The Pantagraph from Bloomington, Illinois • Page 1

ill the NFL draft call up some local talent? Spore lie FRIDAY April 24 2G09 CO vvww.pantnKraph.com Bloomington-Normal a JOilOl DM flNWol -Tl. T7V PP. -1 I II I -I 'I iii Femporary plant shutdowns will have big effect on suppliers and states concessions from bondholders and the United Auto Workers READ MORE part suppliers, local businesses and state economies. The Detroit automaker had little choice. GM, surviving on $13.4 billion in federal loans, must steady itself, slash costs and align production levels with the shrunken demand if it wants to live much longer.

The an- By Kimberly S. Johnson ASSOCIATED PRESS DETROIT General Motors' decision to shut down 13 assembly plants for up to 11 weeks this summer will disrupt far more than the lives of nearly 24,000 workers, rippling out to damage That's bad new for Lordstown, Ohio, where GM operates side-by-side assembly and stamping plants, which account for about 70 percent of the village's annual $4 million municipal budget, Mayor Michael Chaffee said. Suppliers and spin-off SEE GM PAGE A12 I Time is running out for Chrysler umn- The decision is expected to Page A12 lead to thousands more layoffs and temporary factory closures nouncement Thursday comes as as GM works out its schedules for GM races the government's June engine, transmission and parts 1 deadline to squeeze deeper stamping factories. Poll: US. optimism growing Obama gets high marks as 100-day milestone nears An icon leaves for bluer skies Prairie Aviation Museum sells historic DC-3 airplane 1 I a hi i lira mm 1ZL "Fra r- i 1 -f- By Mary Ann Ford mfordpantagraph.com BLOOMINGTON The 1942 DC-3 airplane that has been a mainstay at the Prairie Aviation Museum for 25 years has been sold to a Florida aircraft restoration company.

It left for its southward jour -ney Thursday morning. "It was for financial reasons," said Frank Thompson, president of the museum's board of directors. "Prairie Aviation Museum could not continue to keep the airplane flying. It's meant to fly. The more you let it sit, the more problems." Thompson said the museum did not have a permanent hangar so the plane had to sit outside, braving the elements and the birds that routinely built nests in the engine.

The sale was a bittersweet moment for board members and one of the former volunteer pilots. "I'm definitely sorry to see it go," said Bill Thacker, a former volunteer, pilot for the museum. "It's a bittersweet ending to a two-year saga." Thacker logged about 100 hours flying the plane to air The PantagraphSTEVE SMEDLEY Top: Prairie Aviation Museum member Tanya Leahy holds a poster marking the aircraft's flight with Grace Kelly as a passenger in the 1960s. Above: The Prairie Aviation Museum's restored DC-3 takes off for the final time from the Central Illinois Regional Airport on Thursday. Seethe planes On the Web Goodbye, DC-3 Logon for video and more photos from Thursday's final local flight: www.pantagraph.com What: Open cockpit day.

Participants will be able to sit in the cockpits of six of Prairie Aviation Museum's eight remaining aircraft. When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 2. Where: Prairie Aviation Museum, Central Illinois Regional Airport, Bloomington Admission: $5 By Ron Fournier and Trevor Thompson ASSOCIATED PRESS D.C.

Millions of people jobless. Billions of dollars in bailouts. Trillions of dollars in U.S. debt. And yet, for the first time in years, more Americans than not say the country is on the right track.

In a sign that Barack Obama has inspired hopes for a brighter future in the first 100 days of his presidency, an Associated Press -GfK poll shows that 48 percent of Americans believe the United States is headed in the right direction compared with 44 percent who disagree. The "right direction" number is up 8 points since February and a remarkable 31 points since October, the month before Obama's election. Intensely worried about their personal finances and medical SEE POLL PAGE A12 Poll findings Americans are feeling optimistic about the direction their country is headed for the first time since early 2004, according to an Associated Press-Gf poll. The economy continues to dominate all other issues, with 91 percent of respondents saying it is important to them personally. People's belts remain tight, but there are signs that they are feeling more optimistic about the economy's trajectory.

65 percent still say it's difficult for them and their family to get ahead financially these days. 1 85 percent say unemployment is an important issue, with over a third of all respondents reporting that someone in their family has lost a job due to economic conditions in the last six months. I But 51 percent are now confident again that they will have enough money to live comfortably in retirement, up from 44 percent in February. aircraft the condition it was in when the museum purchased it in 1984 to the Federal Aviation Administration SEE DC-3 PAGE A12 it (the DC-3) was a lot more fun to fly," he said. Thacker credited Loren Winkelman and his crew from Loravco Aviation for taking the shows.

The money made from offering rides at the shows helped pay the cost of operation, he said. "I now fly jets for a living but McLean County gets healthier, report finds By Paul Swiech pswiechpantagraph.com BLOOMINGTON McLean County is a healthier place than it was two years ago, according to behavioral risk factor survey results released Thursday. The survey is performed every two years, and McLean County did better than in the past, showing improvement in most categories measured, said Bob Keller, director of the McLean when informed of the survey results. "I think we are healthier and the numbers show it Other survey results included: 65 percent of people age 50 and older had been screened for colon cancer, compared with 60 percent two years ago; 37 percent of people had a flu shot in the previous 12 months, compared with 29.5 percent two years earlier; and 96 percent of people had health care coverage, compared with 90 percent before. County Health Department.

The phone survey of a statistically significant, random sample of county adults was performed from December through February. Among survey results, 16 percent of respondents identified themselves as smokers, compared with 21 percent two years ago, while 84 percent of respondents believe smoking should be prohibited in restaurants, compared with 57 percent two years ago. The drop in numbers indicates a "significant shift" in society's attitude toward smoking, Keller said. The push in 2006 for smoke -free ordinances in Bloomington, Normal and unincorporated McLean County was among reasons for the shift, he said. "I think it's excellent," Dr.

John Krueger, who led the Smoke -Free Bloomington-Normal Coalition in 2006-2007, said FIND INSIDE Warm and breezy Hi 81 Low 61 New laws? Budget trimming Abby D3 Movie D5 Classified C4 Obituaries Comics C3 Opinion A6 Crossword C6 Scoreboard B4 Horoscope C3 Sudoku C6 People are seeing green in their lawns A and taking matters into their own hands. The mother of two slain LeRoy boys continues her fight to change the law governing visitation rights. Money, CI Local, A3 Whose homework? LEB ENTERPRISE! 75 cents It's tempting for parents to-get A I I. Celtics take series lead Boston defeated the Bulls in commanding fashion at home in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead. fl too invoivea in ine nomeworK itT' -t aaoigni ici it3 ui men Today's weather symbol was Bloomington, III.

Copyright 2009 The Pantagraph 5 sections, 68 pages Urf Life, Dl 6 '32685'yOOOI Sports, Bl drawn by Bryce Embery, fifth grade, Stevenson Elementary School, Bloomington. Thursday lottery pick 3 4-7-6 3-5-4 pick 4 3-1-7-2 1-6-2-6 Lotto 17-19-27-28-39 jackpots Lotto $2.5 million Mega Millions $155 million 3 7 UAclosev IP I in li i iHiiiiiiiiliiTiiiiiflrlriiiili'.