Update: It appears that there may have been some sort of misunderstanding regarding the impending closure of McKenzie Bridge. I apologize for getting ahead of myself and posting this appeal without further verification. It now sounds like ODA may need to close airstrips in Oregon next year if they don't receive further funding, but that McKenzie is not on any particular closure list, especially since the Oregon Pilots Association already helps with the maintenance there.

Mary still is interested in hearing about usage of the strip, but there's apparently no current plan to close it.

---------- End Edit --------

This one hits close to home for me.

From fellow member of Oregon Pilots Association's Backcountry Group John Dunlap:

Fellow Backcountry Pilots,

During the August OPA meeting held following the Madras Airshow, it was announced that ODA is considering closing McKenzie Airstrip due to low use and lack of funds within ODA to maintain the strip. If any of you fly in to 00S or you know pilots who use it, please email OPA President Mary Rosenblum. List the reasons how you use it and why this airstrip needs to remain open. Mary needs to demonstrate support for this airstrip. She will take the emails to the next ODA Board meeting. Please make this a priority and send your comments ASAP.

[email protected]

Thanks for your consideration.

I fly into McKenzie Bridge several times per year, both for camping and the amazing (world class) mountain biking nearby. I know many of us on BCP do. This is easily one of the best strips in Oregon. let's all do our part to let the Oregon Department of Aviation know that we appreciate and use this gem of an airstrip!

Please email Mary if you frequent McKenzie Bridge.

Thanks!

Mary,

Zane Jacobson here from BackcountryPilot.org. I'm a Portland based pilot who runs an online magazine and community for backcountry pilots, and as such I feel I have a good sense for which of our state's more rural airports are popular and being used.

I frequent McKenzie Bridge several times a year, as do many of my friends, to enjoy its "feeling" of remoteness and seclusion (even though it is right on the highway.) We camp, mountain bike the McKenzie River trail, or go fly fishing on the river in the vicinity of the Paradise campground. We generally value the "backcountry" feel of the strip for its less-improved characteristics (unpaved), and the massive timber and hills that surround it, and of course the river. It's one of the few places in Oregon where you can land, pitch your tent and camp next to your airplane without any ambiguity about the rights of airplanes.

I recently heard that this state airport is being considered for closing. I think that's a big mistake. I urge you and the ODA to keep this airstrip open. It doesn't even require much maintenance, so I'd imagine it's one of the cheaper airports to keep open compared to the other paved runways around the state. To lose this airport would be considered a tragedy amongst my groups of friends, and I'm sure many other pilots who venture to Oregon from out of state to camp there. I believe that it's airports like McKenzie Bridge that add so much recreational value to our state, and if we lose the recreational value of aviation, it's all downhill from there.

I've attached a few photos to show some of my adventures there, one of which was recently published on the cover of the nationally distributed general aviation magazine, General Aviation News.

Thank for you consideration.

A little video from back in 2010:

Done.

Thanks for keeping us in the loop Kristian

Zzz wrote:I've attached a few photos to show some of my adventures there, one of which was recently published on the cover of the nationally distributed general aviation magazine, General Aviation News.

Aside from being polite -- which is huge, don't win many friends explaining to them that the government is evil and needs to get its shit together -- I think the photos are a brilliant idea. In my consulting business we use the phrase "people believe what they can see", so showing them a bunch of planes and families using the strip is a great idea!

Well written, and great idea with the photos, Zane!

I'm sending another email including some pictures as well. I really hope we can keep this strip open! Lots of good memories there...

Don't think it will help, but my old man flew a King Air 90 into McKenzie Bridge several times back in the 70's.

Wish I had pictures from that.

My first thought about closing Mckenzie Bridge...

Thankfully Mckenzie Bridge is a backcountry airstrip which is good for beginner/intermediate pilots to get experience in moderate mountain flying conditions. Without this local resource many pilots may not have a chance to learn or experience backcountry flying. Please afford pilots with modest means a place like Mckenzie Bridge.

Dear President Rosenblum,


I was recently made aware that McKenzie Bridge (00S) is under consideration for closure by the ODA. This was alarming news because 00S has been a frequent flying destination of mine for many years, and is near and dear to my heart. Providing many recreational opportunities, I have landed at the airstrip and hiked with my children, flown my visiting parents here to show them what a beautiful state we live in, and flown there alone on many occasions to "get away" and/or take a mountain bike ride up the McKenzie River Trail. My flying partner has a cabin on the McKenzie River and frequently uses this airstrip on his weekend getaways. Recently, I noticed a sign in the parking area of the airstrip with phone numbers to several surrounding businesses that provide recreational opportunities offering pick-up and drop-off services! How awesome is that! It would be a shame to see it close.


