The press release:

SANTA ANA, Calif. - As part of John Wayne Airport's current Vi Smith Concourse Gallery exhibition, one historic and three modern hang gliders have been installed above the baggage carousels, visible to passengers and visitors in the Thomas F. Riley Terminal.

The exhibit, "Orange County: Birthplace of Modern Hang Gliding" also features photography and video in display cases across from Gates 1-4 and 11-14 celebrating the graceful sport of hang gliding, which has grown in only 38 years from its duct-tape-and-bamboo beginnings into a high-tech sport popular around the world.

John Heiney and Dave Freund flying a close formation near Lake Elsinore, CA.

The Wills Wing Falcon on display at John Wayne Airport was designed in 1994 and has been the most popular training glider for the past 15 years. In 2006, a Falcon was flown 205 miles in Texas, earning it a world distance record for a single surface hang glider. [Actually a T2. Nice to get this recognition.]

Hang gliding was born in Orange County on May 23, 1971, when a group of flight enthusiasts gathered with home-made flying devices to celebrate the 123rd birthday of Otto Lilienthal, a German flight pioneer. Using only the ocean breezes of Newport, modern hang gliding took wing.

Shortly thereafter, brothers Bob and Chris Wills of Orange County designed and built the first "Wills Wing" hang glider. In 1973 they launched their own business with the same name that has become the largest hang glider manufacturing company in the world.

The exhibition, on display through May 15th, is guest curated by Owen Morse (www.passingzone.com), an avid hang glider pilot. "As a professional juggler, I have a great appreciation for how things fly through the air! For me, nothing is more beautiful to watch than the path of a modern hang glider carving through the sky. I'm thrilled to share how beautiful modern hang gliders are in both form, and function," said Morse.

More information can be found at www.willswing.com and by visiting John Wayne Airport’s Web site at www.ocair.com.

The direct link to all the images that are a part of the exhibit: http://www.ocair.com/terminal/artexhibits.htm. Contributions from Jeff O'Brien, Jeff Shapiro, and John Heiney.