IOWA-The city of Ames is hosting a dedication ceremony Saturday for the renaming of its airport. Spokesperson, Susan Gwiasda says the airport is being named in honor of African-American flight pioneer James Herman Banning.
“James Herman Banning was a resident of Ames from 1919 to about 1928. He ended up becoming the first pilot to receive his pilot’s license from the U.S. Department of Commerce,” she says. Gwiasda says it was not an easy route for Denning. “He was denied flight instruction, several different places he tried to receive flight instruction in central Iowa,” Gwiasda says, “but eventually found a flight teacher and went on to become the first African American pilot to fly across the United States.”
Banning attended Iowa State University for one year and named a plane he flew “Miss Ames.” The dedication ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 17th.
