NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Ninety-Nines, an international women's pilot group, will be flying in next month to paint a rose compass on the tarmac of Harriman & West Airport. 

 

Airport Manager Bill Greenwald told the Airport Commission last week that volunteers with the Ninety-Nines group are set to start painting on Saturday, May 20.

 

"That is going to happen and, hopefully, we can get people to help us out," he said. "We are going to get the crew out there and the Ninety-Nines are in the process of organizing the paint." 

 

The Ninety-Nines were scheduled to paint the compass last year but it never came to be.

 

Greenwald said he had to re-mark the compass so it was visible.  

 

"They were basically invisible but I scribed them back in," he said. "As far as we know, we are good to go and looking for volunteers to lend a hand."

 

The nonprofit Ninety-Nines association dates to 1929 and is named for its 99 charter members. Aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart was its first president and it admits women who are licensed or who have their student pilot certificates.

 

Air-making — the painting of airport names or compass roses — has become a traditional aspect of the association.

 

Air-marking dates from the 1930s when few airplanes had radios and pilots often relied on landmarks to navigate. Originally a project of NASA's predecessor, air-marking was promoted by some of the Ninety-Nines founders. After federal funding ended, Blanche Noyes, a former president of the association and head of the air marking division of the Civil Aeronautics Administration, continued to advocate for the tradition using local donations and grants for the paint. The group provides the tools and volunteers.

 

A compass rose is an four- or eight-pointed star that shows directional orientations: north, south, east, west. According to the group, a compass rose takes about two days to layout and paint. The Connecticut 99 chapter created one with a diameter of 75 feet at Meridian-Markham Airport three years ago. 

 

Greenwald said the rain date will be May 21 and that Hot Tomatoes may attend with its portable wood-fired pizza oven to provide refreshments. 

 

In other business, Chairman Jeff Naughton said there will be an airport project update next month.

 

"There be one next month and Phase 2 of the apron project will be completed," he said. "They just have to run through the punch list." 

 

Although largely complete, the project was put on hold during the winter.