Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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You'd think there would be apple trees growing around Appleton, but that's not the case. One of the founders of Appleton, Minnesota was Addison Phelps from Appleton, Wisconsin and brought the name with him. There are no apple orchards in Wisconsin's city either which was named for Samuel Appleton who apparently never went west of the Hudson River, but his son-in-law was Amos Lawerence who founded Lawerence University in Appleton with financial assistance from the father-in-law. Appleton, Minneso...
New Richmond Regional Airport has 268 based aircraft housed in 119 hangars making it number one in Wisconsin for both categories. For perspective, 210 aircraft are based at the airport in second place. Nine of New Richmond’s aircraft are jets that make good use of the 5500-foot-long primary runway. It has a full parallel taxiway for better ground operations. The secondary runway is turf, there’s a helipad and seaplane base. Aviation gas and jet fuel are available as self-service or del...
La Pointe was a trading post established by the French in 1693 on an island in Lake Superior. In the late 18th century, the American Fur Company took over and appointed Michel Cadotte the manager. Mr. Cadotte was married to the daughter of an Ojibwa leader. The chief's name was White Crane and the daughter Madeleine. Mrs. Cadotte most likely had an Ojibwa name, but the location of La Pointe became known as Madeline Island. Madeline or Madeleine is a French name derived from the Greek Magdalene....
Seven miles from end to end, Park Point in Duluth is the world's longest freshwater sand bar. In 1871 a ship channel was excavated on the northwest end making Park Point an island, after which ferry service was used for access. A gondola that carried goods and people across the channel replaced the ferry then the famous lift bridge was opened in 1930. The Duluth lift bridge is the world's fastest, being able to rise the required 138 feet in just 55 seconds. At the other end of the sand bar, the...
At the Federal Aviation Administration, they have a long term love affair with acronyms. TORA is not the shortened version of a movie about the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, nor is TODA a slightly dyslexic attempt at the same thing. The two are FAA acronyms which along with LDA define useable runway lengths. They mean "Take Off Runway Available," "Take Off Distance Available," and "Landing Distance Available." On a normal (fully useable) runway the numbers are all the same, but if there are...
"Han-gaerd" is a Dutch word meaning an enclosure near a house and was derived from the Latin "hanghart" (a place to shoe horses). The French morphed that into "hangar" meaning "shed." Etymology might be fascinating, but early in aviation history a hangar became a place to store aircraft and that is what it means now in either English or French. In 1903 the Wright Brothers stored their aircraft in what was definitely a shed that they built at Kitty Hawk. It was 16 feet wide and 44 feet long with...
Bill Powell was born in Alabama in 1804. His ancestors included Africans, Creeks, Muscogee, and Scots. His Creek mother called him Asi-yahola. When advancing "settlement" forced the Creeks and Muscogee to leave Alabama, Asi-yahola's family joined the Seminoles in Florida which was a Spanish colony until 1819. In the 1830s the United States government tried to move the Seminoles to the "Indian Territory," but led by Asi-yahola they resisted. He was treacherously captured during a peace...
South St. Paul Municipal Airport is busy! It's a reliever for Minneapolis/St. Paul International and home to over 220 aircraft. A bunch of successful aviation businesses are based there including Wipaire, the world's premier manufacturer of aircraft floats who are also well known for aircraft modifications and avionics. Another notable tenant is the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) with a fleet of vintage aircraft dating back to the second World War. There's only one runway at South St. Paul and...
Over the centuries many different types of pavements have been invented by humans to make travel easier and keep things moving regardless of the weather. Beginning around 300 BC the Romans built first-class roads, many of which are still in use. The Empire's engineers designed highways that were crowned for drainage, had curbing, and were often paved with cut rock or cobble stones. Later European civilizations lacked the Roman ingenuity and sometimes used corduroy for paving. Not old pants, but...
Internet shopping is the way to go in the 21st century. Point, click and buy means you never have to leave home to spend your money. The ancestor of "online" stores may have started in 1884 when the railroad station agent in North Redwood Falls found he was stuck with a shipment of watches the local jeweler claimed to have never ordered. Seeing an opportunity, the agent used the U.S. Mail to offer them for sale then shipped them the same way. The "North" city and Redwood Falls merged in 1996,...
Charles Lindbergh was an environmentalist. After his many accomplishments in aviation, he became an enthusiastic steward of the planet. In 1969 the proposed Voyagers National Park had his attention and Mr. Lindbergh traveled to International Falls to see for himself. He called Einarson's Flying Service to rent an aircraft. Francis Einarson took the request and said, "Who is this?" Charles Lindbergh was the reply, to which Einarson said, "Yeah, and I'm Jimmy Doolittle." That got sorted out OK, bu...
