Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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Glenn Hovland was a native of Austin, MN. Glenn's aviation interest was sparked at a young age after his first airplane ride in a Piper Cub. In 1941 he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and became a flight cadet; soloing in 1942. He went on to earn his wings and a Commission as a 2nd Lieutenant. He was assigned duties as a flight instructor at Yuma, AZ, Pecos, TX and Lincoln, NE accumulating over 2200 flight hours, After he transitioned out of the of Air Corps in 1945, Hovland embarked on an...
FAIRFAX, MN., Sept. 4, 2019 It's not every day you see large aircraft moving through your city streets, but the construction of a new Des Moines, Iowa, School District training facility led to the ground transfer of several helicopters and airplanes. Since 1943, the Des Moines Aviation Academy operated one of the only three high school aviation programs in the nation, but recently lost its lease at the Des Moines Airport. The program was faced with eliminating the district's FAA-approved...
In July, St. Paul's Holman Field was visited by the beautifully restored B-29 "DOC." The public was able to tour the cockpit and rides were also available during the two day stay. The bomber was discovered in the Mojave desert by Tony Mazzolini in 1987 and taken to Wichita, Kansas. After extensive restoration work, on July 7th, 2016, it flew for the first time since 1956. There are currently only two B-29's flying in the world. The other is "Fifi." For 42 years, until Doc came along, Fifi was...
Unfortunately, we couldn't be there but once again, Ray Pittman came through with some great photos for us from the 2019 Duluth Air Show!...
Milaca Airport became the home of "Sodbusters STOL Competition" Aug. 2-3, 2019. Milaca has one of the nicest grass runways in the state which proved to be an ideal setting for this Short Take Off and Landing event. There were over 75 aircraft that flew in for the event including two helicopters, with 27 experienced pilots in the competition to see who could land and takeoff in the shortest combined distance. Competitors from Alaska, Kansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nevada, South Dakota and other...
These are the charts for the Sodbusters Stol Competition held at Milaca Airport on August 2-3, 2019. Information provided by Robert Heavirland....
Major General Gene Andreotti was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. He took his first airplane ride in 1952 in a J-3 Cub at Holman Field with aviation pioneer Al Brandt. He received his Private License from Ward Holiday at the Lake Elmo Airport. Other ratings followed, including Commercial, Multi Engine and Instrument. He earned a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from the University of Minnesota. He worked briefly for North Central Airlines and later for Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Joining the...
Ray Pittman provided these outstanding photos from the "Wings of the North Air Show" at Flying Cloud Airport, Eden, Mn! Thank you Ray!...
While looking through the archives for a piece to share, I came across this letter regarding Waldo Anderson. Waldo has been a long time subscriber and supporter of the Minnesota Flyer magazine and this was definitely one worth repeating! Well done Mr. Anderson, well done. If there is a story you feel is worth repeating, please send your suggestion to me at verlena@mnflyer.com and I will be happy to consider it for a future issue. V. Jones...
Mitch Oskowski snapped this photo of Scott Granger, a retired Delta pilot who was at Oshkosh 2019, proudly wearing a Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering baseball cap with the Minnesota Flyer logo on the side. Scott is sitting in a DC-3 that he flew over Normandy in June for the anniversary of the D-day landings....
"Mud, mud, glorious mud – Nothing quite like it for cooling the blood..." From "The Hippopotamus Song" by Michael Flanders and Donald Swan More like curdling or boiling the blood. 2019 seemed a reprise of Sloshkosh and the Splash-In from earlier days. Due to heavy rains before the convention, parking autos, RVs, and airplanes proved a challenge and walk times to the gates for the notorious bag check seemed like infinity. In 35 years, I've never parked so far away. Packs of seagulls circled a...
"What I'm most proud of this year is how our volunteers, staff, and the community joined to overcome the challenges resulting from the massive storms that hit the airport and campground just prior to opening day. It took a true team effort to meet the additional demands on time and resources to provide services to our members and visitors." Attendance: Approximately 642,000 – 6.8 percent above of 2018's record total. Comment from Pelton: "EAA members and aviation enthusiasts attended in large n...
Minnesota Flyer reader, Craig M. Rodamaker was recently awarded the top "Gold Level" award from MNDOT Aeronautics for completing their "Fly Minnesota Airports Passport" program. Craig states that "Essentially, I flew into over 130 of the 136 airports in MN and got my "passport" stamped at each, and also visited at least 6 aviation museums in MN and attended more than 6 FAA safely seminars. It took me about 6 years to complete this exercise, and according to Darlene at MNDOT there are only 43...
