Featured Supporters
Chet Leach
From his gyrocopter, a Quicksilver, Rans S-12, a Maule, and now a Bearhawk for the backcountry, and a Piper Dakota 235 for cross country flights, Chet Leach has found a good balance after 46 years of flying as a private pilot. He began flying in 1975 in Lexington, Kentucky, and for the last 16 years…
Read MoreJay PerryCook
“I discovered the RAF while searching online for fun places to fly and camp,” says Jay PerryCook, of Gig Harbor, Washington. “My long-time friend, Tim Riley invited me to Ryan Field to help put the roof on the new barn. I did, and met some wonderful people, slept in my tent and ate some great…
Read MoreChris Arno
Chris Arno of Dover-Foxcroft, Maine manages to mix his passion for flying in with his family of six, and the company he owns with his father, Northern Line Construction that builds and maintains utility power lines. He acted on his long-standing love of flying in Bar Harbor, Maine in May of 2019. “I happened to…
Read MoreScott Bell
Scott Bell of the Bozeman, Montana area got involved with the RAF early on, operating a Bobcat, excavating and placing culverts for the construction of the pilot shelter at Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (KBZN). The shelter was completed in the summer of 2007 and has been a popular place for airplane camping and aviation clubs to gather. The Gallatin Airport Authority…
Read MoreJack and Arlene Alexander
When Jack Alexander’s kids were grown and he decided to satisfy what he admitted was his midlife crisis he learned to fly in 1989. He bought a 1965 Cessna 172 and based it in Plymouth, MA. For recurrent training after his 2015 cataract surgery, his instructor was the tailwheel-endorsed banner-towing Arlene Myers from Cape Cod.…
Read MorePresley Melton
After years of experience flying his Boeing Stearman, Decathlons, an RV8, his award-winning 1943 Howard DGA, and a variety of other aircraft, RAF Ambassador Presley Melton of Arkansas says he has the most fun in his open-cockpit AirCam. Years ago, Presley journeyed out west in his RV8, enjoying Idaho’s groomed turf airfields, but realized he wanted something that he…
Read MoreBritt Lincoln
Aviation runs deep in Lincoln family history. Brittanee grew up on a Montana ranch next to her family’s grass airstrip. She loved exploring the backcountry with her father who taught her to fly. Britt became their fourth generation pilot in 2017, and obtained five ratings within a year. At the age of 38, Britt has…
Read MoreAlaine Olthafer-Lange and Andy Lange
You’ll notice a buzz of youthful activity at A&A Aviation at Platteville Municipal Airport, (KPVB) in southwest Wisconsin. The young couple Alaine Olthafer-Lange and her husband Andy Lange began with a Cherokee for instruction. They expanded into an FBO, adding another aircraft and pilot services. When the airport manager retired, they became airport managers, taking…
Read MoreRichard Greensted
There’s aviation, and then there’s recreational aviation. Pilot Richard Greensted knows both. Beginning at age 14 with his intention to become a commercial pilot, he is fulfilling an aviation career flying for Alaska Airlines, based in Portland, Oregon. He and his family love camping, and his kids have grown up camping at Nehalem Bay State Park in…
Read MoreBogdan Gutowski
So, where does the name “Bogdan” come from? “Poland” is his answer. Bogdan’s parents immigrated to the East Coast when he was a child. “They were farmers in Europe, and came over with the four of us kids, and like many Poles, Dad went to work in the steel mills,” he explained. Bogdan chose the…
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