Much of the wisdom imparted by the Federal Aviation Administration is contained in publications called "Advisory Circulars" or ACs. Both thorough and interesting, they cover a variety of subjects including how to build just about everything on an airport. The "Airport Series" start with 150 and the one that addresses airport lighting is 150/5340-30. Using the term "advisory" is not really accurate. Just try building something on a public airport that doesn't conform to the appropriate AC and...
In 1929 the city of Duluth purchased 640 acres to build an airport. It opened in 1930 with two, 2,650-foot-long turf runways. Scheduled airline service to Duluth started in 1940. After the beginning of World War II, three paved runways were constructed in the classic "triangle" of that era. Each was 4,000 feet long. Runways 9/27 and 3/21 were extended to 5,700 feet in 1945. Runway 9/27 was later extended twice, reaching the current length of 10,151 feet in 1956. Runway 13/31 was closed in 1973...
When runways were invented, they were mostly grass, at least in Minnesota. A strip of land was graded and rolled until it was fairly smooth and flat, then grass was planted and a turf runway came into existence. Not much engineering was involved and the quality was pretty variable. Winsted Municipal Airport had a turf runway, but the subsoil was rather poor and the turf surface would get rutted and have a "washboard" effect. The drainage needed some work and the lighting system became badly out...
There are two Two Harbors. One is an unincorporated village on Catalina Island, the other is a major city on the north shore of Lake Superior. Catalina Island is an enclave of the rich, famous and those who service their whims. California's Two Harbors is primarily for pleasure craft. Minnesota's Two Harbors has some yachts, but is mostly a working port where freighters are loaded with ore from the Iron Range. Catalina Island Airport is mostly used to bring in perishable supplies that are in too...
Carlton County is a great place no matter what you like. There's plenty of public land for outdoor recreation including the spectacular Jay Cook State Park. Less strenuous recreation is available at a casino/hotel/restaurant complex. Unusual tourist attractions include the only gas station designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in Cloquet and world's largest agate in Moose Lake. The aforementioned cities are the county's biggest and are served by two general aviation airports with all the facilities...
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...
Swedes are famous for being persistent. That's a trait that comes in handy with airports and revolutions. Emigrants from Sweden were the earliest settlers around Mora, Minnesota. Folks there are proud of their heritage. Downtown has a large statue of a "Dalecarlian" horse and other flavors of the "old country." Mora Municipal Airport was established right after World War II replacing a "flying field" at a different location. At first there was a single north/south turf runway. In 1956 a second t...
Downtown Moorhead is having a renaissance. It's a welcoming place featuring some great artwork. The Ace Hardware Store on Main has added to the ambiance by sponsoring a mural of Florence Klingensmith. The Moorhead native was one of 99 women aviators who banded together to promote aviation for the female gender of the human species. Not surprisingly, the organization is called the "Ninety-Nines." They started in 1929 with Amelia Earhart as the first president. Among her claims to fame, Klingensmi...
When the telegraph put the Pony Express out of business, Morse Code was the medium for transmitting electronic messages. Later it was used by ship's radio operators and then by aircraft. Until the early 1950s, a radio operator and telegraph key flew on many international flights. Amateur Radio (or Ham) was the last stronghold of Morse Code and Ham operators were required to be proficient as recently as 2002. Aviation is the vestigial user of Morse Code where navigation aids still broadcast their...
Fertile Municipal Airport is built on the shore of one of the Earth's largest lakes. Unfortunately, the lake went away a few millennia ago. Lake Agassiz was formed by melting glaciers and the famous Sand Hills around Fertile were once the beach. That bit of geological history means the immediate neighborhood belies the name. Mostly oak savanna and prairie, the soil is not good for growing crops. The Sand Hills do provide unique recreational activities and a spectacular natural area called the...
Independent flight schools had their "golden age" in the 1960s and 70s when there were four training operations at Crystal and the sky all-around was never still. Two of those operations also had busy aircraft charter services. There were some colorful characters too, including Lee Gilligan, who owned Crystal-Shamrock Airways. Shamrock was a Cessna Pilot Center and one of the last operators to offer passenger service in the DC-3. In the 21st century, most flight training transitioned to large...
Many places have cold weather, but in International Falls it can be spectacular. Citizens of International Falls and Koochiching County embrace the climate, not just tolerate it. Winter gets cold, but summer is comfortably warm. Whatever the season, this area offers some of the best outdoor recreation in North America. Those who live there love it, and lots of people visit for a taste. The best way to get there is by flying to the "Falls International Airport," aka INL. The airport is a joint...
When Orville stepped off the Wright Flyer on Dec. 17, 1903, the first thing he said was, "Where's the bathroom?" Well, maybe not. But once flights got longer toilets became a high priority after landing. When flight plans and IFR clearances were invented, a telephone became the second thing pilots needed. Back in the "old days" rural airports often had an "out house" and a phone booth to fill the need. If phone booths are a mystery to you, think "Tardis." As General Aviation evolved, what...