On a recent visit to 00S, there were three other airplanes from out of state that had camped overnight. As I began talking to the pilots, I discovered that they specifically flew to our state to enjoy strips like this one for their vacation! There are other states they could have chosen, but they chose ours because of incredible places like this, and they are not alone.


I understand the need for the ODA to be fiscally responsible but please consider the benefit vs. risk in your decision. I trust you are aware that several air ambulances utilize this strip along this potentially dangerous stretch of highway, and the Forest Service crews use this strip during the fire season. I would imagine the natural surface of the airstrip and the lack of facilities surrounding it results in a fairly low operating cost. I also know that many aviators are happy to volunteer their time for work parties, if the need arises, to keep special places like this open. I would be happy to join in.


In closing I would like to leave you with a few pictures and videos of McKenzie Bridge that I have taken over the years. I hope you get a sense of what a special place this really is. The videos are a "daddy daughter date" and a "father son" trip that I chronicled. They are a little sappy but I hope you watch them and I hope that one day my kids have a chance to make memories with their kids in a place like this!


Sincerely,


Wayne Hess

Good news / bad news: The good news is that It appears that there may have been a misunderstanding regarding the impending closure of McKenzie Bridge.
The bad news is that I got ahead of myself and posted this appeal without further verification.

It now sounds like ODA may need to close some airstrips in Oregon next year if they don't receive further funding, but that McKenzie Bridge is not on any particular closure list, especially since the Oregon Pilots Association already helps with the maintenance there.

Mary still wants to hear about usage of the strip, but there's apparently no current plan to close it.

As I frequiently fly to the Willamette Valley and the coast from central Oregon, the safety that this airport offers is a major consideration for me as well. This is the angle that I am taking with my support for 00S:

"Hello Mary,

I am a pilot and aviation enthusiast from Bend, OR. Several others from the area and I use this airstrip regularly for recreational purposes.

Aside from the recreational uses, this strip also serves as one of a very few enroute emergency landing options along an otherwise rugged, steep and timbered route of flight, where a forced landing anywhere other than this strip would likely result in fatalities of all aircraft occupants. A quick look at the sectional chart reveals that for a flight between BDN and EUG, 00S is the only alternate airport.

Please recognize that this airstrip is a critical piece of the airport infrastructure for this geographic region. As it would greatly increase the risk to pilots who fly routes through this area, it would be very unfortunate if the decision was made to close this airport.

Regards,
Jake Ruhl"

FAA, Newport, ODOT got together and funded a $20 million new runway, instrument approach lighting, Wx Sta, VOR, ILS, Firefighting equip. etc at KONP. We are on top of the food chain. Very cool IMHO.

If you do email Mary Rosenblum, keep in mind that she is the president of the Oregon Pilots Association and is our advocate. We're providing her with ammo in the event that she must appeal to the Oregon Dept of Aviation on our behalf.

I just got this email reply from Mary Rosenblum strongly stating that MacKenzie Bridge Airport is NOT to be closed. Good news.

HI, Tom, alas this was a HUGE misunderstanding. What I had initially asked for was information on how many times people fly there and why they fly there. It's hard to come up with a clear sense of the use of these smalls trips. Here's a copy, below, of the letter I've been sending out in response to the queries about its imminent closure. Believe me, ODA has NO intention of closing any airport unless they're backed to the wall.

Mary


Folks, PLEASE! This is SUCH a misconception!!! ODA HAS NO INTENTION OF CLOSING MCKENZIE BRIDGE! Have I made myself very very clear? Please!

This is a case where ODA has asked the Oregon Pilots Association to assist in maintaining this airport because the budget at ODA is very very tight. We're already doing maintenance there, Paul Ehrhardt, the head of the maintenance wing agreed, and that's all there is to it.

I had asked John to write me something about how often he lands there and for what purpose, camping, hiking, what have you. I wanted that to document the fact that these very rural strips get used.

Please stop passing around the misinformation that this airport will be closed. There are no plans to close it.

