The idea for a museum about Delta Air Lines originated with group of retirees who started a campaign in 1990 to find one of Delta's original five purchased-new Douglas DC-3's from the early 1940s. After some searching, the employees struck gold when they found Delta Ship 41, Delta's second DC-3 to carry passengers, in Puerto Rico performing cargo services. The group bought the plane from the cargo airline and flew Ship 41 home to Atlanta. The aircraft restoration project combined with efforts to consolidate historic collections from around the Delta headquarters led to the formation of a non-profit museum, named the Delta Air Transport Heritage Museum, Inc.