SAN DIEGO -- The Midway Museum welcomed a major addition to its display of historic planes and other exhibits Tuesday.

The L-19, also known as a Bird Dog, is a special aircraft that dates back to the end of the Vietnam War and is linked to the USS Midway.

When the South Vietnamese capitol of Saigon fell in 1975, the USS Midway played a pivotal role in evacuating thousands of refugees trying to flee ahead of the North Vietnamese Army.

"They were leaving their country, they had nothing and they were frightened," said Vern Jumper, now a docent on the Midway Museum but who at the time was in charge of all the aircraft coming to and from the carrier during the evacuation.

There was one plane however that wasn't expected.

Jumper said, "All of a sudden, among all the helicopters was this L-19, what we called a Bird Dog, a small observation plane."

The plane, flown by a South Vietnamese pilot signaled he had his family on board and wanted to land. The pilot's wife and five small children were on board.

A replica of that plane is now a new exhibit on the Midway with a reunion of Vietnamese refugees and Midway sailors slated for next month.