Groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for future Skyhawk jet installation at O.C. fairgrounds

The OC Fair & Event Center will break ground Thursday on the eventual new home of a Vietnam War-era jet.

The A-4 Skyhawk, which is being moved from the Santa Ana Civic Center to make way for new county buildings, is expected to arrive in Costa Mesa by the end of September and touch down outside the fairgrounds’ Heroes Hall museum in time for a Veterans Day dedication ceremony.

Transferring and developing a new base for the jet — including artificial turf, benches and a paved plaza where the plane will rest on a pedestal — will cost about $700,000. The Orange County Board of Supervisors will chip in $206,000 for the cause.

The plane will remain on loan to the county from the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Fla.

The groundbreaking ceremony is open to the public and will take place at 11 a.m. Thursday. The museum is located next to Centennial Farm on the fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive.