by James Hanson Few of us have been lucky enough to do exactly what we wanted to do for a living. Even fewer have been lucky enough to make our…
Category: June/July 2013
JK Flyers Restaurant At St Cloud, Back In Business
ST. CLOUD, MINN. – Jeff Keller’s airport restaurant, “JK Flyers,” is back and doing better than ever. The restaurant opened just after the city unveiled a $5 million, 9,000-square-foot expansion…
Rain, Floods & Thunderstorms… The potential is there…
Flooding can occur in almost every part of the U.S. and during any month. In 2012, 39 percent of flood fatalities occurred from driving into flood water and 18 percent…
The Value of Aviation In Minnesota
General Aviation is defined as all flights other than military and scheduled airlines. • General Aviation contributes more than $150 billion to the U.S. economy annually and employs more than…
Cassandra Isackson Named New Director of Minnesota Aeronautics
ST. PAUL, MINN. – Tim Henkel, Assistant Commissioner of Modal Planning and Program Management for the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), announced recently that Cassandra Isackson, a 15-year veteran with…
Meet Matt Malicki… Airport Development Engineer, WisDOT Bureau of Aeronautics
MADISON, WIS. – Matt Malicki joined the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Aeronautics in January 2006. As an airport development engineer, Malicki is responsible for managing projects at eight…
Airport Construction In Wisconsin
by Hal Davis Airport Compliance Manager The old joke is that Wisconsin has two seasons, winter and construction! Aviators know that the construction season isn’t limited to the highways. Every…
Transition From Towered To Non-Towered Airports
by Hal Davis Airport Compliance Manager As I write this article, federal sequestration is set to discontinue funding at eight (8) Wisconsin air traffic control towers on June 15, 2013….
Ask Pete!
by Pete Schoeninger Q: What do you see of the current used airplane market? A: Used airplane values took a dive after the world events of 9/11, and again when…
Changes In FAA Medical Policy
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The FAA posted changes on April 9 to the “Guide For Aviation Medical Examiners” that will streamline the medical certification process for pilots with certain medical conditions…
Eagle Fuel Cells Named Wisconsin Aviation Business of the Year
MIDDLETON, WIS. – The Wisconsin Aviation Trades Association named Eagle Fuel Cells of Eagle River, Wisconsin, “Wisconsin Aviation Business of the Year” for 2013. The award was presented to company…
Mackinac Island & The Grand Hotel
by Dave Weiman When we started Midwest Flyer Magazine, one of the first travel articles we ever did was on “Mackinac Island.” Known for its fudge shops and ferry boat…
Island Hopping In Northeast Wisconsin
by Dave Weiman Pilots looking for a northern Wisconsin destination should consider flying to the Door County Peninsula. There’s the turquoise blue waters of Lake Michigan to the east of…
Airport Management Acts Fast To Save Loon Despite Seminar Lessons
EAGLE RIVER, WIS. – One day in May 2013, Eagle River Union Airport manager, Rob Hom, was attending a seminar at the Wisconsin Aviation Conference in Middleton, Wis., to learn…
EAA Welcomes Back CAF’s Ghost Squadron B-29 & B-24
OSHKOSH, WIS. – Two of World War II’s most iconic aircraft, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress and the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, will be back at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in 2013 as…
Mead & Hunt Hires Pollutant Discharge System Expert
MADISON, WIS. – Dr. Dean Mericas has joined Mead & Hunt’s aviation team. Mericas brings national technical leadership in environmental complaince at airports. With nearly 35 years working in the…
Construction of Kestrel Aircraft Plant Delayed
SUPERIOR, WIS. – Construction of the Kestrel Aircraft manufacturing plant at Richard I. Bong Airport in Superior, Wisconsin, has been delayed due to a delay in receiving financial incentives promised…
Fargo Jet Center Honored
FARGO, N.D. – Fargo Jet Center (FJC) has received the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Certificate of Excellence Diamond Award and 21 of its technicians have received Aviation Maintenance Technicians (AMT)…
Business Aviation Veterans Acquire Kansas Aircraft Corporation
NEW CENTURY, KAN. – Business aviation veterans Tim and Dianne White have acquired Kansas Aircraft Corporation, an aviation sales and consulting firm headquartered at the New Century Air Center (IXD)…
Midwest Flyer Magazine Contributing Editors Participate In FAAST Team Seminar
OSHKOSH, WIS. – Midwest Flyer Magazine contributing editors, Ed Leineweber and Michael Kaufman were among presenters at the FAAST Team pilot safety seminar held at the FAA Aviation Center, April…
EAA Chapter 640 Donates $10,000 For New Scholarship
OSHKOSH, WIS. – EAA Chapter 640 of Wausau, Wis., has donated $10,000 to the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame to establish a new scholarship fund for aviation/aerospace students from Wisconsin….
Midwest Students Compete & Win In International Art Contest
WASHINGTON, D.C – The NASAO Center for Aviation Research & Education has announced that two U.S. students are among the nine winners of the 2013 International Art Contest for young…
Michigan & Illinois Students Awarded National Scholarships
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) has awarded scholarships to two students in the Midwest who have excelled in or are pursuing aviation studies. Nicholas Funkhouser of…
Ruth Dodge-Ducharme Named Wisconsin Flying Farmers VIP Of The Year
BARABOO, WIS. – The Wisconsin Flying Farmers has named Ruth Dodge-Ducharme of Darien, Wisconsin, “VIP of the Year” for 55 years of dedicated service to the organization. The award was…
Geneva Oleson – First Woman Inducted Into North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame
BISMARCK, ND – Geneva Schow Oleson of Stanton, N.D., became the first woman to be inducted into the North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame at ceremonies held in March 2013….
