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Los Angeles (dpa) - The airplane used by late U.S. president Ronald Reagan is to go on permanent public display next week at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in an exhibition to be opened by President George W. Bush.
The Air Force One pavilion will feature the Boeing 707 that Reagan flew on 211 missions. It was also used by six other presidents, including Bush, who flew in the aircraft in 2001.
The pavilion will include the reconstruction of a pub from Ballyporeen, Ireland, that the president visited in 1984. The so- called Ronald Reagan pub will include two well-worn bars and the wallpaper from the original bar.
The almost 9,000 square metre building will allow the public to walk through the plane which has been preserved exactly as Reagan used it. The plane will be tilted slightly upwards to simulate its position at take off and will be held aloft by three huge concrete piers on which its landing gear will rest, allowing visitors to walk underneath the aircraft.
The opening of the pavilion on Reagan's former ranch in southern California's Simi Valley represents the most ambitious addition to the Ronald Reagan Memorial Library since its opening in 1991.
Reagan's funeral service was held there last year.
Copyright 2005 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH
