Featured Airstrip
Payson, Arizona, is billed as “Arizona’s Cool Mountain Town,” and recreational aviators give it a big thumbs-up. The airport (KPAN) lies at 5,157 feet elevation beneath the Mogollon Rim and has become a favorite stop for pilots. It’s 50 miles from the hubbub of the busy Phoenix region, yet it offers all the amenities a recreational flyer could want – an uncontrolled, small-town airport – a natural stop for resupply for exploring Arizona’s other backcountry strips. It has 24-hr avgas and Jet A, and a courtesy car, available with 24-hour prior reservation, so you can explore the area and discover a wealth of outdoor recreation and historical sites, trails, and Native ruins. Camping among pinyon pines can start right at the Payson airport, where you’ll find a dozen campsites, each with a picnic table, grill, fire ring, and stocked firewood. Join new friends in the ramada, or around the group fire ring under the clear night sky. There are ADA restrooms with hot showers. The Crosswinds Restaurant is right on the airport and welcomes you for breakfast and lunch. Patrons highly recommend their pies. Payson has a very active Parks and Recreation department that organizes events throughout the year. Of special interest to aviators is their annual Aerofair in October. Admission is free, and the ramp is lined with all kinds of vendors and displays. You may see a Marine VTOL demo, a T-34 formation flyover, or strap in a Huey or a Cobra for a helicopter ride. You can choose from a mouth-watering variety of local foods. Experience community spirit during other warm weather events like free movies in the park, pro rodeo weekends, and golf tournaments. Fall brings public 5K run-walk events, flag football, and hay rides; and Christmas is lit up with the annual parade of lights. Payson gleams with community pride, and you can see the full story here . Find more about the Payson Airport in the Airfield Guide .
Mount Tobe, N41, is a gem of an airfield, supported by the RAF and very devoted local volunteers who raise money for maintenance during their annual Mt.Toberfest fly-in, coming up October 10-12. Thanks to RAF Connecticut Liaison Brian Thomas, two RAF grants have enabled volunteers to improve amenities at the airfield a
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. The RAF is pleased to feature Olympic Field, between Port Townsend and Sequim, Washington, and announce the completion of its newest amenity, a multi-purpose solar kiosk for charging devices and displaying information. This project was supported by…
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month’s Featured Airstrip is Goodspeed Airport, 42B, a most deserving place that welcomes visitors to land, camp and stroll through the nearby traditional New England village of East Haddam, CT. Last year, RAF volunteers used an RAF grant to install four tent…
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Henderson Field, Illinois. Henderson Field, Illinois, 95IL lies near the Ohio River, bordering the southern unglaciated tip of Illinois with Kentucky. It’s among Illinois’ most scenic areas adjoining Shawnee National Forest, and near Garden-of-the-Gods, Cave-in-Rock, and the Lusk Creek Canyon Wilderness. Check out the forested River to River trail, known for hiking among a variety of wetlands, grasslands and bluffs. The 2,000-ft turf airfield is privately owned by John and Cindy Henderson who welcome visitors to enjoy camping in the shade of the trees, and swimming or fishing in the adjacent small lake. If your angling is successful, you can smoke your catch right there on the smoker! The RAF fire ring is stocked with firewood, and the owner graciously allows access to water and restroom in the shop building. To cool off in the lake, you may be able to use one of the canoes, or kayaks. Hendersons cooperated with RAF volunteers using an RAF grant to install a new windsock, the fire ring, and make safety improvements to the runway. Hay is grown on the runway, so the field is closed seasonally. Prior to landing, you must review the required Safety Briefing and contact owner John Henderson at 618-201-0293 or email at flyn5@hotmail.com . Henderson Field is one of Illinois’ darkest sky areas, making it a perfect spot for stargazers, and the local astronomical society enjoys bringing their telescopes to fly-in events at the field to explore the night sky. At last year’s event, one 30-inch diameter telescope was so large, it required its own trailer and a ladder to step up to the eyepiece. Find out more about Henderson Field and acknowledge the required Safety Briefing in the Airfield Guide .
