Commemorative Air Force - Spirit of Tulsa Squadron

Name: Commemorative Air Force - Spirit of Tulsa Squadron
Address: 801 E 91st Street, Tulsa, OK, 74132, US
Telephone: (918) 828-4046
Price range: $$

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Commemorative Air Force - Spirit of Tulsa Squadron

The Spirit of Tulsa Squadron is part of the Commemorative Air Force – a national nonprofit organization devoted to preserving vintage military aircraft.

In 1988 eight people with an interest in preserving aviation history began the process to form The Spirit of Tulsa Squadron. On November 17, 1990, the newest unit of the national Commemorative Air Force was officially sanctioned. From these small beginnings grew a vibrant organization more than 75 members strong. The Spirit of Tulsa Squadron’s initial restoration project has been complete for seve

ral years now. The historically accurate rebuild of a Fairchild PT-19 trainer, a primary trainer (PT) for pilots during WWII, literally began as a bunch of parts on a hanger floor and every step of the way was an adventure. As a tribute to the thousands of man hours working on innumerable bits and pieces, as well as the research that went into the restoration of our PT-19, we have affectionately named her “Some Assembly Required”.

03/17/2026

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

03/05/2026

POV: You finally took a ride in the PT-19 😃

That time of the year is almost here! This is flying like you can't experience elsewhere. Come take a ride in our beautifully maintained Fairchild PT-19 open cockpit, WWII vintage aircraft. Our riders will tell you there's no better way to take in the springtime air. Rides are offered Saturdays from Tulsa Riverside Airport and throughout the year at various fly-ins across the state. Tickets are on sale on our website caftulsa.org ; don't miss out this year!

Want us at your fly-in event? We still have open weekends this year - please reach out! We'd love to help add to your event experience.

03/02/2026

Winter Maintenance Underway!

Our winter maintenance program is wrapping up on our Fairchild PT-19 aircraft as we prepare for this upcoming flying season. Every corner of our aircraft is meticulously gone through to ensure safe and reliable operation for rides & fly-ins in the coming year. It takes a team to keep 'em flying!

02/27/2026

📣 CAF NATIONAL CONFERENCE THIS WEEKEND!

Calling all members - we do have last-minute openings for anyone who wishes to attend this years' 2026 CAF National Conference in Dallas. Our delegates will spend the weekend learning and leading in skill workshops including operations, marketing, maintenance, CAF history, and many others. Delegates always enjoy the camaraderie, and will come back to report on their findings at our next Squadron meeting.

02/23/2026

📣 CALLING FOR MODELERS 📣

Our aircraft get plenty of attention, but how about the models? Our classroom is dotted with dozens of model aircraft and ships across the shelves, walls, and ceiling - each ready to tell a unique story from the masters of the sky. As a dying artform, we are surely blessed to have such talented modelers such as Mark & Wes whose attention to detail make these sets come alive.

Interested in learning how to tell your own story with model kits? Come on out and join us - you'll fit right in!

02/21/2026

Come on out - our monthly squadron meeting is already here!
Tomorrow, Saturday February 21st, the squadron will meet at 0830 in our hangar at the Tulsa Tech - Riverside Campus to discuss current and upcoming events. As winter maintenance on the aircraft begins to wrap up we are excited for what is in store this upcoming season.

Between the National CAF Conference, maintenance, fly-ins, the aircraft rides program, seminars, and our community service projects, there is always space for more excited volunteers to get involved.

See you soon!

02/03/2026

This is what we do. Proudly show part of the history of aviation in Oklahoma to assist in the war effort.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BjK7YrwZY/

01/16/2026

Just because its cold out doesn't mean there isn't plenty of work to be done! Winter maintenance on our PT-19 "Silverstreak" is fully underway. Last weekend volunteers performed an engine run, compression test, and began removing inspection panels. It takes a team effort to keep 'em flying! Thank you to Mark B, Mark P, Bob F, Bob P, and Doug S. for all of their excellent work.

