Foley, Ala. – (OBA) – A World War II plane was welcomed into Foley this past Thursday by a crowd, including a WWII veteran.

The 1941 N3N biplane will be a part of an exhibit at the Foley Railroad Museum. In fact, Mayor Ralph Hellmich was on board when the plane touched down at the Foley Municipal Airport. He said it is the first of several war planes the city plans to add to its collection.

WWII veteran George Logsdon was there when the plane landed. Logsdon, who joined the U.S. Navy at only 17, said he is thankful the city is honoring the work done years ago at Barin Field.

"I think it's good for people to do things like that because they want to know what we did in the war and I just joined the Navy to help win a war," Logsdon said.

Barin Field was used to train aviation cadets from 1942 through 1947 and from 1953 through 1958. Larry Mattiello, director of aviation at Loomis Company, said it is very likely the plane Foley purchased was used at Barin Field.

"According to the information we have gathered, this plane was in Pensacola," Mattiello said. "We are going to go through the paperwork and logs, but I would buy dinner for everyone here if it weren't here at some point."

Mattiello was tasked with finding a plane. He said he found it on Facebook Marketplace. It had been restored and is in near-perfect condition.

In 1943, as pilots trained for war in Foley, Logsdon tried to join the military at 16. He was denied but a year later, he was able to follow in his father's footsteps and join.

"I wanted to help get that war over because my dad was in World War I," he said. "He served over in Europe and he didn't want to talk about it, but me, I just wanted to get in there and help win the war."

During his training, Logsdon said he excelled in swimming and shooting.

"I was a good expert rifleman because I was born and raised in the Allegheny Mountains, Pennsylvania, and we hunted there," he remembered.

Logsdon served in the Philippines to help with recovery after Allied forces liberated the island after a three-year occupation by the Japanese.

"They said, 'Be careful because some of those Japs ran and hid in the jungle and they will shoot you if they get a chance," Logsdon said. "So, we had to be careful. But then, I don't know, it was crazy. I was on an LCT [landing craft tank], and we were cleaning up after they messed it up."

"I was doing everything I could just to help the Philippine Islands get back to normal," he continued. "And so we, the United States, got ready to bring one shipload from the South Pacific back home because we had already run the Japs clear back to Japan."

The National Park Service designated the city as an American World War II Heritage City. Mayor Ralph Hellmich said the city wants to have planes on exhibit to honor military veterans.

"We've always honored our veterans in our military," Hellmich said. "So, what we want to do is honor Barin Field and all the people that have trained here."

Foley gifted Logsdon with a key to the city.

Hellmich said the city plans to collect more plans that trained in Foley, including T-28 Trojan, SNJ Texan and T-34.