WASHINGTON, DC.-The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum announced today a gift of $15 million from D. Travis and Anne Engen. This gift will be used for phase two of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center to build the "Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar" and create an endowed fund to support future renovation of the facility.

The restoration hangar is planned for a new wing to be added beside the existing aviation and space hangars of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. It is designed to provide a modern, environmentally controlled work space for the restoration, preservation and treatment of aircraft and spacecraft. The facility will be glass-enclosed, allowing visitors to view the aircraft being restored.

"We are grateful for the Engen family's generous gift, which will help fulfill an important part of the National Air and Space Museum's mission to commemorate, educate and inspire visitors by preserving and displaying aeronautical and space flight artifacts," museum director Gen. J.R. "Jack" Dailey said. "The unique design of the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar will give our visitors the opportunity to see aircraft restoration live as it happens. This vital part of the museum's work is not often seen by the general public."

D. Travis Engen is the retired president and chief executive officer of Alcan Inc., a global aluminum, aluminum-recycling, and packaging company. He and his wife, Anne, have been strong supporters of the National Air and Space Museum and contributed to construction of the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Mary Baker Engen, who died in 2006, is the mother of D. Travis Engen and was the wife of the late Vice Admiral Donald D. Engen (U.S. Navy), former director of the National Air and Space Museum. She was dedicated to realizing her husband's dream of completing the center and worked tirelessly to help make it a reality. Following his death in 1999, she became a member of the National Air and Space Museum's National Board. She remained a passionate and committed member of the board until her death.

The National Air and Space Museum building on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., is located at Sixth Street and Independence Avenue S.W. The museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center—home to a number of historic commercial airplanes, including a Concorde, the Boeing Model 307 Stratoliner and the "Dash 80" original prototype for the Boeing 707—is located in Chantilly, Va., near Washington Dulles International Airport. Both facilities are open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Closed Dec. 25) Admission is free, but there is a $12 fee for daily parking at the Udvar-Hazy Center.