Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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Merle Marshall's attention to detail served him well during his 33-year career as a Teamster. After retiring in 2017 as a Metropolitan Airports Commission senior maintenance worker, it wasn't long before Marshall's attention turned from runways to hangars after helping out a friend. "Larry Degner of Aerolift Door kept getting phone calls about hangar door cables and latches being broken," Marshall recalled. "He'd call me, and I'd go help him. Well, one day the phone rang so much I decided to...
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...
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."...
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...
Frank Valesh had a career in military aviation that was brief, interesting, and frequently violent. From September 1943 until August 1944 Valesh flew B-17s for the U.S. Army's Eighth Air Force in Great Britain. His bombers all had the same nose art featuring a human female with an impossibly exaggerated anatomy and the name "Hang the Expense." Valesh was born in Graceville, Minnesota. In the middle of the "Roaring 20s" his family moved to a house on Dayton Avenue in St. Paul's Merriam Park. His...
Twenty-six year old Kaitlyn (LaFrance) Hawkinson sort of fell in to her career as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force. Even her mother, who thought Kaitlyn (now Capt. Hawkinson) might pursue a career in theater, didn't expect her to play a role on the world stage flying C-17 aircraft to evacuate refugees from Afghanistan. Even though both her parents, Susie Folwick and Scott Sperling, worked on cargo planes in the Air Force, they didn't expect her to follow suit. Throughout high school, Hawkinson was...
A WW II open-cockpit biplane dropped into Albert Lea Airport on short notice Aug. 31. Though WW II aircraft are increasingly rare, this wasn't unusual. What WAS unusual is that it made a special trip to give a ride to WW II veteran Richard Crumb. The WW II trainer is one of six belonging to Dream Flights-a charity covering the entire United States, a historic national effort to locate and honor WW II veterans. As part of Operation September Freedom-a belated 75th anniversary of the end of WW...
EAA Chapter 25 sponsored a fantastic banquet on Sunday, Oct. 3, at the Crystal Lake Golf Club and Banquet Facility in Lakeville, Minnesota. The guest speaker was Gary Powers, Jr., the son of famed Cold War pilot Francis Gary Powers, who was shot down over Russia on May 1, 1960, while flying a U-2 CIA spy plane. The downing of the U-2 in 1960 was one of the most talked-about events of the Cold War. The event was depicted in the Steven Spielberg movie "Bridge of Spies." Powers was captured by the...
The Minnesota Air National Guard hosted its first-ever Flight of Honor induction ceremony in mid-October, recognizing seven inaugural inductees for career accomplishments. Flight of Honor recognizes past and present airmen from the 133rd Airlift Wing, the 148th Fighter Wing, and Joint Force Headquarters, Minnesota Air National Guard, who have distinguished themselves with notable professional achievement and service or heroism. Maj. Gen. Wayne C. Gatlin Maj. Gen. Wayne C. Gatlin's military...
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...
Ray Johnson has lived in or near Buffalo, Minnesota since 1960, but remains a very proud son of Pine County. He grew up on a farm near Pine City and graduated Pine City High School in 1950. After a stint in the Army, Johnson returned home and an interest in aviation was sparked by flights with his brother who had purchased an airplane. In a series of fortunate events, Johnson also learned to fly, bought the first of many aircraft he has owned, met his future wife, and began a long career as a...
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. The MAHOF 2020 Induction Banquet is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 30, at the DoubleTree by Hilton Bloomington...
John Heineman retired from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Enforcement Division's Aviation Unit in early July. His next move was to go fishing. Since that outdoors season is when DNR pilots are busiest, Heineman's move from aircraft to boat was probably long overdue. Heineman was the "go-to guy" within Minnesota DNR aviation. His most recent boss was Capt. Christopher Lofstuen who said, "We all strive to be like John." Lofstuen also said supervising DNR pilots was "a lot like...
