HONOLULU — Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor held a dedication ceremony Sunday to mark the completion of a $650,000 restoration of the historic Aerological Tower, which served as flight control center on Dec. 7, 1941.
The newly restored tower, along with the Operations Building and the Air Traffic Control tower, are referred to as the Ford Island Control Tower.
Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor began a multi-phased project to restore this entire complex. Restoration of the iconic red and white Air Traffic Control Center and 158-foot steel water tank tower were completed in 2011.
Restoration work on the Air Traffic Control Center and Aerological Tower were significant and included repairing, refinishing and in some cases, removing and replacing steel components throughout both structures. The steel window frames and doors, as well as the window handles and doorknobs, are original materials from 1941.
Funding was provided by the State of Hawaii GIA grant and a historic preservation grant from the Freeman Foundation in cooperation with Historic Hawai’i Foundation.
Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor officials also announced a major grant from the Emil Buehler Perpetual Trust that will enable the museum to restore the Operations Building, developing both a Research Library and Curatorial Center.
Pacific Aviation Museum expects to complete this phase of the restoration by the end of 2017. As part of the dedication, the museum unveiled the plans and renderings for what will become the Emil Buehler Trust Library and Archive.
The Emil Buehler Trust was established in 1984 to perpetuate the memory of Emil Buehler and his commitment to aviation science and technology.
Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor is located on Historic Ford Island, where the first bombs fell during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941. Visitors to the museum can see remnants from that day of infamy, including the 158-foot tall, red and white iconic Ford Island Control Tower, Hangars 37 and 79, and bullet holes in Hangar 79.