve John Carney’s flight gear and mementos in the airport’s main terminal building for all to see.
“It’s as if he simply took off his combat flight gear, put it away, and never looked at it again,” said Carlos Halcomb, Airport Administrative Manager and retired U.S. Air Force Colonel.
Airport director Eric Menger said the airport lobby is the “perfect place for Lt. Carney’s artifacts to be on display, where all our airport guests will be able to enjoy it.”
