Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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This Piper JC3-65 Cub registered to Wally's Flyers, Inc. of St. Paul, Minnesota, participated in the Oct. 30 fly-in pancake breakfast hosted by EAA Chapter 745. Benson's Airport is located between White Bear Lake and Hugo....
One of the highlights of the year (ranking next to AirVenture at Oshkosh) is the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame Banquet, which inducts new members annually. The COVID-19 pandemic forced a three-time rescheduling of the event, which was conducted on Saturday, Oct. 30, at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Bloomington. Almost 500 people were in attendance at the banquet. I had a great time networking with aviation contacts, contributing writers, and making new industry friends, as well as reestablishing...
Happy Holidays...Happy Holidays...May the Merry Bells Keep Ringing...Happy Holidays to you! In the spirit of the words sung by Andy Williams, we wish our fellow Minnesota Aviators a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! By the time you are reading this you are likely well on your way to pushing the limits on your gross weight (after your Thanksgiving celebrations), and are contemplating weight and balance charts for your aircraft! Yikes! Tis the season! I happen to be acquainted with Santa...
Little Falls/Morrison County-Lindbergh Field is exactly what a General Aviation facility ought to be. Runway 13/31 is 4,000 feet long with all modern lighting systems and the customary RNAV approaches. A well-appointed Arrival Departure Building is open 24/7 and fueling is available on the same schedule. Rental cars and taxis provide ground transportation. After landing, the drive out of the airport is pretty cool. The entrance road is a tree-lined boulevard with a grass median. The icing on...
Each year, the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame (MAHOF) inductee selection committee meets in June to review nomination submissions and to select the following year's inductees. Selection includes evaluation of a candidate's significant aviation contributions to Minnesota, the area of the state the individual represents, and other criteria involving career and professional contributions. Next April's banquet will honor the MAHOF 2022 inductees and return the organization to its regular banquet...
One of the great things about visiting Anoka County-Blaine Airport (KANE) is you never know what is hidden behind a given set of hangar doors. It could be a Cessna 152, or something exotic like a YAK-18 or an Aero Vodochody L-29. You might even meet a Minnesota aviation legend like Don Rott. On a cool October day, I had the great pleasure to sit down with Don and reminisce. Before our meeting I did not know him, but after I had, I was a richer man for our conversation, after getting a glimpse...
"And now ladies and gentlemen, from your right, keep your eyes on the landing lights and the wing tip smoke generators. Cameras ready! Let's rock and roll with Commander Curt Brown and the vortex demo! This is Sawbones!" Longtime readers of the Minnesota Flyer know that since 2009, I've crewed on and written about a Hawker Sea Fury named Sawbones that races at Reno. Courtesy of Dr. Robin Crandall, I've been privileged to participate in and cover what is called the "World's Fastest Motor Sport."...
There was a time when the diagnosis of diabetes was the prelude to a short life. Then insulin came along in 1922, which gave diabetic patients a reprieve from the immediate effects of a deficiency of that vital hormone. However, as time passed it become apparent that longstanding diabetes, if not well controlled, caused degeneration of the eyes, kidneys, heart and blood vessels. Also, not all diabetics could control their blood sugars well. Episodes of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) would cause unconsciousness and brain damage if prolonged....
As long as I've been flying I've always enjoyed having the opportunity to fly new planes and experience new places. Matter of fact, one of my favorite services to provide as a professional pilot is ferrying aircraft. When the opportunity came up this fall to reposition a 2019 Kitfox Series 7 from Chandler, Arizona, (KCHD) to my home airport of Chandler Field, Alexandria, Minnesota, (KAXN) I couldn't pass it up. This trip was my third long-distance delivery of 2021, with trips to New Hampshire...
Regular Minnesota Flyer readers may recall a promise to provide updates on the saga of a 1943 Boeing Stearman, previously owned by Ray Johnson. Johnson had sold his beloved biplane to Paramount Productions and it departed Buffalo into a cold morning sky in March 2021, initially arriving in Florida but ultimately touching down in the United Kingdom as part of an upcoming movie production. (See "Buffalo-Based Boeing Stearman Leaves State" April 2021 issue.) While not a condition of the sale, the...
With the new ADS-B mandate taking effect last year, many people have recently upgraded their aircraft to include ADS-B Out. This meets the requirement but may not be the absolute best outcome when trying to increase your safety. As with many things, aiming for the minimum often leaves valuable resources on the table. This summer I did a few cross-country flights around Minnesota. There was a lot of smoke and haze, and the visibility was terrible. It’s still easily VFR but not great visibility and adds a layer of complexity to spotting t...
The de Havilland company got into the jet business with the Goblin powered Vampire. Initially called the Spider Crab, the prototype first flew on 20 September 1943. Too late for service in WWII, 2,928 Vampires were built in the UK, India, Italy, Switzerland, Australia, and France. The need to improve the breed resulted in the Venom in 1949. Using the more powerful Ghost turbojet, thinner wings with a slight leading edge sweep, and wing tip tanks, the prototype first flew on 2 September 1949....
As everyone knows, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought a whirlwind of new experiences for most people, at work and at home. MnDOT Aeronautics is also no stranger to new tasks. Over the past year, the Airport Development section of Aeronautics has been busy distributing new airport funding that resulted largely from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. To give a little background, MnDOT’s Airport Development section administers state and federal funds for many different types of projects at Minnesota’s public air...
It’s 5 a.m., and you’re beginning to hear the birds calling in the beautiful day as you sit outdoors sipping your morning cup of Joe. You’re looking ahead to the 7:15 a.m. tee time with your other flying friends at the city of Buffalo – Wild Marsh Golf Club. The evening before, after cleaning your clubs and making sure you have enough balls and tees for the day’s outing, you watch the weather news and it’s going to be a perfect 75-degree day, and no wind predicted. Sweet. When you arrive at the golf course, your friends are already on the putti...
In March of 2020 my family and I took a vacation to Mexico. Upon arriving at the airport, I wondered if I was making a big mistake. At the time I wasn’t worried about shortages of meat or paper products. What was troubling me was how this mystery virus might impact our return flight. It turns out that we arrived back in the United States about a week before the airline ceased operations to our destination. The definition of the word “trips” was about to change. As we entered the pandemic, the definition of trips had become more about climbing a...
As aviators, we know flying can be a highly rewarding activity. The sense of accomplishment which results from a well-executed flight is hard to beat. However, flying can also be a high-risk activity. Weather, terrain, aircraft unfamiliarity, pilot experience and many other factors all contribute to the overall risk picture. Do you have a tool which you use to help determine risk level prior to flying? A Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) is an essential item with which all pilots should be familiar, and is a required part of Safety Management...
