RAF Texas Liaison Jeremy Harris organized volunteers, and 22 showed up to help, including RAF Texas Ambassadors Steve Maus, Chuck Howard and Mike Hergenrather; and RAF Oklahoma Liaison Steve Thompson. The weekend project consisted of removing and palleting 15,800 bricks from the floor. A vapor barrier and concrete slab will later be poured; eventually each brick will be cleaned and re-positioned. Calvert also plans to replace the 18 original six-foot high windows. New trusses have been ordered, and the building will be re-sided entirely in the spirit of the original hangar.
RAF VOLUNTEERS BEGIN TO RESTORE HISTORIC RANGER AIRFIELD HANGAR
RAF Texas volunteers and Ranger Airfield Foundation volunteers helped begin restoration of the historic 1928 Ranger Airfield hangar on March 28. “A Wright biplane landed here at the field in 1911, and people have been using it ever since,” Ranger Airfield Foundation Founder Jared Calvert said. He noted that Amelia Earhart landed there in a Pitcairn Auto Gyro. Richard Bach, Pancho Barnes, and General Patton also landed at the field. It’s the oldest continuously used turf field in Texas.
Ranger Airfield, F23 hosts an airshow the first week in October – seeing up to 300 airplanes. It is hoped that this hangar will be ready in order to welcome the airshow dinner attendees. Calvert says the 1918 Curtiss Jenny, the Waco, a donated Cessna Airmaster, and the 1928 Travel Air will be displayed on the restored brick floor.
“Ranger Airfield is an impressive place with a rich aviation history, and Jared, with his family and friends, has done an amazing job taking the torch from previous generations to keep it moving forward and improving,” Harris said.
The nonprofit Ranger Airfield Foundation has just assumed ownership of the airfield from the city of Ranger. The foundation also operates a museum on the field. Both will remain open a minimum of 90 days a year.
Harris expressed appreciation for time well spent with RAF and Ranger Airfield Foundation volunteers.
"The camaraderie is impressive. We had ages ranging from people in their 20s, and our oldest volunteer was 90 years old doing some good old-fashioned manual labor,” Harris said. “Plenty of smiles, laughter, and jokes to go around, and everyone had a sense of accomplishment at the end of a long day.”
He added, “Thanks to all of those that attended, and hopefully I'll see you at the next event soon!"
For more information about Ranger, visit the Airfield Guide.
Submitted March 30, 2026
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