If this airplane could talk; JMU X-Labs students bring history to life

About a year ago, the First Air Force One Foundation posed a unique challenge to the students in JMU’s X-Labs program: Come up with a plan to make First Air Force One, President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s official plane from 1953 to 1954, accessible to the public.  

The students recently provided their proposal to foundation board members at Dynamic Aviation, located in Bridgewater, Virginia, where First Air Force One, also known as Columbine II, is currently undergoing renovations. The goal is to restore the plane to an “as new” condition and then fly the plane across the country as a reminder of its role in history. 

Opening remarks were provided by Michael Stoltzfus, president and CEO of Dynamic Aviation and a current JMU Board of Visitors member. Stoltzfus said he wanted the students to have a “profound experience” and look back on the project and know they were part of a project of historical significance.  

Prior to the presentation, Dr. Connie Frigo, the executive director of X-Labs, introduced JMU faculty members from across campus who provided their expertise to the project and guided the students throughout the program. JMU’s history department and the School of Media Arts and Design contributed to the project with faculty and student support. Additionally, a design-thinking facilitator from JMU and the president of a northern Virginia marketing agency were part of the teaching team.  

“Everything in X-Labs begins with a problem statement that requires multiple disciplines to come together to solve a problem,” said Frigo. 

The students took turns presenting their proposal, which featured a slide deck with recommended tactics for each component to the problem’s solution: audiences, narratives, channels and applications. 

One of the narratives was to personify and humanize the plane with a goal to turn the plane into a personified piece of technology rather than just “a whole bunch of nuts and bolts.” 

“President Eisenhower had an incredible impact on the country as a whole and was known as the transportation president. This is the plane that flew him to his Atoms for Peace speech, the Bermuda Conference, as well as Korea,” said Josh Dornak, one of the X-Labs student presenters. 

The students also wanted to emphasize the people who worked for the Eisenhower family, including John and Delores Moaney. John Moaney served as Eisenhower’s personal valet, and Delores served as the Eisenhowers’ cook and housekeeper. 

At the conclusion of the presentation, the students took questions from the board members, which gave the students the opportunity to elaborate on some of their proposals, including how to best fund the project, potential partnerships and collaborations, and social media and digital tactics.  

Stoltzfus provided concluding remarks and congratulated the students on their presentation. 

“You are now part of the story,” said Stoltzfus.