Isle had a very successful fly in on Sunday, July 14th. The threat of storms held off and the weather was beautiful. We had 45 planes fly in to land on the nicely manicured grass runway. Local friends of the airport were out to enjoy a breakfast of pancakes, eggs, sausage, and drinks. In all, 650 people were served. There were aircraft in from all over mid Minnesota with one flying in from the middle of South Dakota. We had everything from Piper Cubs to Bonanza fly into Isle....
On Saturday June 29th, I was lucky enough to be invited to go flying with my friend, Jay, in his C-206 with amphibious floats. We departed Balsam Lake, Wisconsin at 0900 and picked up a heading of 320 degrees. Our destination was Long Lake, northeast of Longville. My sister had invited us up for breakfast. We also wanted to fly over Birch Lake near Hackensack and get a birds eye view of a lake place my wife and I are buying. I gave my sister an ETA of 1000 just before departing Balsam Lake. I...
Here are a few photos showing some the activities offered at Crystal Open House/Fly-In, June 30th St. Cloud Regional Airport. The day offered much for young and old alike....
Lots of people came out to the Aitkin Fly-in on Sunday, June 30 despite the less than ideal weather. There were lots of displays, wild rice pancakes, and also classic cars. Tractors also gave rides to people to the y-in. Despite the severe weather in the area, there were lots of smiles on everyone. The event was hosted by Aero Minnesota/Aitkin Aviation. There was even a Christian rock band on Sunday morning, and a hangar dance on Saturday....
During the Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering two months ago, the 2018-19 recipients of the FAA Wright Brothers Master Pilot Awards were announced. These awards mark 50 years of safe ying. They are pictured here being presented awards by FAA FAASTeam program manager Al Thilmany during the celebration event. Also, one person, Stanley Weitemier, was awarded teh FAA Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award. Congratulations to all the honorees....
The 99s is an International organization of women pilots started in 1929 by 99 women who recognized the need for an organization to mentor, educate and support women in their aviation endeavors. Currently over 6,100 women belong to the 99s world-wide. The Minnesota Chapter is the second largest in Chapter in the North Central Section, with approximately 87 members...
Gordon "Gordy" Lewis receives an award at the Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering in May for flying over 300 Angel Flights in his Cirrus SR22. Gordy learned to fly in his 70's and celebrated his 92nd birthday in July. With Lewis are Dr. Randal Corfman, president of the Minnesota Pilots Association, left, and Gary Black with Cirrus, right....
Thirty years difference. 37h.p E-2 Cub, same model which first flew 30 years ago on September 12, 1930, chugs along at 55 m.p.h. top speed with owner Luther Johnson, Greenville, S.C., at the controls in the open-air cockpit. Below the ancient Cub a 500 h.p. twin-engine Piper Aztec, and nearly four times faster, climbs up from Lock Haven airport....
Minneapolis, MN – Replacement exhaust collector assemblies are available for Cessna 180/182s through Aerospace Welding Inc. Minneapolis (AWI). Manufactured with a PMA and fabricated with the same materials used in the factory original systems, the combined stacks bolt onto the right and left side of the engine and are then attached to the muffler. The only difference between the AWI system and the original is the use of slip joints in place of clamped components. The “sleeve” upgrade will extend the life of the exhaust collector by allev...
Good weather is what everyone hopes for when planning an outside event and that is just what Grand Rapids EAA Chapter 412 had for their Fly-In breakfast held on June 1st. After a cool morning, it ended up being a beautiful 70° day. Along with breakfast was a silent auction offering many nice items to bid on. The money raised will go toward a scholarship fund. Each year, they award two or three $750.00 scholarships to students entering the aviation field. Chapter President Robert Bischoff...
Once again, aside from a little wind, the weather was perfect for a fly-in event! The Lakes Flying Club Annual Fly-In/Drive-In Pancake Breakfast on Sat., June 15th, had a lot to offer. Planes, as well as vehicles, full of hungry people came and went all day long. Emergency Responders were there with an ambulance and a fire truck to look over and ask questions about. A Life Flight Helicopter and an Air Care Medical Helicopter were also there. Both of these drew a lot of interest from the crowd....
