Perhaps it would hurt less to those who bought tickets if they thought of them as donations to an intended-to-be good cause.
mmm, I think I'm with the tough crowd on this one. An aircraft was built on the back of donations and future ticket sales. The aircraft is built and it is parked somewhere, so who owns it now? The Bank? AirVenture Australia? Has it been sold to repay debt? If those questions were answered, I wouldn't give two hoots about the money 'donated' but..........