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Lone Pine, California. Lone Pine Airport, O26 is a great place to stage exploration of backcountry airstrips in the West, such as Panamint Springs Resort, and Death Valley National Park, including Chicken Strip in the Saline Valley; and Whitney Portal, a wooded canyon with campgrounds within towering granite cliffs. Trails from the Portal access the John Muir Wilderness, and Sequoia National Park. This airport has become highly appealing to recreational pilots and visitors, thanks to a crew of Friends of Lone Pine Airport volunteers who recognized the airport’s historic past, and its recreational potential. Since 2022, the RAF has awarded two grants to assist with infrastructure improvements. Visitors now enjoy modern flush toilets, and its refreshed historic 1940s terminal that now serves as a pilot shelter, meeting room, and kitchen for visitors’ use. Thanks to contributions from the RAF and local partners, more improvements are planned for the terminal building in 2025. The airport has a 3,990-foot asphalt runway, and dirt crosswind option, 24-hr fuel and AWOS. It’s close to the small town’s restaurants, diners, and hotels. At 3,678 elevation, visitors can look west a dozen miles and see 14,491-ft Mount Whitney, California’s highest peak. Phenomenally, just 60 miles to the east of Lone Pine is Death Valley’s Furnace Creek airport, where your altimeter winds backwards to below sea level as you roll onto final. You’re now in the Western Hemisphere’s lowest elevation. Lone Pine’s Backcountry Fly-in usually happens in early October, and locals lead fly-outs to unique and interesting airstrips in the surrounding desert – some of which are supported by the RAF. The old “Tunnel Air Camp” hangar – former headquarters for bush pilot guides – was also rejuvenated, and at the 2024 fly-in, a local band used it for a stage to entertain Lone Pine guests. The airport is owned by the City of Los Angeles, and leased for public access by Inyo County. For more information on Lone Pine, see the Airfield Guide . Submitted January 29, 2025 By Carmine Mowbray
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Mexican Mountain, Utah. Viewing a full moon while camped in the pinyon-junipers alongside Utah’s San Rafael River at Mexican Mountain airstrip is an unforgettable experience. From its 4,460-ft elevation you can hike among multi-colored buttes, pinnacles, and alcoves. Mexican Mountain towers over the panoramic meandering canyon at 6,900 feet. The region is rich with visible history, going back to the geologic formation of the 70-mile-long San Rafael Swell, obvious from the air east-southeast of the airstrip. Just a five minute walk from the airstrip you can view petroglyphs thought to have been left by peoples of the Fremont, Paiute, and Ute cultures that lived in the region from 2,000 to 700 years ago. More recent history includes gun skirmishes between Butch Cassidy’s “Robbers Roost Gang” and a local sheriff, detailed on a placard.
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Rainelle, West Virginia. Rainelle, (WV30) is a privately owned 3,300-ft turf airfield where visitors are invited to land, hike, and camp in a peaceful mountaintop setting with an amazing view. You’ll enjoy the new restrooms and shower house, thanks to the funds and planning/installation efforts of RAF Supporter Scott White, RAF Pennsylvania/West Virginia Liaison Chip Vignolini who secured an RAF grant, and local volunteers from the local EAA chapter and Cessna Owners. The facility is near the camping and tie-down area and has electrical outlets for charging devices. There are plans to add a dishwashing sink in 2025. Visitors are discovering that this remote airfield is a great base from which to explore southern West Virginia. In the town of Rainelle, set out on the Meadow River Rail Trail, a 23-mile converted railroad grade. Hikers, bicyclists and horseback riders find themselves surrounded in nature all the way to the town of Nallen. See “the church that chestnuts built,” Rainelle Methodist Church, the world’s largest structure built entirely out of American Chestnut wood. The owner appreciates a call before you plan to land. For more information, see the Airfield Guide . Submitted October 30, 2024 By Carmine Mowbray
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin. This airport promises an “Exceptional Airport Experience,” and they readily fulfill that claim. It’s an ideal place to begin exploring the Northwoods of Wisconsin. In addition to its 3,500-ft paved runway, it has a 3,300-ft turf runway, where camping is allowed in the grassy area adjacent to the ramp. The attractive terminal building nearby has restroom facilities which remain open 24/7. “We’d like to establish D25 as a ‘hub’ for flying adventures to many backcountry strips in Wisconsin, Upper Michigan, and nearby Minnesota,” Airport Committee member, RAF Supporter and pilot Jerry Wilke says. “Strips like Gillette’s, Hanley, and Cornucopia… as well as grass strips with nearby restaurants like Land O’ Lakes and Three Lakes.” “D25 is also a great location for before or after AirVenture in Oshkosh,” he added. A snazzy courtesy SUV is available for use by pilots and their guests. Bicycles and a golf cart are also available in the terminal. Enjoy the five-minute ride downtown and select from many shopping and dining choices. The airport has 24-hour 100LL and is also home to sightseeing tours and air charter operators. This airport even has a live webcam so you can see for yourself current conditions and the lay of the land. Here’s the link . The town welcomes visitors to two annual events, its Wheels, Wings, and Watercraft show; and what they call the “Flying Hamburger Social Fly-in”. For information on these and other events, see the Manitowish Waters Visitor Bureau newsletter at: https://manitowishwaters.org/e-newsletter/ Manitowish Waters has great flying scenes and adventures, from vast Lake Superior to the local Cranberry Harvest (above). Find more information, and post your own comments on Manitowish Waters in the Airfield Guide . Submitted September 30, 2024 By Carmine Mowbray
