Robert Rice hopes to stir up some memories when he flies over the Kansas University campus in his 63-year-old airplane today.

Rice, flying a C-47, will be part of a two-plane flyover that will be part of the dedication of KU’s Korean War Memorial.

A C-47 gooney

“This is a great opportunity to be part of history,” Rice said. “This thing’s like a time machine. You can start imagining what it was like in World War II, Korea or Vietnam. It’s really special.”

The memorial, along KU’s Memorial Drive, honors the 44 students, alumni, faculty and staff killed during military service during the Korean War. A dedication ceremony at 8:30 a.m. will include remarks from Koreans who donated to the project as well as other representatives from the university and others.

Rice, president of the American Flight Museum in Topeka, which owns the plane, flew over Lawrence on Friday to scout out the area.

The museum’s C-47 was built in 1943 and was in Europe during World War II. Although other C-47s, affectionately nicknamed the “Gooney Bird,” served in Korea and Vietnam, this particular plane was stationed in California during the Korean War and was retired from military service in 1966.

In Korea, the C-47 was used to haul supplies and troops and could be used to transport the injured to hospitals.

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The museum, which bought the plane in 2001, chose to restore it to its Vietnam War status, with two machine guns sticking out the sides.

“This is a dream,” he said of flying the plane. “It’s kind of like flying a sailboat. She’s kind of a grand old lady.”

The other plane, an L-17, is owned by Topeka resident Tim Smith. The L-17, a small, single engine plane built for the civilian market, was in production only between 1946 and 1949 and only about 100 of them were stationed in Korea, Smith said. They were used as scout planes and to ferry light cargo and personnel.

“It’s a real stable airplane,” he said. “It’s real responsive.”

Smith, a telecommunication consultant, said he was glad to volunteer his time to honor the veterans involved.

A C-47 gooney

“I was just barely alive when the Korean War was going on, but I wanted to support our troops,” he said. “Anything I can do to help support commemorating what they did, I’m glad to do.”