Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) has announced the addition of Bemidji-based AirCorps Aviation as a member. AirCorps Aviation was founded in 2011 as a Warbird restoration shop. The company provides build-to-print fabrication services focused on delivering quality parts manufacturing services to support legacy and new manufactured aircraft. "I can say for everyone at AirCorps Aviation, we are very proud to be a member of this premier organization," stated General Manager Erik...
Donnie Gardner is expanding the world of aviation retail one market niche at a time. He credits his dad for providing the creative spark behind DGPilot Aviation Collectibles & More, located in downtown St. Paul. "My dad is a huge aviation enthusiast, and I didn't realize this until a few years back," Gardner explained. "I was visiting with him in Kansas City where I grew up and he pulled out his personal collection of diecast aircraft. He must have shown me 100 to 200 aircraft." Gardner hadn't c...
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. This April's banquet will honor the MAHOF 2022 inductees and return the organization to its regular banquet...
Editor's Note: This new Minnesota Flyer series memorializes the state's current or past aviation museums and collections. For some of the long-gone museums and collections, it should be a nostalgia trip. Contributing writers have identified as many as 20 museums and collections and will present each in a separate article. Since the 1960s, successful businessman Johan M. Larsen of South Minneapolis dreamt of a flying museum of vintage and warbird aircraft, located at a huge private airfield...
Elliott Aviation has been verified and accepted as a new products and services member by the International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA). "The IADA Board of Directors welcomes Elliott Aviation, Partners in Aviation and Tamarack Aerospace," said IADA Executive Director Wayne Starling. "These three excellent companies, like all of our verified products and services members, have been thoroughly vetted to assure adherence to the highest standards of ethical behavior and skilled aviation...
Ray Anderson, longtime Forest Lake EAA Chapter 1638 member, died Nov. 21, 2021, after a courageous battle with cancer. He was 82 years old. Anderson was the owner of General Repair Service in Vadnais Heights from 1976 to 2018, but he continued to go into the office after selling the business to his son because he loved what he did and all the people he met over his lifelong career. Anderson was a pilot for 54 years, an active member of the local EAA chapter, a longtime member of the Minnesota...
Ken Snyder kept a simple mantra in mind throughout the course of his Le Sueur Municipal Airport hangar renovation project. "My whole goal was keeping costs in check," he said. "It wasn't hard, even though a lot of thought went into it. If there was a question, I just overbuilt it." Snyder bought the 40-by-36 foot hangar in August 2020. The structure didn't have a door, the roof leaked, and two posts were rotten. The hangar also had a dirt floor. Getting a roof installed was a priority to protect...
When you decide it's time for you to build a new hangar or replace doors on your current hangar there are steps to take to make this process go smoothly and cost efficient as possible. Contractors, architects, and door buyers should contact a reputable door manufacturer prior to placing a new or replacement door on their hangar to garner important engineering information that will prepare them for the job ahead. Schweiss Doors can provide door weights and imposed loads that a bifold or...
Osseo-based Wiley Properties has consistently renovated its Crystal Airport hangars to keep pace with market changes in general aviation. Wiley Properties got its start in 1954 with Hap Wiley, who owned and operated a well drilling company at the time. Since drilling is seasonal in Minnesota, Hap decided it would be beneficial to have his workers construct buildings during the winter months. That activity eventually evolved into a successful family real estate business that continues to include...
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...
