The National Park Service is trying to get UNESCO World Heritage status for Huffman Prairie in Greene County, the place where Wilbur and Orville Wright proved the practicality of powered flight. A part of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, the Huffman Prairie Flying Field already has status as a nationally important site. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1990 and is one of the four sites that form the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park. The park service operates an interpretive center at the Wright Memorial, which overlooks the flying field. Wright-Patterson has adjusted its fences and other security to allow public access. The prairie itself is a valuable part Ohio's environmental heritage as one of its last remaining prairies.

So what's the holdup? The Air Force has to support the idea.

What's not to support? The Air Force has its roots deep, deep in Huffman Prairie. Henry H. "Hap" Arnold, an architect of American Air Power and the Air Force's only five-star general, learned to fly on Huffman Prairie from the Wright brothers themselves.

The base belongs to the Air Force Materiel Command. Headquarters AFMC sits across the airfield from Huffman Prairie. This should be a no-brainer for AFMC's leadership.

What do you think?