The first moments in Edmonton’s aviation history were immortalized Friday as volunteers painted murals on dugouts facing the City Centre Airport.

The two murals were a partnership between the Capital City Clean Up program, the Kingsway Business Association and the Edmonton Seniors Slow Pitch Association to fight graffiti that plagues the park as well as pay homage to Edmonton’s history, said Karon Kosof, executive director of the Kingsway Business Association.

“It’s an important part of history and I don’t think our history is celebrated nearly enough,” Kosof said.

Volunteers were on hand to paint murals depicting an Armstrong Witworth Siskin, the first plane to land at Blatchford Field in January 1927 and Grant McConachie’s Fokker, which helped establish airmail service between Whitehorse and Edmonton in 1937.

While Edmonton artist Kris Friesen drew the mural, the painting was done by 22 ESSPA and other community volunteers using a paint-by-numbers system.

“It involves the entire area (this way); it’s a way to get people in the community involved,” said Friesen.

ESSPA and the Kingsway Business Association hope to extend the mural work to other dugouts to depict aviation milestones in the 1970s and 1980s as well as modern day jets.