MANKATO, MINN. – Jon Rippke, P.E., Chairman of the Board of the engineering firm Bolton & Menk, Inc., headquartered in Mankato, Minnesota, retired at the end of 2013 after 40…
Category: People
Plane Missing In Idaho With Ties To Midwest, Found
BOISE, IDAHO – The wreckage of a Beechcraft Bonanza flown by Dale Smith, 51, of San Jose, Calif., and carrying five people, including Jonathan Norton of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, was…
Milwaukee Pilot Inducted Into Flight Instructor Hall of Fame
MILWAUKEE, WIS. – The National Association of Flight Instructors honored Gregory G. Gorak of Gaits Aviation Seminars as its 25th inductee into the Flight Instructor Hall of Fame, November 2,…
EAA & AOPA Leaders Meet In Oshkosh
OSHKOSH, WIS. – EAA Chairman Jack Pelton and AOPA President & CEO Mark Baker led discussions between their respective senior staffs on December 16, 2013 at the EAA Aviation Center…
Industry Mourns Death of Industry Leader
Washington, D.C. – Officials with the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) have announced that its president and CEO for the past 18 years, Henry Michael Ogrodzinski, 65, died…
A Lifetime In Aviation, As I Remember It
by Don Winkler Flying has been somewhat different for me. I have grown up with a camera in my hand. The airplane has been a platform for me to capture…
Kansas Gets New State Aviation Director
TOPEKA, KAN. – Long-time pilot and Kansas Department of Transportation veteran Jesse R. Romo has been named Director of the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) Division of Aviation. Romo is…
Minnesota Names New Aeronautics Assistant Office Director
ST. PAUL, MINN. – Minnesota Office of Aeronautics Director Cassandra Isackson has named Kathy Vesely from her staff Assistant Office Director effective November 6, 2013. In addition to having a…
Meet David Montesinos… Airport Development Engineer WisDOT Bureau of Aeronautics
MADISON, WIS. – David Montesinos joined the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Aeronautics in January 1991. As an airport development engineer, Montesinos is responsible for managing projects at seven…
Lockheed 10 Electra Aircraft Restorer Lee Koepke Passes
YPSILANTI, MICH. – Aircraft restorer Lee R. Koepke, 87, of Ypsilanti, Michigan, passed away July 3, 2013. After serving in the Army Air Force during World War II, Koepke pursued…
Vietnam Vets Remembered
MADISON, WIS. – They called it “Operation Dustoff.” The Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs organized ceremonies November 8, 2013, at the State Capitol to recognize the men and women from…
State of Wisconsin Honors EAA Founder
MADISON, WIS. – The family of the late Paul Poberezny who founded the Experimental Aircraft Association with his wife, Audrey, in the basement of their Milwaukee home in 1953, was…
Wisconsin Aviation Hosts Celebration of Life For Local Pilots
WATERTOWN, WIS. – Wisconsin Aviation, Inc. hosted a celebration of life for local pilots Bob Groh, 64, of the town of Delafield, Wis., and Jim Quinn, 66, of Wauwatosa, Wis.,…
Pan Am Clipper Pilot Turns 100
IOLA, WIS. – The Central County Flyers celebrated the 100th birthday of one of their members – Paul Johns – who flew a Pan Am Clipper during World War II….
Top FBO, EAA Volunteer, Air Show Performer, Record Holder & Governor Inducted Into Hall of Fame
OSHKOSH, WIS. – Five aviators, all with unique backgrounds, but bound by their love of aviation, were inducted into the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame October 26 at ceremonies held…