Minnesota Inducts Industry’s Best At 24th Annual Hall of Fame
BLOOMINGTON, MINN. – Inducted April 20, 2013 at the Ramada Mall of America Hotel in Bloomington, Minn., was Darwin “Dale” Johnson of Crookston, Raymond Johnson of Marshall, John H. Kahler…
Minnesota Farmer Finds Humor In Modifying Aircraft
SPRING GROVE, MINN. – Retired farmer Glenn Kinneberg has been flying for 66 years, and lives on a farm in Spring Grove, Minnesota, which his great grandfather homesteaded in 1856….
HondaJet Makes Surprise Visit To Des Moines
DES MOINES, IOWA – The much-anticipated HondaJet visited Des Moines Flying Service, March 16, 2013, while conducting cold weather tests. Certification of the $4.5 million bizjet is expected in 2014….
Cessna 2 Oshkosh Mass Arrival
JUNEAU, WIS. – The Cessna Pilots Association (CPA) will hold its 8th Annual “Cessnas 2 Oshkosh” Mass Arrival to EAA AirVenture, beginning at the Dodge County Airport in Juneau, Wisconsin….
First GE-powered King Air Earns 135 Air Charter Certification
MANITOWOC, WIS. – The first King Air powered by GE’s new H80 turboprop engines has entered FAA 135 Air Charter service. The King Air C90, operated by Lakeshore Aviation in…
Experience What Sun ‘n Fun Has To Offer
by Matthew Olafsen Every year pilots from around the country begin to shake off those cobwebs, shovel their planes out of their hangars, and make that annual migration south to…
EAA’s Beginnings… Curtiss-Wright Field/Timmerman Airport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
by Harold Mester It was the golden days of aviation: A time when fuel was inexpensive and pilots would take to the skies to relax, have some fun, get a…
Minnesota Seaplane Pilots Association Seminar Goes On Despite Lake Ice
by Dave Weiman BRAINERD, MINN. – Despite thick ice on Gull Lake, the Minnesota Seaplane Pilots Association (MSPA) held its annual seminar and fly-in at Madden’s Resort, May 3-5, 2013,…
St. Cloud, Brainerd, Albert Lea, Blue Earth & Leqve Recognized At Minnesota Airports Conference
ALEXANDRIA, MINN. – Since 1988, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Minnesota DOT Office of Aeronautics have partnered in recognizing airports for their accomplishments in airport management, vision and…
Know What You Are Paying In Taxes & Fees
by Dave Weiman MIDDLETON, WIS. – Taxes and fees on general aviation are often not widely known or understood by pilots, aircraft owners and airport officials. We know they exist,…
13 Sessions At 2013 Wisconsin Aviation Conference
MIDDLETON, WIS. – The 58th annual Wisconsin Aviation Conference held in Middleton, Wisconsin, April 29th through May 1st at the Madison West Marriot, attracted 230 airport officials, fixed base operators,…
Winning A Reprieve
by Craig Fuller President & CEO Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association A few weeks ago, in a moment of exceptional cross-party accord, both the House and Senate passed legislation giving the…
The 2013 Legislative Session Has Ended News & Information You’ll Want To Know In Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska & Iowa
by Yasmina Platt AOPA Central Southwest Regional Manager By the time you read this article, all of the legislative sessions in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa will have adjourned. Your…
The Sessions of Savings
by Bryan Budds AOPA Great Lakes Regional Manager Over the last few months, AOPA has been hard at work in statehouses across the Great Lakes Region with the goal of…
Gotcha! (Round 2)
by Dr. John Beasley, M.D. A couple of issues ago, I wrote about some of the things that get pilots in trouble with the medical certification system. The dreaded “Gotchas.” I…
Another Perspective On Landings
by Harold Green Probably since the dawn of human flight, powered or otherwise, pilots have been debating the best way to land aircraft. The literature is filled with articles offering…
The Skyguard TX ADS-B & Instrument Approach Charts
by Michael J. “Mick” Kaufman Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) is FAA’s satellite-based successor to radar. ADS-B makes use of GPS technology to determine and share precise aircraft location information, and…
Is A Safety Pilot Acting As Second In Command? Not Necessarily!
by Greg Reigel If you are an instrument rated pilot, you know that you have to be “current” in order to legally exercise the privileges of an instrument rating as…
Letter – John Puckropp
Dear Dave: Although I find your product most informative in important areas of aviation, your recent issue was exceptional. Thanks, Dave…you do a great service to the aviation community! See…
Letter – Katie Pribyl
Hi, Dave! I just wanted to send you a note regarding your editorial in the April/May 2013 issue. Specifically, I really appreciated your feelings about the critical importance of members…
President Proposes $100.00 Per Flight User Fee, Again!
General aviation organizations are expressing disappointment again with President Obama’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2014 that again includes a $100.00 per flight user fee on general aviation, as well…
Help Show Them The Way!
by Dave Weiman At the “Minnesota Aviation Maintenance Technician Conference” in March in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, many of the exhibitors had “help wanted” signs in their booths, and I regularly…