The RAF sent a representative there yesterday to learn first hand about the situation. We have had successful discussions with the parties involved. There will be a release posted at www.theraf.org within the hour.

Thank you for the kind comments and trust in the RAF. We think this will have an end result satisfactory to all.

Tim Clifford
Director
The Recreational Aviation Foundation

Great news! THANK YOU!

CAVU

From RAF site.

The “Chicken Strip” at Saline Valley in Death Valley National Park, which was recently closed for safety reasons, should reopen soon due to quick action by the Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF) with the full support of National Park Service (NPS) managers. Death Valley Chief Ranger Brent Pennington reported that a local volunteer, Lizard Lee, had closed the runway by placing large Xs with white painted rocks subsequent to heavy rains and flash flooding from strong thunderstorms.

Within 24 hours of learning of the closure of the Chicken Strip, the RAF sent their Southern California Liaison, John Kounis, to ascertain the extent of the flood damage and meet with Ranger Pennington. The use of a private aircraft was crucial for this assessment, since NPS personnel have not yet been able to visit the Chicken Strip due to washouts of the access road.

John Kounis provided the RAF and NPS photographs of the airstrip that revealed only minimal damage that could be repaired with a work party employing a small number of volunteers. After receiving the RAF photographs, Death Valley National Park Superintendent Sarah Craighead and Chief Ranger Pennington reaffirmed their commitment to reopen the airstrip as soon as possible. Other NPS personnel involved in the decision were National Aviation Specialist Jim Traub and Regional Aviation Specialist Shad Sitz, both of whom are pilots who have previously used the Chicken Strip and advocate its continued operation.

The NPS has few resources to reopen the Chicken Strip due to limited staff and the remote location (Death Valley National Park does not operate any aircraft, so a trip to the Chicken Strip is currently 1 1/2-day trek requiring an overnight stay in the desert). Fortunately, maintenance of the strip falls under a landmark memorandum of understanding between the National Park Service and the Recreational Aviation Foundation.

Superintendent Craighead has one legal concern regarding NPS exposure to liability of volunteer workers. As soon as NPS legal personnel address that concern, the RAF can schedule a work party to reopen the airstrip. Check back on the RAF website for further updates, http://theraf.org.

Let us know when you need a work detail, I need to take some leave, or I'll loose it. I can fly in some tools and such.
Dave Rains
El Paso

Thank you RAF!! Thank you NPS.

Good day

Please give us a heads up for the work detail.

Will do, it seems we are just sorting out one issue with a manager who needs to get comfortable with an outside group doing volunteer work. This person evidently had a bad experience in the past.

Good on all you folks for your diligence, RAF and all. Thanks for letting the government know there are others whom their decisions effect. May never get to Chicken Strip but there are others out there who do use it.
HC

Any latest and greatest on the Chicken Strip. Any work party details. Much more interesting than I pods and angle of attack crap

Tim

The Park Service manager wanted to change a couple of items in the maintenance agreement the RAF had previously signed. We have agreed to those changes and are waiting for a final document to sign so that volunteers can get in there and complete the repairs.

qmdv wrote:Any latest and greatest on the Chicken Strip. Any work party details. Much more interesting than I pods and angle of attack crap

Tim

Somebody gettin a little grumpy?? Errr

58Skylane wrote:

qmdv wrote:Any latest and greatest on the Chicken Strip. Any work party details. Much more interesting than I pods and angle of attack crap

Tim

Somebody gettin a little grumpy?? Errr

No but I sure would not venture into the Chicken Strip with minimal instrumentation. I need at least five more pieces of crap in my old 182 to feel safe going into a place like that.

Back to business. Can the work party fly in to do the work.

Never knew why they call it a party. I remember in the navy they would announce "loading stores, work party topside" In Guam it was no party when just a few degrees above the Equater in March.

Tim

sure hope we can start working on it before it gets too cold there
only 113* at Furnace creek today and getting down to a bone chilling 88* tonight.
Might want to have a Life Flight Helo & crew on stand by.

Tim:
Good question, some of you who have been there have met Lizzard Lee (local legend). He has done at least 75% of the repairs on his own and probably would have completed them but when he was dragging the strip the transmission went out on his vehicle.

We'll get an assessment and determine how much "usable" airstrip there is to land on. That said, I'll bet the Park Service folks would be real nervous about allowing landings on a partial strip.

Even if we have to drive in for the final repairs, several have offered to do it. That should not delay things much.

Once the revised agreement is in hand we'll raise the question and let everyone know.

qmdv wrote:

58Skylane wrote:

qmdv wrote:Any latest and greatest on the Chicken Strip. Any work party details. Much more interesting than I pods and angle of attack crap

Tim

Somebody gettin a little grumpy?? Errr

No but I sure would not venture into the Chicken Strip with minimal instrumentation. I need at least five more pieces of crap in my old 182 to feel safe going into a place like that.


Tim

I'm thinking I should get my IFR rating and stick with airstrips that have ILS/GPS approaches Any backcountry airstrips with ILS/GPS approaches?

Looked at the Chicken strip damage today. THERE IS NONE. If there was any damage it is gone now. The strip needs to be compacted to repair the major damage Lee did with the drag. The ENTIRE strip looks like a plowed field. I asked Lee if there was any reason we (he and I) couldn't go over and remove the rocks and drive up and down about 100 times to compact it. He said the NPS won't allow it to be used. He said they wanted him to leave the Suzuki where it is to be sure in case someone moved the rocks they couldn't land. We are not getting the straight story from anyone.

Anyway on Monday I will get some answers from someone in the Park Service or know why.

He and I could have had it open today (for sure).

Well that's just maddening.

Anyone is certainly free to take action as they see fit. What the RAF is trying to do is establish a documented agreement for maintenance going forward.

There is no guarantee that this would be a permanent fix but it is the way these government folks feel comfortable working.

The park service is working on a new plan for this area and I am concerned that should we get agressive now they will take on a position to close the airstrips in the new plan. They might not win in the long run but it would be a long tough fight and we sure would prefer not to spend the time or money if it can be avoided.

We have made trusted friends of the chief at the Forest Service and BLM; we met with both last week and hope to establish the same trust at the NPS.

Again, not telling anyone what they should / should not do, just wanted to make sure any decisions / actions are made and taken with a good understanding of the RAF's position.

We all want the same thing and we all get frustrated with how slow government moves.

A bit of history:

Aug 7 : I saw large white X's and rocks on the runway at Chicken Strip. At that time I could see no damage from the air. I talked with Brent Pennington the next day and he said he had no knowledge of any closure.

Prior to Aug 7 Lee had used the drag to repair any damage that was there (assuming there was any). AFTER (note after) the repair he placed the large X's and rocks on the runway.

So somehow we need some sort of long term maintenance agreement to remove some rocks and compact the runway damage done at the behest of the Park Service. This is crap. Lee said "well you need about 50 people with rakes". LOL

We been had.....BTW someone said his Suzuki had "transmission damage" and Lee was unable to finish the repair. More crap... Suzuki is OK according to Lee.