On August 7, 2025, an airplane traveled down the highway from Rochester, New Hampshire enroute to a hangar at Boire Field in Nashua. The attention-grabbing journey was the beginning of a new life for the plane in Nashua Community College’s (NCC) Aviation Technology program.
The two-seater American Aviation Yankee plane was generously donated to NCC by the family of Retired Lt. Col. Don T. Gonzales. A decorated Air Force pilot, Gonzales had flown B-52 and FB-111A fighter bombers and served as a Strategic Air Command pilot flight instructor. After retiring from the Air Force, Gonzales bought the Yankee plane in the mid-1980s with fellow Air Force pilots Retired Maj. Ed MacNeil and Retired Col. Robert Phoenix. Don and Robert met at Carswell AFB in Texas where they were the first group of FB-111A pilots to be trained on that aircraft. They later met Ed at Pease Air Force Base – known now as Pease Air National Guard Base – in Portsmouth. The three bonded over a shared love of flying and zest for life.
Gonzales, MacNeil and Phoenix had the skills to expertly maneuver a plane that was known as a bit of a hot rod by flying professionals. Nicknamed “Blue Bomber,” the plane transported family and friends all over the country, provided a vehicle for at least one family member to earn a pilot’s license, and enabled Tom Phoenix, son of Robert, to do aerial photography . A photo that Tom took of Kennebunkport from the plane was even displayed in the White House during the presidency of George H.W. Bush.
Gonzales was the last surviving owner of the Blue Bomber before he passed away in December 2024. After their father’s death, his children – Bob Gonzales, Melissa Gonzales, Michelle Gonzales Verdi, and Dr. Roxanne Gonzales – searched for a good home for the plane.
Gonzales was a professor of aerodynamics and airport management at Hawthorne College in Antrim, N.H. before it closed in 1988. His children sought to preserve his legacy by donating the plane for educational purposes.
“We knew that NCC had an aviation technology program, so it seemed like a good fit. I think all three of the owners would have been ecstatic to know that their legacy continues as their plane is used to teach aviation maintenance to a new generation,” said Dr. Gonzales. The family worked closely with The Foundation for NH Community Colleges to facilitate this legacy gift from the family.
The MacNeil and Phoenix families were equally delighted when they heard the plane had been donated to NCC. “It is great that the plane has been donated to a place that can help students and give the plane additional life,” said Tim Phoenix. “I can’t think of anything better. It is awesome,” agreed his brother, Tom.
The Blue Bomber now has a new home in a hangar at Nashua Airport’s Boire Field. James Mitchell, the Aviation Technology program coordinator at NCC and an Air Force veteran who served at Pease, is looking forward to using the plane both in the hangar and on the field to teach students. “An operating aircraft is essential to providing training opportunities that an Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) student mechanic needs to attain a certificate or license,” he said.
NCC’s Aviation Technology program features an intensive, 21-month curriculum covering a wide range of topics including reciprocating engines, turbines, fuel systems, propellers, ignition, electrical systems and hydraulic systems. NCC is the only college in New Hampshire that offers an FAA-approved aviation technology program.
“We are grateful for the generous donation made by the Gonzales family, with support from the MacNeil and Phoenix families, to give the plane that brought so much joy to their families a second life to train the aviation technologists of the future,” said Dr. James Keane, president of Nashua Community College.
For more information about NCC’s Aviation Technology program and its new FAA-approved program in air traffic control launching in Fall 2025, please visit nashuacc.edu.
