PRESCOTT — The John W. Kalusa Miniature Aircraft Collection is a wonderful assortment of 5,829 model aircraft, all done to an exact scale of one-eighteenth of an inch to one foot. Each model is delicately painted, right down to the detailed markings characteristic of the actual aircraft. This required a steady hand because many of the planes have wingspans of less than two inches.

John Kalusa started building the models in 1936 when he was a mere 14 years old. Eventually, he created all sorts of flying devices, from biplanes to jets, from bombers to hot air balloons. After his death in 2003, his family donated the collection to the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University here, and it is now on display in the university library. That same year, the work was selected as the largest collection of handmade airplanes in the world by the Guinness Book of World Records.

The university is located at 3700 Willow Creek Road. For more information, call 928-777-3811.