Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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This is the second in a series of thumbnails of the ten most important Minnesota aviation pioneers, from the files of the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame. In the first part of this series, we profiled Clarence Hinck. Like Hinck, Shorty De Ponti gets his claim to fame by virtue of being one of the most aggressive aviation business figures to color our State's past. De Ponti was born in St. Paul in 1909. He was born an entrepreneur! He began his business career at age nine as a paperboy and as a...
"How did we get this way?" Jim Hanson I picked the age of the AOPA and FLYING magazines reviewed in this series (late 50s and early 60s) because it was about the time I started flying. It is also a chance to contrast and compare what flying was like back then, compared to today. The difference between that time and today are many, and in revisiting the articles and advertisements, might even give us insight as to why General Aviation (though the term hadn’t been invented yet) was in its a...
Frank Piasecki founded PV Engineering in 1941. His experimental PV-2 helicopter appeared in April 1943, followed by NACA awarding him Helicopter Pilot Certificate No. 1. The H-21 (the May 2011 Mystery Plane) was followed by the PV-14, which led to the Navy's HUP "Retriever" and the Army's H-25 "Army Mule." Powered by a 550 hp R-975 radial engine, the HUP had a maximum speed of 108 mph and a range of 360 miles. Its useful load with two pilots, was 1650 pounds, four to seven passengers or three...
Winter flying up here in the north country can be a challenge. It was even more interesting back in the "good old days" when engine preheating was accomplished using everything from "torpedo heaters" with flexible duct work, to charcoal grills and trouble lights. To hold in the heat, cowling was covered with old quilts, blankets, tarps, and moving mats. These days you just plug in the engine heater and soon it's warm enough to fire right up. Fitted cowl covers go on in minutes thanks to the...
Pilots and all those associated with aviation gathered for the Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering in Blaine in late March....
State Senator Scott Dibble, Chair of the Senate Transportation and Public Safety Committee expressed pleasure that, along with the payback of budget shifts to Minnesota schools, the State Airport Fund will be repaid $15 million that had twice been taken from it and placed in the General Fund. This repayment is made possible by the forecasted $1.08 billion budget surplus for fiscal year 2014-15, according to Minnesota’s Management and Budget agency. In 2003, $15 million was transferred from the State Airport Fund to the General Fund to plug a b...
OK, let’s get one thing straight. Marijuana use is incompatible with flight safety. If you’re stoned, find yourself a bag of munchies and watch some Big Bang Theory reruns. Don’t even think of getting near anything with an operable airfoil! That being said, the reality of general aviation is that not all pilots are Eagle Scouts. Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit (in some states) drug. In a recent survey, more than 16 million Americans admitted to using marijuana in the previous month...
We’re getting pretty excited about hanging up our Mukluks for the few months as we welcome warm air and melting snow. Looks like it’s time to ponder seaplane activity. Now there’s a subject Aero Minnesota has at the top of their list, having recently taken over management of KBDE, an international airport and seaplane base in Baudette, right across the river from Canada. Read more about that adventure on page 13. As proud platinum sponsors of the Minnesota Pilots Association’s first annual Great...