12/23/2025

You can support the Fairchild PT-19 "Silver Streak" during our campaign at https://fundrazr.com/PT19_Tulsa

As a thank you, here is the craziest PT-19 story we could find, as evidenced by the photo and the fact that it was done ON PURPOSE.

Yes, someone flew an OPEN COCKPIT Fairchild PT-19 through a building just for the views. 😳

On 6 May 1962, stunt pilot Cliff Winters stunned a crowd of about 20,000 spectators by intentionally crashing a WWII-era Fairchild PT-19 trainer straight into a shed constructed onsite, and then casually walking away from the wreckage. The dramatic stunt took place at the Riverside Grand Prix Racetrack in California as the headline act of the National Air Circus.

In fact, Winters had performed the same smash-up stunt the day before with an identical plane, wrecking two PT-19s in two days, and cheerfully noted he would salvage usable parts from the debris for his future “crash flights.” The crowd-pleasing act of ramming a plane into a building became Winters’ signature spectacle.

Winters had a background as colorful as his stunts. He first leapt from airplanes as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. After military service, he learned to fly on the G.I. Bill. By the late 1950s, Winters was performing as a wing walker and parachute jumper with a traveling flying circus.

In the early 1960s, Winters had begun doing deliberate airplane crashes as a Hollywood stunt pilot. Sensing the crowd appeal of a live crash, he adapted the idea into a traveling act. His first attempts were not without hiccups: during a show in Chino, California, Winters cut the engine power just a moment too late, so that when his plane plowed through the mock building, it still had enough momentum to hit the ground and bounce violently. The collision tore off the propeller and flipped the aircraft upside-down about 50–75 feet in the air before it slammed down inverted. Winters emerged shaken but uninjured, realizing he had come dangerously close to a fatal mistake.

Ever the problem-solver, Winters refined the crash act to make it safer for himself while keeping the drama for the audience. He made two key changes. First, he placed a sturdy log or timber beam along the base of the target structure so that, on impact, it would shear off the airplane’s landing gear to prevent bouncing. Second, he throttled back the engine earlier on the final approach. With the power off and landing gear gone, the plane would skid belly-first across the ground after punching through the building, rather than nosing over. These innovations proved effective, and Winters turned a seemingly suicidal crash into a repeatable and relatively controlled stunt.

Sadly, Cliff Winters’ daring career met a tragic end only a few months after the Riverside show. On Labor Day weekend of 1962, he was performing his fiery crash act at the National Air Show in Chino, California, this time upping the ante for an even more spectacular finish. Piloting a specially modified Ryan PT-22 trainer (outfitted as a biplane for stunt work), Winters flew through a barricade of flames and debris and then attempted to execute an unprecedented double snap roll as he emerged from the crash. It was a flourish he had originally deemed impossible due to lack of speed, but in the heat of the moment, he tried it anyway, only to find he was right in the first place. The low-flying plane stalled mid-roll, and the aircraft plummeted straight into the ground in front of about 15,000 horrified spectators. Winters was killed on impact. He was just 33 years old.

12/06/2025

📣CALLING ALL MEMBERS📣
Just a friendly reminder that Unit Officer Elections are at this coming meeting on December 13th! See you all at 0800!

11/27/2025

We're thankful this season for all of the hard work from each of our volunteers, our wonderful hosts at Tulsa Tech , and the tremendous support from the community this past year! Here's to you and your family from the Spirit of Tulsa this Thanksgiving Day! 🦃🍂

11/12/2025

For veterans Day, our CAF Spirit Of Tulsa Squadron drove out to GAR Cemetery in Miami Ok to give honors to the British flyers who died in training during WW2.
There was a donation of the new Union Jack and RAF Ensign flags for the event.

Address

801 E 91st Street
Tulsa, OK
74132

Opening Hours

8am - 12pm

Telephone

(918) 828-4046

Website

http://www.caftulsa.org/

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