General Aviation on a Mission: An Illustrated Introduction

The Aero Experience has launched a new series of feature stories, called General Aviation on a Mission, to celebrate the positive impact of general aviation on our society. As mentioned in the previous post, a wide range of examples of this theme can be found in our story archives. This brief pictorial review of those special moments will illustrate the generosity and ingenuity of the general aviation community.

Growing Aviation: Leading by Example

General aviation aircraft owners regularly participate in STEM education programs to promote career opportunities in the aviation and aerospace industries. These efforts are often voluntary participation in regional or national programs sponsored by non-profit organizations. Here we feature Amelia Rose Earhart raising funds for flight training scholarships; AeroCareers sponsoring the appearance of the Lancair Columbia The New Spirit of St. Louis used by Erik Lindbergh to recreate his grandfather's famous solo transatlantic flight; EAA Young Eagles free first flights for youth aged 8-17; Jill Rempala's Cessna 150 employed as a pre-flight training aid for the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation's Intro to Flight class; Piston Aviation's Future Pilots Fund scholarship airplane raffle; Elite Aviation hosts the Red Tail Cadet Program providing flight training and youth mentoring to area high school students; and John Fester gives an incentive flight in his T-28 warbird to Red Tail Cadet D.J. Beal.

Humanitarian Aviation: Meeting Needs Where They Live

Non-profit aviation service organizations leverage their resources to fund humanitarian air operations in the U.S. and around the world. In these examples, we show how general aviation aircraft types are the best choices to gain access to both American airports and austere landing strips and harbors in undeveloped nations. Here we include the Medical Relief and Air Transport Program from St. Louis-based Wings of Hope; Flying Medical Service in Arusha, Tanzania; Arusha Medivac also in Tanzania; Samaritan Aviation in Papua, New Guinea; MiracleAir in Fiji Islands; Hands of Compassion in Guatemala; and the Civil Air Patrol.

Honoring Our Heritage: Celebrating Veterans and Their Families

We include these flights in our coverage of General Aviation on a Mission to celebrate the service of our military veterans and their families. Three non-profit organizations are represented here, each providing flights in warbirds by volunteer pilots who devote their own time and resources to remain current and available for what are often called Heritage Flights. Included below are the Missouri Wing of the Commemorative Air Force with their B-25 Show Me and Stearman trainer; Dream Flights Stearman; and Gateway Chapter of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation Huey helicopter.

Other Amazing and Fun Missions

General Aviation on a Mission can be as personal as each individual contributor. We conclude our pictorial with a look at some highly creative and satisfying flights: Cathy Babis becomes the first female seaplane pilot to circumnavigate mainland Australia; a LifeLine Pilots crew stopped at Mount Vernon Outland Airport on a cross-country journey to deliver their canine passengers for service dog training in Cedar Rapids, IA; Paul Voorhees flew The Aero Experience on our photo mission around St. Louis with ExtremeFlight airshow pilot Patrick McAlee; and Gregg Adam donated his time and Airbus helicopter to deliver Santa Clause to the National Museum of Transportation to kick off the Christmas season.   

This is just a small sample of the General Aviation on a Mission stories we have covered over the years. Check back frequently for more Midwest  Aviation content here and on The Aero Experience Facebook and  Instagram pages. Also check out @fly_with_alexis for even more amazing content!

The Aero Experience Launches New Series to Celebrate the Positive Impact of General Aviation

The Aero Experience is launching a new series of feature stories, called General Aviation on a Mission, to celebrate the positive impact of general aviation on our society. This is a necessarily broad topic, one that can accommodate a wide range of examples and still maintain a common theme: The intentional use of general aviation to serve a specific purpose or need that would otherwise not be met. Most of the stories within this series will involve only one or very few individuals, though some involve an "extended family" of corporate participants such as aviation non-profits and flight schools to ensure success. 

For the context of the General Aviation on a Mission series, general aviation is loosely defined as including the types of aircraft not usually employed in commercial operations, and there are some exceptions based on the specific type certificates and owners involved. On the whole, General Aviation on a Mission will illustrate the generosity and ingenuity of the general aviation community while working within the regulatory environment and prioritizing safety. 

Carmelo Turdo

"The General Aviation on a Mission concept has been part of The Aero Experience coverage of Midwest Aviation since our inception, though we did not apply that label to our stories at the time. In the past, we did post a series entitled, 2016 Year In Aviation Service, which focused more on service organizations with personnel and logistical support systems in place for their general aviation fleet. We will include their service as well along with the more numerous examples of individuals stepping up to fill a need with a uniquely personal solution."

- Carmelo Turdo, Founder of The Aero Experience

Alexis Noel

"General aviation is so much more than meets the eye. What General Aviation on a Mission means to me is everyday people playing a vital role in helping communities, saving lives, and supporting critical tasks that are sometimes outside of the scope of commercial aviation. General Aviation on a Mission goes beyond just flying for pleasure. It is flight with a purpose and real-world impact."

- Alexis Noel, The Aero Experience Contributor/Media Representative

The stories featured in the General Aviation on a Mission series will be all original material reported by The Aero Experience Team, with occasional guest posts from around the Midwest Aviation community. Here we include several examples of General Aviation on a Mission posts from previous years as we prepare our new material going forward. As always, we welcome your suggestions for future content on this or related Midwest Aviation topics.

Aviation Community Provides Aerial Salute to Veteran at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery   

Retired Pilot Gets Wish of a Lifetime Flight at Elite Aviation  

Midwest Aviation Expo Becomes LifeLine Pilots Waypoint for Future Service Dogs

Check back frequently for more General Aviation on a Mission stories and other Midwest Aviation content here and on The Aero Experience Facebook and Instagram pages. Also check out @fly_with_alexis for even more amazing content!

Creve Coeur Airport Pre-Spring March Update

By Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience begins the month of March with a visit to 

Creve Coeur Airport (1H0) on Saturday. We have new updates to our coverage of following the recent Winter Visit to Creve Coeur Airport post.  

Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation Non-Profit 501(c)(3)  

The Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation continues to host their popular Intro to Flight program, an 8-week course that gives students and young adults aged 14-25 practical exposure to the basic knowledge and skills necessary to begin flight training or other aviation - related careers with confidence. Students from Classes 23 and 24 were nearing the midway point of their course on Saturday, shown here with class instructor David Harrington and Foundation President Joe Steimann. This week's session covered interpretation of flight instruments and flying patterns on the VR-capable flight simulators.

Gateway Chapter of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation and Flying Museum Non-Profit 501 (c)(3) Organization

Also on Saturday, The Aero Experience visited the Gateway Chapter of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation and Flying Museum. The Gateway Chapter is part of the national organization whose mission is to "honor the sacrifice and service of veterans and their families by preserving and promoting the legacy of Army Aviation." The Foundation sponsors the Sky Soldiers Demonstration Team seen at airshows across the nation, and the local chapters also provide ride events at their base and other locations within their region. Huey 104 flew her first post-maintenance test flight last week. Here she is shown with a new red cross nose door emblem installed for her role as a medevac in the upcoming Defenders of Liberty Airshow at Barksdale AFB, LA. Also, the installation of the turbine engine in the chapter's Cobra is nearing completion, with the first test flight of the year coming soon. The Gateway Chapter's next ride events will be May 17 and June 7 at Creve Coeur Airport. 

Flight training continues to grow at Creve Coeur Airport, and here we feature a Piston Aviation Piper Cherokee and Gateway Flight Training Cessna 182 on local training flights. Also included here are the departures of a Flight Design CTLS light sport aircraft and the fully aerobatic Extra NG, both based at the airport.