News

Moose Creek Ranger Station is one of the oldest in the USFS at 102 this year. The short runway (04/24) at the Ranger Station turns 92 this year. The runways were created with heavy equipment brought in piece by piece and reassembled, but once the Wilderness Act was signed in 1964, mechanized equipment was no longer allowed.…

Each year, the Montana Pilots Association coordinates a work party with the US Forest Service at Meadow Creek airstrip, 0S1 above the South Fork of the Flathead River along the Bob Marshall Wilderness. MPA volunteers, MT Aeronautics staff, the occasional state aircraft and RAF volunteers mow the airstrip, tie-down and camping area, clean the R.T.…

The RAF supports the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to protect and maintain the primitive airstrip adjacent to the historic Rager Ranger Station. Located in the Ochoco National Forest in Central Oregon, the Rager Ranger Station served as the administrative site for the Paulina Ranger District for over 105 years. The administrative functions of the station were…

RAF Washington State Liaison Dave Whitelaw was awarded an RAF grant in April to preserve amenities and increase safety at Avey Field, (O6S) near Laurier, WA. Whitelaw’s intention has been to tend to the field to keep it open. The funds provided for a new windsock, the re-setting of the outhouse on a new vault, and leveling…

Ryan Field now has four hard-sided camping cabins, thanks to the efforts of volunteers who wrapped up the project during the June 9-11 work party. RAF supporters flying in may reserve a cabin by emailing ryancabins@theraf.org. Twenty volunteers completed many other tasks to clean and prepare all the facilities for the flying season, including bear boxes, gutters,…

RAF Illinois Ambassador David Warner is using an RAF grant to make upgrades to Henderson Field near Golconda. The field offers many recreational opportunities, and volunteers will use the funds to install a new windsock, RAF fire ring, apply lime, and roll the runway to improve the surface. Henderson Field is a privately owned 2,410-ft grass…

When former RAF Director and pilot Peter Burwell learned that it was taking twelve hours to mow the turf field at Michigan’s North Fox Island, he began the search for a suitable John Deere mower. Burwell, CEO of C&B Operations, a network of John Deere dealerships throughout the Midwest, located a mower in Luverne, MN,…

Each year, RAF volunteers help out at Bob and Judy Gillette’s beautiful Lakewood Lodge, Wisconsin, in appreciation for Gillettes welcoming the public to use their airfield, 14WS. RAF Director Jeff Russell reports that this year’s weather for the May 19-21 weekend work party was perfect, and over a dozen volunteers tackled all the projects Judy had listed. “We must…

RAF Oregon Liaison Bill Ables reports that April 22 brought perfect weather and 16 aircraft from Washington, Idaho, and Oregon into Hells Canyon to help with an annual Canyon airstrips volunteer work party.   Everyone arrived at Dug Bar, OR8. “We enjoyed the heat of a campfire for a short time while we introduced ourselves around the group of…