CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A junk removal company working at a Flour Bluff demolition site discovered a piece of military history that could have ended up in a landfill.
Bulletproof Dumpster Rentals was clearing debris when worker Matt Garza came across a portion of a Navy helicopter blade. Instead of discarding it or selling it, Garza donated it to the USS Lexington Museum.
"He had that great intuition to reach out to us and I'm glad he did," USS Lexington Executive Director Steve Banta said.
Banta said the blade's serial numbers confirmed its origin.
"These serial numbers actually designated from an H-34, which is a Sikorsky model," Banta said.
The H-34 was a helicopter used for rescues during pilot training operations.
"So when the Lexington was out in the Gulf doing training operations all the pilots around here would go out and practice landing on the ship. There was always a helicopter airborne in case of a mishap so they could do search and rescue," Banta said.
The blade likely comes from one of the helicopters that supported the Lexington roughly 60 years ago.
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Steve Banta explains the rare Navy helicopter blade found at demolition site
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"In the 60's the H-34 was the helicopter that flew out of Pensacola and supported the Lexington in the Gulf," Banta said.
The blade has been cut down to about a quarter of its original size — and Banta believes that was intentional.
"You'd have to have a pretty big room for a full blade. Somebody, I think, had this cut so they could display it on a bulkhead, on a wall somewhere," Banta said.
Banta believes the blade once belonged to a veteran stationed at the nearby naval base who kept it as memorabilia.
"And so this is likely connected to the Navy version of the helicopter because of the Navy base that was here," Banta said.
Most donations to the museum come from veterans and their families — not demolition sites — making this discovery especially unusual.
"But for somebody to just stumble upon something that could've gotten thrown away," Banta said.
Banta said he is grateful Garza recognized what he had found.
"Anybody else might not have recognized what it was and just scrapped it," Banta said.
The blade will be saved for a future helicopter exhibit at the museum. Banta said the museum continues to grow its collection and add new exhibits.
"You know, most people say 'Oh yeah I went there 20 years ago in 5th grade when I had a field trip.' Let me tell you it's changed there's new stuff. We have new exhibits," Banta said.
For more information on how you can donate or support the USS Lexington Museum, you can visit their website.
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