Cora Fuller trained in a Stinson "Detroiter" to become the first Minnesota woman to receive a pilot's certificate after 30 hours of instruction at the Fairmont Airport. The Detroiter was a rather sophisticated airplane in an era when most training was done in open cockpit biplanes with two seats. The aircraft was a four-seat monoplane with an enclosed cabin. Ninety years later, Jessica Holmes became the first female pilot to fly for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Fuller was an...
Wings of the North, the aviation history non-profit that's based at Flying Cloud Airport in Eden Prairie, hit unexpected organizational turbulence this summer. "We were informed just before July's AirExpo by the building owners (Bearpath Investment Group, LLC), that our lease was not going to be renewed, effective Aug. 31," said Wings of the North Board Chairman Gary Applebaum. Applebaum and Museum Director Bob Jasperson told the Minnesota Flyer the organization has secured its collection and...
The Husky National Sodbuster STOL Short Takeoff & Landing Competition Series Aug. 5 to Aug. 7 at Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport featured almost 30 aircraft. "We were excited to bring this event to a larger airport," said Tom Flanary, Husky National STOL Series co-owner. We sold out Milaca two years ago, but we needed a bigger field." Five-hundred spectators watched the 2021 competition. In 2019, Milaca's annual August aviation celebration added the event, which tests pilots' skills during two...
Karlstad is getting a new airport. The most recent Minnesota state transportation budget signed by Gov. Tim Walz includes grants totaling $5.6 million for the city of Karlstad to relocate and build a new public airport. The city estimates a new airport could help create as many as 100 direct new jobs and 150 additional indirect jobs in the next five years. “Karlstad’s community and businesses will really benefit from a new airport,” said Al Lundeen, chairman of the Karlstad airport board. “We’re excited about the increased job opportuni...
Three large Minnesota events commemorated the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks with flyovers featuring F-16 fighter aircraft. Planes from the Minnesota Air National Guard's 148th Fighter Wing made aerial appearances over St. Paul, Duluth, and Minneapolis on Saturday, Sept. 11. Four F-16s completed a Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs 9/11 morning flyover of the state capitol, said Lt. Col. (Ret.) Audra Flanagan, who served as a second lieutenant with the Wing 20 ye...
Early Sunday morning I negotiated my way around the southern part of the Twin Cities to avoid the orange barrels, cones, and hulking construction equipment. Traffic was light. I crossed the river at Hudson and settled the Jetta into cruising mode for Mauston. From there, it was on to Ripon. The Wisconsin sky was noticeably bluer and the landscape greener. Smoke seemed absent. After checking in at the old hotel in Ripon, I headed for Highway 44. Through the stoplight, heading northeast toward...
Hartzell Propeller has purchased the assets of Tanis Aircraft Products, a Minnesota-based manufacturer of engine preheat systems for fixed and rotary wing aircraft. The Tanis brand will become part of Hartzell Propeller's heated products, which now includes systems for propeller de-ice, piston engine reheat, turbine engine preheat, helicopter preheat, battery, avionics, and cabin preheat. Tanis Aircraft started business in 1974. The company was the first to develop aircraft engine preheat...
The first Saturday in September the community of Battle Lake will welcome the return of an popular aviation event that will honor two special people. Pat Kostelecky, a driving force behind the Battle Lake Area Community Fund (BLACF) and the "Annual Tribute to Gerry Beck - Gathering of Airplanes," died unexpectedly in November 2019. "We are going forward," said Kathy Deal, a good friend of Kostelecky's and BLACF member. "This year will feature a tribute to Pat, and the annual tribute to Gerry....
Humans have been "stocking" fish for a couple millennia. Chinese palaces often featured ponds inhabited by ornamental fish and archaeological evidence suggests several Mediterranean civilizations were in the business of enhancing their fisheries before the Roman Empire took them over. In the United States the practice of "planting" fish goes back to the colonial period. Early attempts were focused on sport fishing and involved mostly trout. The bad news was hatchery raised fish were being...
