Aircraft flown by Neil Armstrong returns after restoration

WAPAKONETA, Ohio – An experimental aircraft flown by astronaut Neil Armstrong has returned to the museum housing it after a renovation.

The rare aircraft has been a fixture at the Armstrong Air and Space Museum in the western Ohio city of Wapakoneta (wah-puh-kuh-NET’-uh), where Armstrong grew up.

The plane known as an F5D Skylancer underwent a makeover for the past several months by Copley, Ohio-based Thomarios, a construction and coatings company that also specializes in historic aircraft renovation.

Both the cockpit and exterior of the plane were restored to the condition it was in when Armstrong flew it as part of a NASA program that set out to build reusable space planes before the manned Mercury flights.

A homecoming event was planned at the museum Thursday.