Each month we highlight an airstrip with hopes that you will get out and enjoy these special places. This month, we’re featuring Hanley Field, Michigan. Trio of Appeal: Scenic Recreation, Camper Amenities, and Community Support Hanley Field, the 4,000-ft turf airfield on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan boasts much more than beautiful scenery and a great place to camp. Discover this area for yourself, and take advantage of the new facilities brought about with the help of a substantial RAF grant, with support and encouragement of the Alger County Commission and many local volunteers, including the Marquette EAA Chapter. RAF Michigan Liaison General Grant said, “It’s been wonderful working with the community of Munising.” Imagine paddling your own kayak among the technicolor caves in Lake Superior, or hiking among the waterfalls within the National Park Service Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Or trying to name the myriad of hues during autumn in the mixed forest. Enjoy spectacular scenery by leisurely tour boat, or a breathtaking “Riptide Ride.” You can view some of the shipwrecks that Lake Superior has claimed from a glass-bottom boat. Pontoon boats and kayaks are available for rent. Visitors can explore on their own or take a commercial tour to enjoy sand dunes and deep forests, or spectacular views of sandstone cliffs and formations, caves, and waterfalls tumbling into the turquoise freshwater of Lake Superior. This is all accessible from Hanley Field, just three miles southeast of the town of Munising, Michigan. It’s an all-season destination, but winter snow closes the airfield. Aviation weather at Hanley is accessible via text message. An RAF grant provided funds at Hanley Field for a restroom, shower, kitchenette, and more. The town of Munising, though small, offers shops, restaurants, and galleries that showcase the town’s vibrant personality, and a chance to learn the rich history of the region. Find more about Hanley Field in the Airfield Guide. Submitted July 31, 2024 By Carmine Mowbray
Recent Posts
At about this time, every year, we have this conversation at the RAF about what our year end letter (code for asking for your financial support) should say to you, and about the RAF and the accomplishments of the past year.
Our many RAF supporters have such vast and varied experience, and we’re capturing some of their words of wisdom to share with you. This guest editorial is by Stef Goza, a pilot and an RAF Alaska liaison.
Bill credits aviation for much of his success in business and the ability to serve his companies and family. What began in a Champ, and a Tri-Pacer owned by five people, turned into what Bill calls, “a key business tool” in which he accumulated 9,000 hours – in a Cheyenne, a Pilatus, and a TBM, where ninety-five percent of his flying was for business. “My retirement enabled me to recall ‘Why I Learned to Fly’, a slogan from an old RAF video.” Bill’s son, Patrick, purchased the C185 they now share. “While attending a business function, some associates arrived in corporate jets. As they joined up on the tarmac, the jet pilots gathered around Patrick’s 185, and one of the passengers asked, ‘What’s special about this?’ No explanation needed for this RAF audience,” Bill says. “My involvement in the RAF is, in a partial way, repaying the rewards aviation has endowed me with. Having been involved in many worthwhile nonprofits, this is one where financial support is only part of the picture. Physically participating in great projects that have a lasting effect, with good people, returns a great personal benefit,” he says. “My only regret is that I wasn’t there at the start.” Bill and his wife Jane are privileged to be able to split time between their long-time home in eastern Nebraska and Scottsdale, Arizona. While still serving on several boards, he enjoys golf “about every third shot,” biking, cars, and reading, but always looks forward to the time he can be involved in the RAF. “It’s flying with a purpose,” he adds. Bill can be reached at bdugan@theraf.org
AR Ambassador
A Christmas gift of flight lessons from his parents started Scott Anttila’s aviation journey in 1985. “I learned at Johnson Field, a small grass strip tucked into the woods in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and that early exposure to simple backcountry flying stuck with me,” Scott says. Growing up in the U.P., he spent a lot of time outdoors and found that flying was another way to get to the places he liked to explore—especially the ones most people never saw. As he earned more ratings and eventually moved to the Detroit area for work, Scott realized he needed a way to stay connected to northern Michigan. He bought an airplane and used it to get back to the smaller airstrips and lake country he enjoyed. Along the way, he also flew gliders out of Frankfort, soaring along the Sleeping Bear Dunes and towing sailplanes over the Great Lakes. “Those flights gave me a different appreciation for the landscape and made me even more interested in the small, out-of-the-way airports scattered around the state,” he says. Visiting those kinds of places, Scott first came across the Recreational Aviation Foundation. He started using RAF-supported airstrips both inside and outside Michigan. “I noticed how well-kept they were and how much access they opened up,” he says, adding, ”Over the years, I’ve watched a number of grass strips close, which made the RAF’s mission feel especially important to me. Maintaining these airstrips keeps aviation connected to the outdoors and makes it possible for more people to reach the quiet, remote areas that inspired me to fly in the first place.” Scott joins the other two RAF Michigan Liaisons, General Grant and Tanmoy Ganguly. He can be reached at santtila@theraf.org . Submitted December 11, 2025.