If funding for the ODA does not improve this next session...and I am one of the people working on that...then yes, we will have to start closing airports. But that is down the road, there is no reason to think that McKenzie Bridge will be on that list since we're maintaining that, and if/when that happens, that's something to talk about then.

I would love to know how often it's used, but please don't throw stones at the Department of Aviation over there, there is no intention to close this and no desire at ALL to close any airport in this state.

This thread makes me think of last year sometime, when the word was that Oregon DOT was considering closing Pacific City airport. What's the latest with that?

Well, good. Even if the threat of closure has been stayed (or never was), I like that we can swell support in a few hours. Even a false positive gets our voices heard and reminds OPA that we're here.

8GCBC wrote:FAA, Newport, ODOT got together and funded a $20 million new runway, instrument approach lighting, Wx Sta, VOR, ILS, Firefighting equip. etc at KONP. We are on top of the food chain. Very cool IMHO.

I don't know if this comment was made with tongue in cheek or not. My airport is currently in the middle of putting in an AWOS, to the tune of a couple hundred thousand bucks. 90% FAA funded of course, with WS-DOT chipping in another 5%. Only one pilot on the airport was in favor of this AWOS project, and lots of us were opposed or at best indifferent to it, but the lure of that "free money" convinced the airport operator (the local Port district) to go ahead on with it. This AWOS is to go along with our new GPS approach, which is not very useful because of the high minimums due to surrounding high terrain. Lots of people were in favor of the approach, until afterward when they found out that the minimums were so high. It all sounds great, but in reality most everybody who wants to actually come in and land will be scud-running-- just like before.
When the dust finally settles I'll bet there will have been about half a million bucks spent between the two projects. I can't help but wonder if that money would have been better spent somewhere else, maybe rehabbing an old beat-up runway or just maintaining what we already have.

hotrod150 wrote:

8GCBC wrote:FAA, Newport, ODOT got together and funded a $20 million new runway, instrument approach lighting, Wx Sta, VOR, ILS, Firefighting equip. etc at KONP. We are on top of the food chain. Very cool IMHO.

I don't know if this comment was made with tongue in cheek or not. My airport is currently in the middle of putting in an AWOS, to the tune of a couple hundred thousand bucks. 90% FAA funded of course, with WS-DOT chipping in another 5%. Only one pilot on the airport was in favor of this AWOS project, and lots of us were opposed or at best indifferent to it, but the lure of that "free money" convinced the airport operator (the local Port district) to go ahead on with it. This AWOS is to go along with our new GPS approach, which is not very useful because of the high minimums due to surrounding high terrain. Lots of people were in favor of the approach, until afterward when they found out that the minimums were so high. It all sounds great, but in reality most everybody who wants to actually come in and land will be scud-running-- just like before.
When the dust finally settles I'll bet there will have been about half a million bucks spent between the two projects. I can't help but wonder if that money would have been better spent somewhere else, maybe rehabbing an old beat-up runway or just maintaining what we already have.

Just a comment about KONP. I am just very glad to have an airport. But, the money came out of nowhere, shocking to many. (4) months of massive spending blew my mind.

hotrod150 wrote:My airport is currently in the middle of putting in an AWOS, to the tune of a couple hundred thousand bucks. 90% FAA funded of course, with WS-DOT chipping in another 5%.

You may not like the spend, but the silver lining is that FAA funding pretty much guarantees that the place will remain an airport for a couple decades.

rw2 wrote:

hotrod150 wrote:My airport is currently in the middle of putting in an AWOS, to the tune of a couple hundred thousand bucks. 90% FAA funded of course, with WS-DOT chipping in another 5%.

You may not like the spend, but the silver lining is that FAA funding pretty much guarantees that the place will remain an airport for a couple decades.

My feeling exactly. Riding on the coattails, of the FAA, where I am at, and not at all ashamed!

The whole funding system is haywire. Quite a while ago, I griped to no avail to my airport operator about weeds growing up through the cracks on the runway & taxiways. "We don't have the money to fix that" they said, "and the FAA doesn't fund maintenance". So they let it go for a number of years. Then they did a big FAA-90%-funded resurfacing project last year (when resurfacing wasn't really needed), part of which was grinding out and sealing those cracks which had meanwhile gotten quite large due to weed growth as well as water getting in there and freezing. So instead of spending X amount of money to fix the problem when it first became evident, they waited and spent 10 times as much to fix it later-- but it was done using "free money" which makes it OK.