Clarence Hines Provided FBO Inspiration

Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame inductee Clarence Hines of Stanton, Minnesota, passed away on June 26, 2021. He was 96 years of age.

Clarence was one of the last "old time FBOs"-he was "all aviation-all the time." He lived on the Stanton airport-east of Northfield-his house was only several hundred feet from the office.

Clarence was a crop duster (flying converted Super Cubs), flight instructor, glider tow pilot, "skydiver driver" (parachute jump pilot), and aircraft mechanic.

He also farmed around the airport, and cut the grass on the beautifully maintained turf runways-and did the snowplowing on those same turf runways in the winter.

Clarence was a quiet man, and rarely spoke unless spoken to-not because he didn't have an opinion on the subject of the conversation, but he was more interested in what OTHERS had to say.

When asked for an opinion, however, he shared it freely. With all of his responsibilities, he was a very busy man-not open to idle conversation, but always willing to give an opinion when asked. In 1970, I met Clarence as a skydiver at Stanton. I was a commercial/instrument/instructor pilot at the time, an FBO operator, and a glider pilot/tow pilot, so we shared the same spirit of the sky-yet Clarence rarely spoke unless spoken to.

When I asked Clarence for tips on being a good jump pilot, however, he readily shared his experience. A lasting example of his laconic wit was in answer to my question of "how about taking skydiver heading corrections on jump run."

(Some skydivers asked for BIG corrections, others for corrections as small as 3 degrees). His response was, "Three degrees, 5 degrees, 10 degrees, 20 degrees-they all get the same pedal push, and they are all happy!"

Clarence set the standard for operations at the airport-and the standards were practical-and high-even the best pilots, glider pilots, and skydivers were not exempt from a disapproving glance if he caught them doing something unsafe-a mere look of disapproval from Clarence was worse than a notice from the FAA. Someone not following procedures usually earned a "suggestive correction" from Clarence. If it happened again, the "correction" was a bit more vocal.

I don't know of anyone that risked a third correction-NOBODY wanted

to disappoint Clarence-he was a Force Majeure-something to be reckoned with!

On the other hand, when you flew with Clarence, and he approved-you might earn a coveted slight nod of the head-a signal of his approval-and a high honor indeed! Clarence EXPECTED fellow airmen to conform to his standards!

Take a moment to THINK about those who have inspired your pilot career. Here's HOPING you have a "Clarence Hines" to make you the best pilot you can be!

Editor's Note: Jim Hanson is also a long-time pilot starting his 60th year as a pilot-the FBO at Albert Lea, Minnesota-and also an inductee into the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame. At 6'4" in height, Jim doesn't have to look up to many pilots, but he obviously "looked up" to Clarence Hines. If YOU have a person that inspired you in your journey to be a pilot, jot it down and send it to this magazine at editor@mnflyer.com.