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About Our Foundation.

The Tunison Foundation was formed in 2017 by James Lyle and Eric Zipkin to preserve aircraft in tribute to the history of World War II. When it came time to name the Foundation, the team thought of Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator aboard our flagship aircraft, the C-47 Placid Lassie, who was the last remaining member of Lassie's wartime crew.

Though Ed passed in 2016, he was able to rejoin Placid Lassie in Normandy for the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion in 2014.

Since late 2022, we have been based in Poughkeepsie, NY, where we continue to pursue the preservation and operation of Placid Lassie, the restoration of our PBY Catalina, and other projects as resources allow.

Board of Directors

Key People

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