Posts by Carmine Mowbray

We’d like to direct you to Levi Armichardy’s beautifully written essay in this issue of Idaho Magazine. He writes of joining his dad on a horseback ride trailing pack mules 26 miles into Moose Creek Forest Service Ranger Station in the middle of Idaho’s Selway–Bitterroot Wilderness. There’s a historic turf airstrip there, too, and if you’ve been there,…

The BLM is taking public comments on two Travel Management Plans, (TMPs) and the Bears Ears draft Resource Management Plan (RMP), which you’ve already heard about. RAF Utah Liaison and UBCP board member Wendy Lessig has followed the progress of each and urges that your help is needed NOW to preserve many Utah backcountry airstrips. You’ll simply…

RAF Utah Liaison and Utah Back Country Pilots board member Wendy Lessig reports that this spring, UBCP volunteers completed work to preserve several airstrip treasures. Recently Locomotive Springs was dragged. “Both runways are smooth enough for most planes to land, for now,” Lessig said. Here you’ll stand on the transcontinental airmail route and one of the concrete directional arrows, a sort of early…

Rainelle, (WV30), a privately owned turf airfield on top of a mountain in southern West Virginia now has a spiffy dual restroom and shower house, thanks in part to an RAF grant and hard-working local volunteers. RAF Pennsylvania/West Virginia Liaison Chip Vignolini tracked progress on the grant and reports that the facility is now functional.…

Over 120 RAF volunteers and noted speakers from across the country gathered in Bozeman for the RAF’s biennial Education Conference May 16-19. A dozen flew their own GA aircraft, lining BZN’s ramp with an impressive array. One stalwart volunteer, RAF Maine Liaison Andy Rowe, took honors for longest distance road trip in his electric SUV…

Dave and Julie Powell of Rogers, Arkansas were honored with the “Wind Beneath Our Wings” award during the RAF’s biennial education conference in May. This award recognizes extraordinary efforts to further the RAF mission. This award was created and sponsored by RAF co-founders/volunteers Dan and Margie Prill, and Chuck and Penny Jarecki. Powells’ names have…

RAF Washington Liaison Ray Ballantyne received an RAF grant to install a vault toilet and shower at Olympic Airfield, WA45 near Port Townsend, WA near a camping area among the trees. A water landing area lies parallel to the turf 2,759-ft runway, and there is a pond and dock where small seaplanes can be secured.…

Ambassador Ray Ballantyne has moved to a State Liaison volunteer role in Washington, joining current Liaison Dave Whitelaw. Ray was born into an aviator family as his father was a WWII CG-4A Combat Glider pilot who met his mother at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, TX while she was training to be a WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilot).…

Volunteers continue making improvements at the USFS airstrip at Sacaton, New Mexico, NM16 as part of the Challenge Cost Share agreement with the US Forest Service. Organized by RAF New Mexico Liaison Ron Keller, RAF and New Mexico Pilots Association volunteers poured the concrete pad for the vault toilet recently, in spite of weather that…