Aviation history topic of Nevada State Museum lecture in Carson City

From barnstorming pilots of the post-World War I era — Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart among them — to World War II Army Air Corps training to the present-day Reno National Championship Air Races, aviation has been a mainstay in Nevada.

Today, there is a wide variety of aviation happening every day in the Silver State — from gliders above the Carson Valley, to the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds above Las Vegas, to the next generation of fighters at Top Gun above Fallon to who knows what above Area 51.

Kurt Haukohl, the Nevada Department of Transportation’s state aviation manager, knows the past, present and future of Nevada aviation, and it’s a presentation he’ll share at the Nevada State Museum on Aug. 22 as the featured speaker of the monthly Frances Humphrey Lecture Series.

His presentation, “General Aviation in Nevada and the Nevada Airport Update,” starts at 6:30 p.m. at the museum’s South Gallery, 600 N. Carson St., Carson City. The cost is $8 for adults, free for museum members and youngsters 17 and younger.

Haukohl has been a pilot for 50 years and has more than 9,900 hours of flight time. He has been working in the aviation industry since he was 19 and has degrees from Florida Institute of Technology in Air Commerce and Flight Technology.

In addition to working as a pilot, flight instructor and aerobatic competitor, he has also worked for the Federal Aviation Administration, California Department of Transportation and as a private consultant. He is on the Board of the National Association of State Aviation Officials and is the director of the Western Pacific Region.

Doors for the lecture open at 6 p.m. Seating is limited. Go to http://nvculture.org/nevadastatemuseumcarsoncity/events/ to make reservations.