The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum will join the nation in celebrating Hispanic Heritage month, which celebrates the ancestry of the more than 35 million Americans of Hispanic descent and begins on September 15. 

In conjunction with Hispanic Heritage Month, Dan Hagedorn, adjunct curator for Latin American Aviation, will be conducting a Curator's Choice talk on the introduction of the jet age in Latin America, specifically featuring the Lockheed F-80. This free15-minute talk starts at noon on Wednesday, September 29 at the Museum seal in the Milestones of Flight gallery on the first floor. 

Hagedorn is also available at any time for media interviews on the contributions of Hispanics to aviation.

Hagedorn spent 27 years in the United States Armed Forces and served many years in Latin America before joining the Archives Division at the National Air and Space Museum.  He is the author of nine books and more than 200 journal articles dealing with various aspects of aviation history in Latin America.  He was the curator for the National Air and Space Museum's first Latin American exhibition, ¡Arriba! The History of Flight in Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.