The Michigan Aerospace Foundation (MAF) is the sister organization of the Yankee Air Museum, and was formed to plan and fund future expansion of the Museum facilities. The Foundation was established under the leadership of Dennis Norton, one of the Museum’s founders and its first president. After the tragic fire in October, 2004, which destroyed the hangar that housed the Museum, the Foundation’s mission took on a new cast: raising the funds to rebuild the Yankee Air Museum.

The Foundation was established in 2001 and incorporated as a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit corporation in the State of Michigan. Its sole function is to raise the funding needed to rebuild the Yankee Air Museum. As such, the Foundation works closely with the officers and staff of the Yankee Air Museum (itself a separate 501 (c) (3) nonprofit corporation) in planning for the new Museum campus.

The 2004 fire was devastating to the members of the Museum, its staff, and officers of the Foundation. But Foundation officials met with architects and Willow Run Airport management on October 14, just ten days after the fire, to begin the rebuilding process. At that time, the architects were given the go-ahead to draw up plans for the construction of a new hangar and several museum buildings. Since that time, the Foundation has devoted itself to fundraising, with considerable success (over $4 million raised to date).

Elsewhere on this Web site, you’ll find the Foundation’s Vision and Mission Statements, its Business Plan, certifications from the Internal Revenue Service and the State of Michigan, as well as other organizational and operational information.

The Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors, with members elected internally by the Board. Current board members are identified here.