Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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"The Diamond" owned by Corey De Jac....
Charlotte, in one of the last few precious days, had some moments for laughter. She thought it would be funny I would be writing in this space instead of having her do much of the work. This is a column I have been avoiding. For those who do not know, we lost Charlotte Swanson, the editor of this magazine to brain cancer. About six years ago, Charlotte filled in for a newspaper editor of mine who was giving birth. We had chatted in the past about working together, but thought this would be a...
I have taken time to begin reading Robin Olds “Fighter Pilot” and found a quotation that I feel certainly applies to my experiences with aviation people. He wrote “The brotherhood of pilots impressed me as much as the thrill of flying itself”. It is with this in mind that we prepare for the 6th Annual Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering (GMAG) to be held on Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27, at the Buffalo Municipal Airport (KCFE). This preparation centers around the brotherhood and sisterh...
Thanks to Bob Heavirland for the following report and photos from the recent Aitkin Fly-In for Ski planes and Wheel planes. FINALLY, we had a Saturday (2-16-19) that was a nice day to fly! There were twenty to twenty-five planes flown in and approximately 70 people in attendance. Not bad for a day with a high temp of 18º! Adam Forsberg and Pete at Adventure North in Aitkin, MN had the grass runway groomed for ski planes and the paved runway plowed. Adam had posted that he would have FREE Chili...
I take every opportunity to fly unique aircraft-but in flying for 56 years, and 52 years in the FBO business, new types to fly don't present themselves very often. Corey De Jac showed up at our affiliated flight school-Accelerated Aviation Instruction-for a Flight Instructor-Initial course, and brought his company Diamond DA-40 Star aircraft along for the ride. Corey is one of the pilots for Huber & Associates, based in York, Pennsylvania. The company has 2 Diamonds, a Piper Mirage, and a...
Spring brings about changes in nature, the landscape, the weather, and even in people. The warmth of the strong sunshine and more daylight hours are welcomed with open arms. Even the early spring flowers and plants open their buds and spread their tiny petals or leaves like unfolding “wings” raised toward the sky to say ‘thank you’ for the relief from the frost. As the beauty of spring reveals itself in rapidly changing scenes, it is easy to be drawn to the gentleness of the moments along with the subtle, sweet scents of the first flowers...
It's been a while since I've ridden in a car with a cassette player. I know we have a lot more old aircraft in the system than old cars. One of the Bonanzas that MnDOT operates just turned 40 and though it had an ADF in it when it was new, that panel real estate has given way to a touch screen GPS. I hear from flight schools that their ADF that was working the day before is magically placarded inoperative for flight tests. It's been a while since we at MnDOT have considered NDBs a key navigation...
Flying during any season in Minnesota can be stunningly beautiful. It can also present some really unique challenges. One of those unique challenges is icing. Yes, the days are getting longer and maybe a little warmer, but even as we edge toward spring, we still need to remember that snow and icing conditions can exist for several more weeks. Accumulated ice, snow, and frost can have a detrimental effect on your efforts to fly. As you begin your walk around, be sure to look closely for any...
Spring is in sight and we have been working hard to prepare to participate in a number of outstanding aviation events for the spring-summer season. Here are a couple terrific events that I want to remind you of and let you know your Office of Aeronautics will be there and we hope to meet many of you at these events: MN Airports Conference On April 24-26, at the Willmar Conference Center, 240 23rd Street SE Willmar, Minnesota; you will have an opportunity to hear industry and government...
Pilots rely on NOTAMs. Runway closures, navaid outages, contaminated surfaces, poor braking action; these are all potential hazards that could affect the safety at an airport. Some hazards are predictable and some happen at the last minute. Either way, airports need to let pilots know about them. Pilots rely on an alerting system called Notices to Airmen (NOTAMs), which allows airports to inform them of these type of hazardous situations. It's a requirement that pilots read NOTAMs before every f...
FAIRFAX, Minn., February 5, 2019 – Agtegra Cooperative has expanded its service area to reach rural customers in 60 communities throughout North and South Dakota. One of those communities is Harrold, S.D., home of the Harrold Municipal Airport, site of Agtegra's new crop spraying hangar, complete with two hydraulic doors from Schweiss Doors. The Harrold airport, with its 2,250-foot by 200-foot asphalt runway, is just one of Agtegra's success and growth stories. The cooperative has expanded i...
“Approximately 75% of tactical decision errors that led to accidents investigated by the National Transportation and Safety Board (NTSB) were identified as plan continuation errors. These errors occur when a pilot inappropriately continues with a plan of action in the face of cues that suggest plan revision (Orasanu et al., 2001). A related phenomenon is a perceived feeling to “get there” and pilots report that they are sometimes overly influenced by this vague, unspecified pressure to get to their destination.” Submitted by Dan McDowel...
I know you’ll find this hard to believe but diseases sometimes can be fads. In other words some disorders catch the public fancy and all of a sudden “everyone’s got it”. Entities such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, fibromyalgia, Lyme’s Disease all are documented illnesses and can be very serious but a lot of people decide they have them because they don’t have any better explanation for their problems. Sad to say, sometimes a health care provider erroneously tags someone with one of these label...
Henry Sibley was having a bad day. He was supposed to recommend a name for the town that was to be the "division point" for the St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad to his fellow directors. General Sibley was going to propose a melodious Dakota name, but he'd forgotten it. E.F. Drake was the railroad's president and proposed a name they could all remember, St. James. In 1870 the railroad was completed, and the Village was chartered in 1871. St. James is still very much a railroad town, but in the...
Professor Claude Dornier was known during World War I for his work with stressed skin Duralumin construction, designing large flying boats and other combat aircraft, including the experimental D-1 all metal single-seat fighter. Post-war he continued designs of all metal flying boats like the famous "Wal" series, production taking place in Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Sweden, and Japan to avoid the Versailles Treaty and Allied Control Commission. During World War II, Dornier production focused on t...
Check this column each month to see that dates have not been canceled or changed. Send notices six weeks in advance of publication to the Minnesota Flyer, P.O. Box 750, Sandstone, MN 55072-0750 or mnflyer@pinternet.com or verlena@mnflyer.com. April 26-27: Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering. Buffalo Municipal Airport (KCFE), Buffalo, MN. Fri. 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. $10.00 per person per day. MnPilots members free, 18 and under free. For information contact Minnesota Pilots Association. www.mnpilots.org, info@mnpilots.org, 763-494-...
