FEATURED RAF SUPPORTER: PAUL WELKE
Paul and Angela Welke own Island Airways on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan, at Welke Airport, 6Y8, 27 nm from Charlevoix, where Welkes also have a base. RAF Michigan Liaison General Grant says, “Paul is always offering his services and has been incredible about answering calls for help from North Fox Island, 18 nm from Welke’s airport.”
The RAF helped to reopen North Fox Island in 2015, reclaiming the airfield and adding camping amenities when Brad Federick was RAF Michigan Liaison. Since then, it has become a very popular recreational location. Brad says, “Paul has helped us out often on North Fox, flying the first mower and other equipment over to the island. He’s also done some flyovers to check on people, if their loved one was worried. He’d check and confirm that yes, there was a tent there.”
Paul and Angela Welke own Island Airways on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan, at Welke Airport, 6Y8, 27 nm from Charlevoix, where Welkes also have a base. RAF Michigan Liaison General Grant says, “Paul is always offering his services and has been incredible about answering calls for help from North Fox Island, 18 nm from Welke’s airport.” The RAF helped to reopen North Fox Island in 2015, reclaiming the airfield and adding camping amenities when Brad Federick was RAF Michigan Liaison. Since then, it has become a very popular recreational location. Brad says, “Paul has helped us out often on North Fox, flying the first mower and other equipment over to the island. He’s also done some flyovers to check on people, if their loved one was worried. He’d check and confirm that yes, there was a tent there.”
Beaver Islanders who live year round – as well as the thousands of tourists who visit this 56 square mile place – also appreciate Welke’s Part 135 operation. Their comfortable, capable Britten Norman Islanders fly 28,000 to 30,000 passengers per year. The 15-minute flight saves waiting to board one of two ferries, then plying the moody waters of Lake Michigan over two hours each way from Charlevoix. Paul says winds can gust 35 or more knots in the region. Lake Michigan is infamous for swallowing ships. In fact, within swimming distance of one of Beaver island’s beaches, there is a 1689 shipwreck considered the “holy grail” of shipwreck hunters.
The ferries cease operating from mid-December to mid-April due to ice, but that doesn’t stop Islanders from needing transportation. “A huge part of our business is freight, US mail, Fed Ex, and UPS,” Paul said. In a medical emergency, Island Air serves as an air ambulance, and within 15 minutes can prepare an Islander aircraft for a stretcher with a patient plus a paramedic and EMT. “We typically do 30-35 medical evacuations a year, getting people off the island. Some evacuations are so urgent we get folks to the hospital within the golden hour,” Paul said.