Whether you fly, build, restore or simply enjoy airplanes and aviation, you are welcome to attend our events and join our Chapter.  We are a group of aviation enthusiasts, aircraft builders, and pilots who get together with like minded people to share ideas, exchange information, encourage safety, serve the local aviation community and have a lot of fun doing so. Please come to our next meeting or event as our guest.  We normally meet at the Menominee County airport terminal the second Tuesday of every month at 5:00 p.m.

Airport News

Enstrom Helicopter Corporation announced “their turbine-powered 480B helicopter has achieved full regulatory compliance with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), meaning Enstrom is ready to begin arranging delivery as of April 10th. … the 480B …is signed off for full airworthiness, and it is available to be sold anywhere in the world.”

 

Chapter News

RAY SCHOLAR PASSES FAA WRITTEN TEST

No surprise there!
Chapter 1672 Scholarship Committee chair Delores Konrad reports:
“Erik Kosch, our Ray Scholar, successfully passed his FAA written exam this morning! I will submit his results and a progress report to EAA for the next payment installment of the Ray Scholarship. He also wrote an essay a successfully qualified for a headset from Light Speed.“ Erik has until September 30, 2026 to complete his Private Pilot Certificate. Since he has accomplished so much during the worst weather of the year, it is likely he will finish his training quickly during the good weather coming up.

Visit to Sporty's

Pat Haneline showed photos from a visit to the home of Sporty’s Pilot Shop at the airport in Claremont, Ohio. The famous pilot shop owns the land surrounding the runway. “We saw their warehouse, editing studio for the courses, and learned about the history of the business from the current CEO. They also run a flight school with 23 Cessna 172 aircraft.”

• Members present: Jeremy, Steve, Pat, Dan, Alan, Rob S., Jeff O., Dennis M., Erik K., Delores, Mark K., Rick B., Pete G., Scott M., Pete, Allison, William C.
• A guest speaker joined us on Zoom. Anthony Nicodemo of Lincoln Park Aviation in NJ, recalled his path from banking to Airline pilot for Republic Airways at age 50, during the pilot shortage of the pandemic. He continued a strong interest in GA and was invited to join a flight school and sales team. His specialty now is with Pipistrel, a division of Textron. He gave insights into procedures of the airline jobs and planes.

Treasurer’s Report:

• Starting combined balance: $12,559.92
• Income: $80 received for snacks; Expense: two scholarship payments totaling $2,300.
• A bank adjustment $50.
• Ending balance: 10,289.92 (Babe Kalishek $1,000; Ray Scholarship $4,800; Chapter funds $4,489.)
  

Scholarship update:

• Cayden has flown for 13 hours. His primary instructor has moved and he will continue with a new one at Blue Sky. Erik Kosch passed his FAA written exam on 4/7 and he won a Light Speed headset. This milestone allows release of the last $2,400 of his Ray Scholarship.

2026 Events:

• Young Eagles (YE) flights (more pilots needed); Flyouts to area airports: AirVenture; Airport Day, Breakfast with Santa if possible.
  

Scholarships.

• In the future we may be eligible for two Ray Scholarships (Chapter funds 25%) plus the Kalishek scholarships. Showcasing multiple recipients builds community trust.
  Young Eagles Scheduling and Pilot Requirements Proposed date May 16;
  Email outreach planned to pilots for these dates; recruit additional pilots.
• Pilots need periodic renewal of background check and youth safety training; training is simple, online, low/no cost; background check takes the longest.
• Flight experience notes: offer brief hands-on control to interested youth during smooth segments.
• Donations: consider donation buckets at Airport Day, not at Young Eagles, to avoid any sense of obligation.
• Consider pancake breakfast for Young Eagles events if manpower allows; supports community engagement and scholarship awareness.

Airport Day

• M&M Auto Club provided a vendor list; confirmed: Northland Emblem Hats, DJ Russ’s Golden Oldies, and DeBacker Farms, Remaining vendors need outreach; coordinate food vendors to avoid overlapping menus (e.g., two burger vendors); consider adding a sweets vendor.
• Volunteers requested for vendor outreach; one attendee offered to work on the official list and contacts.
• Flyers--two sets will be used. Aim to co-brand and better integrate aircraft-side promotion. Hosts to remain EAA. Plan to finalize next month and distribute in May and June.
• Parking: explore using Enstrom lot for vehicle trailers; plan to contact Jackie to confirm.
• County considerations: past issues with vendor subleasing may need county involvement.
• Joint Promotion and Future Collaboration with M&M Auto Club. Desire to evolve event into a “Wings and Wheels”-style show; keep separate flyers but better integrate aircraft content and EAA Chapter messaging.
• Open to co-branding (EAA Chapter + M&M Auto Club) to attract both aviation and vehicle communities.
• Regional guide inclusion anticipated for Menominee County; annotations requested for next year’s flyer improvements.
• A proposed flyer for EAA use was discussed. Last year’s participants will be contacted to see if they are available. Advertising strategy was discussed.
  Airport Day Committee was formed with at least Jeremy and Pat planning to meet between Chapter monthly meetings to hammer out details.
• Signage will be updated to reflect joint participation and new traffic flows.
• The M&M Auto Club will meet with some EAA members on Thursday, June 4th to inspect the airport layout and make a logistical plan for the day.

• Pat Haneline gave a short talk with photos of her visit to Sporty’s Airport in Claremont County, Ohio. She was at a meeting of women pilots and they were given a tour of operations.

   

  Thanks to all our supporters for assisting our chapter