Posts by Carmine Mowbray

The conversation was as lively as June’s dynamic weather for the June 28-30 Fly-in this year at Ryan Field near West Glacier, Montana, especially when RAF Director Tim Riley landed and parked the spectacular RAF-branded Husky in front of the barn. Matt Hoefeldt from Aviat had arranged for this special aircraft to make an appearance…

Nearly 40 volunteers pitched in for what RAF Director Jeff Russell called, “A very successful RAF work party,” in early June at Gillette’s Lakewood Lodge, 14WS in northern Wisconsin. “One small measure of this success was the turnout of so many volunteers willing to roll up their sleeves and dig in to help. Attendance was more than…

Improvements at two Connecticut airfields, Goodspeed, 42B near East Haddam, and Waterbury, N41 near Plymouth have been funded by RAF grants, thanks to RAF Connecticut Liaison Brian Thomas. At Goodspeed, Thomas has lined up volunteers, and will use the grant to purchase materials for four 10-ft x 10-ft tent platforms to establish a desirable camping…

Fourth-generation pilot, aircraft broker, and builder Clay Simmons sits on the RAF’s new Backcountry Etiquette Team. The group formed out of concern for the growing impact of increased backcountry activity by a variety of users. On the RAF podcast hosted by RAF President Bill McGlynn, Clay explains experiencing Idaho’s backcountry as a very young passenger. When his dad survived a serious airplane…

We need your help to preserve Utah’s scenic backcountry airstrips. Due to the 2017 lawsuit settlement with an environmental group, the BLM is obligated to revise 13 Travel Management Plans (TMPs) in Utah. Each requires public comment periods. RAF Utah Liaison Wendy Lessig says, “Please hang in there and keep sending your comments. Every voice counts.”  Draft San Rafael Swell TMP…

“Thanks to a group of thirteen volunteers, we were able to have a successful RAF work party,” Brian Thomas, RAF Connecticut Liaison reported of the June 23 gathering at the Waterbury Airport, N41. He reports that the airport owners are very appreciative of the collective efforts from the local pilot community to keep Waterbury looking…

RAF Oregon Liaison Bill Ables reports that in May, thirty volunteers completed another successful work party on five airstrips within Hells Canyon, North America’s deepest river gorge. “This has been a long-standing Idaho Aviation Association work party, and they provide food and drinks for the volunteers,” Ables said. “Nineteen aircraft arrived at Dug Bar at…

RAF Montana Liaison Scott Newpower reports that in spite of occasional rain, nine volunteers from the RAF and Montana Pilots Association flew in from as far away as Washington State, Columbus, Billings and Kremlin, Montana on Saturday, June 15 to work on Meadow Creek USFS airstrip. The turf 2,800-ft airstrip lies along the South Fork…

We have released the improved Airfield Guide for your free use just in time to plan some fun stops on your way to Oshkosh! Along with updated software and features, users will find a completely new, cleaner look and feel. Among the new features is the ability to leave comments with photos and videos on airfields. We encourage users…

Chicken Strip in Death Valley National Park’s remote Saline Valley is a gravel airstrip within a short hike of the Saline hot springs grouping. RAF California Liaison Katerina Barilov was concerned that the closest weather currently available comes from Tonopah, NV, 82 nm away. In the interest of providing pilots accurate information to make better-informed…