Article & Photos by Yasmina Platt
We opened up summer flying activities June 28-30, 2024, with the Annual Ryan Field (2MT1) Fly-In in Northwest Montana, organized by the Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF). Ryan Field is owned by the RAF via the generous donation of Ben and Butchie Ryan. It is located one mile southeast of West Glacier, Montana.
2MT1 sits at the 3,660 ft elevation and has a single grass runway. Runway 15/33 is 2,500 ft long by 65 ft. wide. Both thresholds are elevated as compared to the rest of the runway, with a low point by the entrance to the barn area. See pictures.
In addition to the typical fly-in activities of critiquing (I meant watching) everybody’s arrivals and departures, walking up and down the flightline admiring beautiful aircraft, and great food by Lindy’s (owned by a fellow pilot), the event also held two seminars and a hike because, after all, the field is next to Glacier National Park (GNP). The seminars were on “being bear aware” and surviving in the unlikely event that your aircraft goes down in the middle of nowhere.
Over 100 people participated in the fly-in, some flying in by Husky aircraft from as far as central Florida. Some camped by their aircraft, and some utilized the (four) cabins open and available for pilots (with their own sleeping bags) via a reservation system. Go to https://theraf.org/ryan-field/ for more information. The RAF and its troop of volunteers have done an amazing job with the facilities! There is also a barn and a cooking shelter in addition to restrooms (some with showers), games, firepits, and picnic tables. A courtesy car can be used on a first-come, first-serve basis during the summer, but one can also walk down a mile to the little town of West Glacier.
The airfield and its surroundings are absolutely beautiful, but it does require some prior prep work. As a Prior Permission Required (PPR) airfield, pilots MUST review the safety briefing and acknowledge that they have done so prior to flying into 2MT1. Go to Ryan Field in the RAF’s Airfield Guide (airfield.guide.theraf.org) and click the Briefing tab.
All pilots are encouraged to visit the briefing room on the west side of the field prior to departure.
My husband, Jared, and I brought a couple of non-pilot local friends with us and they were impressed with the culture, how nice everybody was, how capable the aircraft were that flew in, and the beautiful site. One visitor is now considering getting his private, and another person is considering volunteering as a host next summer. Win!
We hope to see YOU at the fly-in next year as well! Keep an eye out for prior registration.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Yasmina Platt is an airport and heliport design consultant, but she also teaches “Rusty Pilots” seminars for AOPA and writes an aviation travel blog called “Air Trails” (www.airtrails.weebly.com), in addition to articles on pilot destinations for Midwest Flyer Magazine. Pilots can locate articles Yasmina has written by going to www.MidwestFlyer.com and typing “Yasmina” in the search box, or by going to the “Archives” section, then “Columns,” then “Destinations.”