BY JANE BLOODWORTH ROWE
VIRGINIA BEACH — Keegan Chetwynd, director and chief executive officer of the Military Aviation Museum in southern Virginia Beach, recently earned national recognition for his dedication to the preservation of vintage warbirds.
Chetwynd, 35, received the 20 Under 40 Award, which recognizes persons under 40 who have made contributions toward preserving vintage military aircraft, in July during AirVenture, an annual air show that was held this year in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
The award is presented by the National Warbirds Operator Conference, which includes vintage aircraft owners, operators and museum personnel. The award debunks a misconception that only older people are interested in preserving the historic aircraft, Chetwynd said.
“This raises awareness of young people in the industry,” he said.
One of Chetwynd’s major accomplishments is his role in preserving an aircraft that flew on D-Day. The plane, nicknamed “That’s All, Brother,” was slated to be dismantled and its parts used for a different aircraft when Chetwynd became involved. At the time, he was working for the Commemorative Air Force, a non-profit dedicated to preserving and showing old aircraft.
Chetwynd was at the groups’ headquarters in Dallas when he helped spearhead a drive to restore the aircraft, and the group raised $350,000 toward that goal. The plane, a C-47 that led other aircraft over the skies at Normandy, is now flown and displayed at air shows and exhibits.
Chetwynd, who was born in Singapore and raised there and in Dubai, said he’s always been fascinated with aircraft. As a young person, he had a chance to ride on a vintage aircraft at an air show and decided that he wanted to become involved in military aircraft restoration and display.
He has worked in the American Airpower Heritage Museum in Midland, Texas, in addition to his time at Commemorate Aircraft Headquarters. He came to the Military Aviation Museum in 2019, and among his first duties as director was to shut the museum due to the pandemic.
“It was a tough time, but we were able to get through it without laying any staff off,” he said.
The museum, of course, is back now, open daily, and air shows and other special events are scheduled throughout the year. Its annual WarBirds Over the Beach is scheduled in early October.
Public accessibility to the museum’s collection is one of the most pleasing aspects of his job, Chetwynd said.
“This is just one of a handful of museums where you have that availability to the public,” Chetwynd said. “At most museums, it’s limited to just a few air shows.”
He added, “Receiving the 20 Under 40 award is an incredible honor that I share with the dedicated team at the Military Aviation Museum.” And he said he hopes the museum will inspire young people to learn more from the past.
Jay Bess, the museum’s strategic development director, was one of a group of colleagues who nominated Chetwynd for this award. Bess said that he had worked with him for 10 years here and at other museums, and he is impressed with his dedication to preservation.
“I felt that this was a way of recognizing the depth and breath of the work that he’s done,” Bess said.
Chetwynd oversees 30 staff members and 250 volunteers at the museum, which owns 50 aircraft from World Wars I and II and has a maintenance facility and runway.
Learn more about the museum online via militaryaviationmuseum.org.
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