Welcome to EAA Chapter 54. We speak aviation!

From its beginnings in the late '50s, Chapter 54 of the Experimental Aircraft Association has served aviation enthusiasts, dreamers, aircraft builders, pilots, would-be pilots, and individuals interested in helping young people become aviators in the East Metro of Minnesota's Twin Cities. 

We hold a gathering on the second Monday of each month at the Chapter House at Lake Elmo Airport (21D) to talk aviation and socialize.  We provide Young Eagles rides and aviation scholarships. We help people who are building airplanes.  But you don't need to be a pilot to participate in our activities.

Please come to our next gathering as our guest. Let us know you're coming so you can be properly greeted and introduced to the chapter.

Member meeting
Situational awareness as the foundation of decision making

In his address to Chapter 54 at the regular November member meeting on Monday, Dr. Matt Cooper  summed up the world we’re dealing with in four words: Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity.

It’s the world for pilots, given that 80 percent of aircraft accidents are pilot induced.  Is it because these pilots don’t have “the right stuff”?

“That’s a fallacy,” Cooper said.  “The best performers make the biggest errors, according to Dr. James Reason. Every operation we endeavor has a degree of risk. It’s up to us to access the risk and develop a plan for that.”

Cooper uses the Swiss cheese analogy for aircraft accidents. Each slice represents multiple threats – red flags, if you will. Each slice is something that goes wrong. “And each is an opportunity. We can intervene and redirect the trajectories.”  He said if you look at major disasters, there are a minimum of four things that usually went wrong.

Situational awareness, he said, is the foundation of decision making. “It has several levels,” he said. “It is the ability to predict a future state. It’s a team sport and an individual sports. It is a perception but it’s not a perception without analysis.” Read more >>

Ray Scholar Update
Good thoughts for Elisha

Three weeks ago, Elisha Redmann, Chapter 54’s Ray Scholarship recipient, was playing volleyball in Stillwater when he collapsed. He had no pulse, his dad, Trent, recounted the moment he received a phone call, at a meeting of Chapter 54 members on Monday November 10. “My wife and I hopped into our car and we’re driving as fast as we can. A few minutes later, they called and said, ‘he has a heartbeat.’”

Trent learned later that local medical teams from the firehouse next door were doing constant CPR. “And luckily, they had a defibrillator on site. I mean, he’s 18 years old. They shocked his heart twice and got his heart into rhythm again, and they were struggling to get him intubated.

“My wife posted on Facebook while we waited at Regions and instantly, we had hundreds of people all across the world praying for Elisha. Read more >>

Bylaws
In spirited discussion, membership approves bylaw changes

Prior to the start of the evening program on Monday (11/10) the chapter held its annual election. Dan Theis and Mark Shanahan were elected directors by acclimation, succeeding Board of Directors members Scott Hanson and Bob Collins. Theis will be the new facilities director. Shanahan takes over as member coordinator. All other chapter officers and directors stood for re-election without opposition.

Somewhat surprisingly, the proposed bylaw revisions encountered more headwinds than expected. Clauses that replaced the newsletter with the website as the official means of notification seemed easily endorsed, but a proposal to eliminate a section on standing committees and requiring members of the Board of Directors to serve on one came generated discussion. Bob Collins, who proposed the changes to the Board of Directors in May (the Board approved the reworked changes in June) said the bylaw section doesn't reflect current chapter practices and there's no need to force members of the board onto non-existent committees, particularly when Board members are already the ones who do most of the work in the chapter.

Critics of the proposal suggested the section gives the chapter a roadmap for setting up committees. But Collins said there's nothing preventing the president and Board of Directors from setting up committees in the future and, if they do, they should operate under whatever parameters the situation calls for rather than being restricted by bylaws that are potentially outdated by then. Read more >>

 Ray Scholarship
Who wants to learn to fly?

In the event Chapter 54 receives a Ray Scholarship in 2026, the process of applying for all-expenses-paid flight training is now open and there is a deadline - December 1, so there's no time to waste. This is a very competitive scholarship.

Applicants for the scholarship must be, or become, Chapter members. Those applicants with a lengthy history of participation in, and better yet, service to, Chapter 54 are at an advantage in competing for a Ray Scholarship award. Demonstration of academic achievement, or promising performance in practice FAA written flight examinations also provide an advantage to applicants since the Chapter may be penalized for future Ray awards if our scholar does not succeed in earning a pilot’s certificate. Additional consideration will be given to candidates who are former Young Eagles, EAA student members, and actively participating in the EAA Flight Plan, specifically the Sporty’s Learn to Fly Course. Application with Chapter 54 for a Ray scholarship includes: a description of your (and your family’s) past involvement with the chapter your most recent academic transcript (or some form of standardized test result, both can be waived if you have already passed the FAA written flight exam) a 150-250 word written explanation of why you should be selected for the award a letter of recommendation by a teacher, CFI, or chapter member. The scholarship committee may request that you sit for an interview with them.

There is more information on our Ray Scholarship page.

Events
Did someone say "party"?

It's time to celebrate another great year at Chapter 54 and renew acquaintances with one another and our families. The Board of Directors last week voted to schedule the 2025 Holiday Party  on Monday December 15, starting at 6 pm and the Chapter House at Lake Elmo Airport. You and your family and/or friends are invited. The chapter will provide pizza and soft drinks/water. If you want something harder, you're free to bring it.  Attendees are encouraged to bring along salads and desserts to share. And again, Vice President Schrankler will conduct his annual aviation trivia contest. There might even be prizes to go along with the honor of victory. Space is somewhat limited, so it's really important for members to RSVP (i.e. let us know even if you can't attend) and do so quickly. It only takes a moment and you can do so right here.

In the meantime, willing members of the Board of Directors will be setting up the Chapter House for the party on Tuesday Dec. 2 at 3 pm, the day after the Gary Powers Jr., presentation. It's not easy work and they might be able to use you. Contact Marlon Gunderson.

Related: November Board of Directors minutes

Events
Gary Powers Jr. speaks to EAA 54 on December 1

The son of the famous U-2 pilot shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960 while flying a CIA spy mission will be speaking at the 54 Chapter House on Monday December 1.  Gary Powers Jr., has written a book about his dad, Francis Gary Powers.  He has lectured on the Cold War, U-2 Incident and the need to honor Cold War veterans, preserve Cold War history, and educate future generations about this time period for over 35 years. His book Spy Pilot: Francis Gary Powers, the U-2 Incident, and a Controversial Cold War Legacy, is intended to "set the record straight in regard to the fake news that surround the U-2 Incident and tarnished my father’s reputation," he told member Jeff Hove, who is arranging the presentation. "It gives an overview of what it was like to grow up in the shadow of a famous Cold War figure, my search for the truth after my father’s 1977 death in a helicopter when I was 12 years old, and how my research led to the USAF and CIA posthumously awarding my father the POW Medal / Director’s Medal and Silver Star in 2000 and 2012."

The event is not the December chapter program and is being funded at Hove's expense, so a donation is being requested by Hove from attendees. The presentation is expected to last one hour.

"My 1-hour program consists of showing a few short video clips and a PowerPoint presentation from a flash drive. During my talk I discuss the Cold War, U-2 Incident and what it was like to be a consultant on Spielberg’s 2015 Cold War thriller, /Bridge of Spies/, that depicts my father’s shootdown and eventual exchange with Pryor for Soviet spy Rudolph Able in 1962 at the Glienicker Bridge in Potsdam, Germany."

While registration is not required, doing so will aid in planning the evening. Please register here.

All chapter news and stories >>