Serving Midwest Aviation Since 1960
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Pope County Flyers member, Don Lilienthal submitted several photos of the July 1, Starbuck Airport Fortieth Annual Fly-In Breakfast which was held in conjunction with Starbuck Heritage Days. Eight planes loaded with tents, sleeping bags, and other gear arrived on Friday, June 30 for the festivities. According to Lilienthal, the hangar doors opened at 5 a.m. to allow Chris Cakes Catering, Pochahontas, Iowa to begin breakfast preparations. Lilienthal did a flyover at 5:30 in his 1972 Skyhawk as a...
You want to fly a more challenging (up or down) aircraft than the one you currently wear like an old pair of shoes, or you want to fly off to Salt Lake City next month when the highest terrain you have encountered in your flying career thus far is the Buffalo Ridge in western Minnesota. Where does transition training fit into this? How about on your first flight lesson? The good or bad habits we acquire during our first hours of primary training will carry forward throughout our career unless someone or some-thing intervenes to change our behav...
Saturday morning, July 15, the skies around Rushford Municipal Airport looked a lot like MSP on a weekend. For at least two hours, planes were stacked up awaiting their turn to land. EAA Chapter 919 members displayed their expertise in directing 90 aircraft from the wild blue to parking spaces on the ground. The reason for all the hubbub? The official dedication of the Robert W. Bunke Field, complete with a Mustang, Corsair, and Avenger fly-by, courtesy of Wings of the North Museum at Flying...
Isle Airport hosted a most pleasant July 8 evening of under wing camping, a movie, bonfire, popcorn, and beverages in a two-day fly-in event that coincided with Isle City Days in northwestern Minnesota. "We had about 15 airplanes that came and camped," said Isle Airport Flying Club member Dave Retka. "We showed the Great Waldo Pepper movie. We had a nice evening." The grass strip displayed a nice grouping of vintage aircraft including a 1946 Stinson Voyager straight 108, Curtiss-Wright 1929...
This is #325 in unique airplane types I've flown. As popular as the Van's RV-series airplanes are among homebuilders, I've never actually logged PIC time in them-though I've flown them, I don't count it unless I make a takeoff or landing in the aircraft-no "holding the controls" while aloft. For this story, friend "Sonny" Martin and wife Barb brought their RV-12 to Albert Lea. Though both Sonny and Barb are retired IBM-ers, many readers will recognize Sonny as the lead tech of the former RC...
The theme of this year's Wings of the North AirExpo held at Flying Cloud Airport July 15-16 was Heroes & Legends. An Evening with Eagles Dinner and Symposium was held at the Wings of the North Air Museum Hangar featuring guest speaker NASA Astronaut Franklin Musgrave who flew on six spaceflights. Among the variety of aircraft on display Saturday and Sunday at the airport grounds were military aircraft like Marine CH53 Phoenix helicopters and F-4 Phantoms. There were vintage aircraft owned by...
Wipaire, Inc. is doubling the Federal Aviation Administration’s $500 ADS-B rebate for piston aircraft owners to make ADS-B equipage more affordable. Wipaire’s additional $500 rebate, which can be paired with the FAA program for a total of $1,000, is available to U.S.-registered single-engine piston fixed-wing manned airplanes registered before January 1, 2016. The Wipaire rebate is applied to installation charges for ADS-B equipment purchased through Wipaire and installed at Wipaire’s South St. Paul, Minnesota or Leesburg, Florida locat...
Backus Municipal Airport could easily be confused with an exotic wilderness retreat. The turf runway is 3,600 feet long and lighted. There are lots of tie downs.Hangar rentals are available for long term storage. A very nice log building has Arrival/Departure space, plus flight planning and a loft for meetings or quiet time. The building was constructed in 1996 and won the Project of the Year award from the Minnesota Council of Airports. Within walking distance of the airport are places that...
A little while ago an airman came in with a set of chest muscles that made him look not so much like Superman as a tom turkey. He was quite muscular all over. It was obvious that he'd been working out. Really? To get to the point where you look like a super-hero action figure? Talking with him, I found out he'd been diagnosed with low testosterone or "Low T" as they say in the TV ads. He'd been using hormone patches, although I thought he might have been going at it a little more than his doc...
Dr. Mikhail Leontyvich Mil (1909-1970) began his career working on autogiros with another noted Russian rotary wing pioneer, Nikolai Ilyich Kamov (1902-1973). During WWII, Mil was assigned to a Red Air Force autogiro unit. In 1947, he formed his own design bureau to pursue rotary wing research. His first helicopter, the Mi-1 "Hare" with an Ivchenko piston engine was completed in September 1948 and was produced for Aeroflot and the Soviet Air Force for passengers, crop spraying, and med evac....
Check this column each month to see that dates have not been canceled or changed. Send notices of events at least six weeks in advance of publication to the Minnesota Flyer, P.O. Box 750. Sandstone. MN 55072-0750 or mnflyer@cpinternet.com or charlotte@mnflyer.com. Aug. 27: Litchfield,. Annual Fly-In Pancake Breakfast, 7 a.m.-noon, Litchfield Municipal (KLJF). PICs free. Jim, (320) 693-6189 Aug. 27: Grygla, Lions Fly-In Breakfast, 7 a.m.-noon, Mel Wilkens Field (3G2). PICs free, fall festival, family activities. Brent Klamar, 218-689-4364 Aug...
The 12th Annual Dennis Kirk Patriot Ride was held July 8 at the Anoka County Blaine Airport at the Lynx FBO. The Patriot Ride recognizes and remembers the 1,741 American personnel listed by the Defense Department’s POW/MIA Office as missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, and pays tribute to veterans, law enforcement, and their families for their contribution to the safety and freedom of citizens of the United States. The day-long event includes a 50-mile ride, special recognition p...