The Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF), which works to preserve, maintain, and create new recreational and backcountry airstrips, has support in all 50 states now.
During AOPA Aviation Summit in November, the RAF added its newest supporter, Jack Dixon of Haiku, Hawaii. The RAF has grown rapidly this year, and as AOPA previously reported, is seeking an executive director.
Nearly 300 aviation enthusiasts demonstrated their support for the RAF, which displayed a booth in the Long Beach Convention Center in California during Summit. The RAF also participated in the AOPA Aviation Summit Dine Arounds, which gave RAF President John McKenna an opportunity to talk with pilots and guests from Florida, Texas, Washington, and California.
According to McKenna in an AOPA Live interview with AOPA Editor in Chief Tom Haines, the RAF started 10 years ago with a group of pilots around a campfire at a backcountry airstrip as pilots talked about the need to protect these airstrips. McKenna also told Haines of the group’s efforts to protect and maintain these strips and how pilots can get involved.