Walter J . Boyne Walter J . Boyne ( born 1929 ) is a retired United States Air Force officer , combat veteran , aviation historian , and author of more than 50 books and over 1 , 000 magazine articles . He is a former director of the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution and is currently Chairman of the National Aeronautic Association . Early life . Walter Boyne grew up the son of a poor family in East Saint Louis , Illinois during the time of the Great Depression . He attended Holy Angels grade school where he first discovered an interest in writing . His love of flying was encouraged by dime novels of the day such as Robert J . Hogan ' s " G - 8 and His Battle Aces " that depicted " America ' s World War I Flying Spy " engaged in air - to - air combat . He decided at this young age that he would become a pilot for the Air Force and focused his efforts to achieve that goal . Boyne earned a number of scholarships that enabled him to attend Washington University in St . Louis . Military career . In May 1951 , after two years at the university , Boyne entered the Aviation Cadet program where he learned a profound respect for the enlisted grades of the military . Boyne started flight school in November 1951 and became the first of his class to solo . On December 19 , 1952 he was awarded his wings as a second lieutenant in the United States Air Force . While stationed at Castle Air Force Base in central California , Boyne flew the B - 50 Superfortress as a member of the 330th Bomb Squadron of the 93rd Bomb Wing . Although Boyne had relatively few hours in bombers , he received orders in May 1954 to McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita , Kansas for training in the B - 47 Stratojet which he flew for several years . In 1957 , he returned to college and graduated with honors from the University of California , Berkeley with a degree in business administration . Boyne continued his education and earned a Master from the University of Pittsburgh . Boyne returned to active flying as a nuclear test pilot with the 4925th Nuclear Test Group at Kirtland Air Force Base near Albuquerque , New Mexico . While at Kirtland , he became an aircraft commander in the B - 47 and B - 52 Stratofortress . Boyne served during the Vietnam War as commander of the 635th Services Squadron at U - Tapao Royal Thai Air Base where he flew 120 combat hours as a C - 47 Skytrain instructor pilot . Colonel Boyne retired from the Air Force on June 1 , 1974 with more than 5 , 000 hours in various aircraft . Author and historian . Boyne began his writing career in 1962 while still in the Air Force . Tired of the repetitive aviation articles of the time , he chose to write about lesser - known people and airplanes starting with an article on the Curtiss P - 36 . Boyne ' s article was accepted by a magazine in Britain which paid him $ 29 — a moment of special pride for the new author . The P - 36 aircraft now resides in the National Museum of the United States Air Force near Dayton , Ohio . A very prolific writer , Boyne is the author of over fifty books and over one thousand magazine articles . National Air and Space Museum career . In 1974 , after retiring from the Air Force , Boyne joined the National Air and Space Museum as curator of air transport . Prior to the opening of the museum in 1976 , he was assigned responsibility for introducing all aircraft into their exhibits . Boyne was responsible for transforming the museum ' s dilapidated Silver Hill facility into the world ' s premier restoration facility . He also organized the effort to rename the facility in honor of Paul E . Garber , a curator of the National Air Museum — the predecessor to the National Air and Space Museum . Boyne was named acting director of the museum in 1982 , and director on February 10 , 1983 . Boyne performed a number of notable actions during his tenure as museum director including : He resigned as director of the museum in 1986 . Later years . In 1998 , Boyne co - founded the cable television channel , Wingspan — the Air and Space Channel , that was purchased by the Discovery Channel a year later . Boyne lives in Ashburn , Virginia . His first wife , the former Jeanne Quigley died in 2007 . They have four children , Molly , Katie , Bill and Peggy , five grandchildren , J . D . , Grace , Walter , Charlotte and Charles . Boyne remarried on January 10 , 2008 to Terezia Takacs . Boyne is Chairman of the Board of the National Aeronautic Association , the oldest aviation organization in the United States . Honors . In 1984 , Boyne was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Aerospace Sciences from Salem College , West Virginia . In 1987 , the National Aeronautic Association ( NAA ) awarded him the Cliff Henderson Trophy for lifetime achievement in aviation . In 1998 , the NAA named him an Elder Statesman of Aviation that honors outstanding Americans , age 60 and above , that have made contributions of significant value to aeronautics . Also in 1998 , the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale honored Boyne with the Paul Tissandier Diploma awarded to those who have served the cause of Aviation in general and Sporting Aviation in particular . In 2005 , the Aircraft Industries Association presented Boyne with the Lauren D . Lyman Award for outstanding achievement in aviation public relations . In 2007 , he was enshrined in the National Aviation Hall of Fame .