Clayton News Daily

Special Photo A 16-piece set of Eastern Air Lines first class service china will be sold for $91, during the National Museum of Commercial Aviation’s sidewalk/hangar holiday garage sale on Saturday, Nov. 19. There will be 2,500 new and vintage airline collectibles for sale at discounted prices. 

Some folks have already begun shopping for gifts for Christmas and other holiday celebrations in December.

Aviation enthusiasts and the general public will be able to make a contribution to a good cause, while getting much of their holiday shopping done at the same time, according to Richard Grigg, operations manager at the National Museum of Commercial Aviation.

The museum will host its sidewalk/hangar garage sale on Saturday, Nov. 19, he said.

Museum officials said there will be 2,500 new and vintage airline collectibles for sale at discounted prices, and proceeds will go to the museum.

Vintage items, such as galley serving carts and in-flight serving ware, including china and glassware, will be sold at 50 percent off, he added.

“Collectors often donate items that are already in the museum’s permanent collection, or pieces that don’t fit our [collection’s] plan,” added Chuck Maire, the chairman of the National Museum of Commercial Aviation. “Donors then make those items available for us to sell to raise money for operations and public programming ... The museum does not sell its permanent collection.”

The sale will occur from 9 a.m., to 4 p.m., at the museum at 5442 Frontage Road, Suite 110 in Forest Park, added Grigg. The nearest cross street is Penney Road. He said there will be tables set up on the sidewalk in front of the museum, if weather permits.

The museum has a goal of raising $2,000, to $3,000, he added.

Grigg said individual aviation-related pieces will be available for purchase, including china, glassware, toys and clothing articles. Some items, he said, are original pieces from a variety of airlines, such as Delta Air Lines, Eastern Air Lines, U.S. Airways, American Airlines, Pan American World Airways, Northwest Airlines and ValuJet Airlines, which changed its name to AirTran Airways.

There will be new and used books, with prices ranging from a dollar, to $30, he said. Some of these books will have military aviation and airline-related titles.

New gift items, including books, toys, posters, T-shirts, Christmas cards, ornaments and airplane models will be 25 percent off the regular price.

Airline coach seats –– one of the most popular items –– will be available from $125, to $200, said Grigg. These seats come from airlines, such as America West Airlines and American Eagle network, a regional airline system. He said the seats are usually priced from $200, to $500.

“People buy them for their home theaters, for ‘man-caves’ or just for plain fun ... They are a great conversation piece,” said Grigg.

The operations manager stressed that proceeds from the sale will go to the museum’s general fund. The money will be used to benefit the museum, including its Young Aviators Book Club, a monthly educational program for children, ages 7 to 12.

The museum’s 6,000-square-foot interim headquarters will open in 2013, said Grigg.

For more information, contact the National Museum of Commercial Aviation at (404) 675-9266.