Tribute To Ozark Airlines Honors St. Louis Aviation Heritage

By Carmelo Turdo

The Missouri Aviation Historical Society hosted a tribute to Ozark Airlines Saturday at Boeing Hall in the St. Louis Science Center.  The special event was in held instead of the regular monthly meeting, and attracted a large number of former Ozark Airlines employees.  The afternoon event included a variety of Ozark Airlines memorabilia on display, two videos covering the history of the airline, and a panel discussion with retired Ozark Airlines employees.

The Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum brought some of their Ozark Airlines memorabilia for the attendees to examine.

Missouri Aviation Historical Society President Dan O'Hara welcomed everyone and introduced the special guests participating in the program. 

 

Mr. Jerry Castellano, Ozark Airlines Flight Attendant, introduced the film, The Swallow's Tail: The Story of Ozark Airlines, which he produced.  The film was directed by Jim Dreyer of Big Sly Media (he is featured on the panel discussion below).  Also below are some screen shots from the movie.

 

A panel discussion was held following the first film, moderated by Jerry Castellano, featuring (L-R): Jim Dreyer, Director of The Swallow's Tail; Steve Albert, Supervisor of Commissary and Cabin Services; Cliff Day, Marketing Representative/Charter Sales; and Salvadore Christifulli, Director of Commissary and Cabin Services.  Video coverage of the panel discussion will be available from the Missouri Aviation Historical Society in the near future. 

 

Following the panel discussion, during which the participants relayed their experiences and stories from their Ozark Airlines careers, the audience viewed the PBS documentary, Ozark Airlines: The Sky's the Limit.  Former employees of Ozark Airlines also posed for a group photo.

 

The Aero Experience thanks the Missouri Aviation Historical Society for producing such a remarkable event.