Family of the late Lt. Col. Don T. Gonzales gifts his plane to NCC Aviation Technology program
Nashua, N.H. (August 21, 2025 ) – On August 7, 2025, an American Aviation Yankee two-seater airplane was loaded on a flatbed truck in Rochester and driven 60 miles to a hangar at Boire Field in Nashua to start a new life in Nashua Community College’s (NCC) FAA-approved Aviation Technology program.
The plane was purchased in the mid-1980s by a trio of Air Force pilots: Retired Lt. Col. Don Gonzales, Retired Maj. Ed McNeil and Retired Col. Robert Phoenix. Gonzales and Phoenix met at Carswell Air Force Base (AFB) in Texas and then became friends with McNeil when they served at Pease AFB – known now as Pease Air National Guard Base – in Portsmouth. Over the years, the plane played an important role in the lives of all three families, transporting family and friends all over the country, providing a vehicle for flying lessons, and enabling Tom Phoenix, son of Robert, to create stunning aerial photographs. A photo that he took of Kennebunkport from the plane was even displayed in the White House during the presidency of George H.W. Bush.
Retired Lt. Col. Don Gonzales was the last surviving owner before he passed away in December 2024. Gonzales was an aeronautics instructor at Hawthorne College in Antrim, N.H. before the college closed in 1988. According to his children – Bob Gonzales, Melissa Gonzales, Michelle Gonzales Verdi, and Dr. Roxanne Gonzales – education was incredibly important to their father. They 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.
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. According to James Mitchell, the Aviation Technology program coordinator at NCC and a veteran who served at Pease, an operating aircraft is essential to provide training opportunities that an Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) student mechanic needs to attain a certificate or license.
NCC’s Aviation students assisted with partial disassembly of the airplane prior to it taking route to Nashua. The plane will be used both in the hangar and on the airfield to teach students and is less than 10 minutes from NCC.
“We are grateful for the generous donation made by the Gonzales family, with support from the McNeil 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.
NCC is the only college in the state that offers an FAA-approved Aviation Technology program. Starting this fall, NCC is launching a new FAA approved program in air traffic control. For more information, please visit NashuaCC.edu.
