News

To simply call Chuck Jarecki of Polson, Montana, an “RAF Supporter” falls way short of the contributions this pilot and retired rancher has made to the RAF and ...

It’s hard to believe that Ron Normandeau’s aircraft started out as a box of airplane parts. Ron, of Polson, Montana built a beautiful 1947 Aeronca Chief and now ...

Three things stand out among RAF supporter Bob Martin’s passions: aviation, his devotion to Havana Regional Airport, and the newspapers his family started in 1855. Bob is the ...

Pete cut his teeth on light metal fabrication in the business his father started in northern Virginia 50 years ago. They moved it to the central Montana town ...

For a pilot who has flown all over the world, first as a Navy pilot in Sikorsky H3 helicopters, then flying logistic support in the Beechcraft C12, and the ...

“Backcountry is where, adventure is why” – Gordon Rock. During the summer of 1964 while on a 3,600-mile Canadian kayak trip, Gordon Rock of Mercer Island, WA learned that he could hire a floatplane ...

“I’ve had a lot of good fortune,” RAF Supporter Bob Rose says of his career path. Rather than be drafted and sent to Vietnam, Bob applied for pilot ...

A breakfast when Kevin Johnson was in high school determined his future as a pilot. “My dad had served in the US Air Force Reserve as load master ...

When Scott Newpower came on board as an RAF volunteer and Montana Liaison, the organization gained a real bonus with his wife Mary. Her contributions to the RAF are ...

As a kid living in Minnesota, Troy Tirrell was introduced to aviation by his father, a Northwest Airlines pilot. They vacationed in Alaska when Troy was a kid. ...

A person doesn’t forget Rachel Thompson. Wife of RAF Oklahoma Liaison Steve Thompson, she steps out of his gleaming Cessna 180 in the middle of the backcountry, unloads ...

“Mark is a great enthusiast of recreational flying,” RAF Connecticut Liaison Drew Lyons says of retired aeronautical engineer Mark Scott of Bethany, CT. After 37 years with Sikorsky ...

Arnold Bronson owned a successful high-end Scandinavian furniture store in partnership with his brother in Syracuse, NY. In 1973 he and his wife got the travel bug, rented a 31-ft ...

Bob Christensen of Ashton, Idaho may claim a healthy case of beginner’s luck, but those who know him would say he is simply quite skilled. His first aircraft ...

If you are pondering the future of GA, innovator, pilot, and businessman Dan Schwinn has a robust and positive message for you.  Dan, an MIT graduate, put his ...

There is no idle season for RAF supporter and hard working volunteer Lynn Mareth, now of Bigfork, Montana. If her Super Cub has to wait out the “soggy ...

At age 77, Ray Steinmeyer has chosen an encore career that continues his passion for aviation. A career that included professional A&P/IA services, then 30 years with the ...

RAF supporter Joe Feiler of Casper, Wyoming loads his tools into his Cessna Cardinal and brings his skills where the RAF is making an impact. Joe’s 35-years teaching ...

Jim was one of those kids who was fascinated with flight from the start. Living in Wisconsin, he went to Oshkosh regularly. He worked at the FBO as ...

Chet Leach with his backcountry Bearhawk. From his gyrocopter, a Quicksilver, Rans S-12, a Maule, and now a Bearhawk for the backcountry, and a Piper Dakota 235 for ...

Jay PerryCook operates a charter service in the Puget Sound region and enjoys traveling and camping with family and friends. Jay PerryCook and Tim Riley work on the ...

 Chris, in red with his instructor, Charlie Surprenant. ”I just got my seaplane rating. Pretty much sums it up right there with smiles, fun and flying." Chris Arno ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

Alaine and Andy with their PA-18 Super Cub You’ll notice a buzz of youthful activity at A&A Aviation at Platteville Municipal Airport, (KPVB) in southwest Wisconsin. The young ...

Rhys and Richard at Moose Creek, ID 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 ...

Bogdan and his daughter Loren in the Champ. So, where does the name “Bogdan” come from? “Poland” is his answer. Bogdan’s parents immigrated to the East Coast when he ...

This photo is unusual because Duane is standing still. He has rarely been seen standing still since he landed his Cessna 205 at Ryan Airfield in the Spring ...

Pilot and RAF member Perry Null ignited a multi-generational love of flying, especially exploring the backcountry. He began flying “late in life” and often flew between his home ...

Most pilots hanker for ever-faster aircraft after attaining their pilot privileges, eager to get from point A to B swiftly. But not RAF members Bill and Yvette Tracy ...

Ray and his wife load up their 200-hp “Back Country Explorer” and enjoy camping at airstrips in Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.  He’s worked on a few of ...

John was one of those second graders who liked to take things apart. Unlike many, he managed to put things all back together, usually in better condition. Strictly ...

Seventeen-year-old Aaron Trueblood has always been excited about flying. He took time off from his ramp duties at Glacier Jet Center in Kalispell one June day and headed ...

After family, service to community is Bill Ables’ next driving thought and motivation. He was raised in Pendleton, OR and graduated from Oregon State University as a Wildlife Biologist ...

Heidi Stoeppler found a group of what quickly became “the best friends I’ve ever made,” at an RAF fly-in. She visited with Jeff Russell, joined, and when her ...

RAF Featured Member Carmine Mowbray If there was ever an individual who epitomizes volunteerism for the Recreational Aviation Foundation, it is Carmine Mowbray, from Polson, Montana. She has ...

I’ve been flying throughout MT with my father since my earliest memories as a child and have been flying throughout the state and elsewhere since I was 17. ...

The RAF can’t say enough about Jo Schumacher and all she does for the organization. “Jo works her fanny off at Sullivan Lake, Sun ‘n Fun and other ...

I was born in Belleflower, California in 1923. My father was an oilfield worker and wildcatter. Mother graduated from college at age seventeen with an engineering degree from ...

For a woman who works full time as a surgical nurse for the Veteran’s Administration hospital in Portland, OR it’s amazing to consider all the other things Sue ...