Flying for flapjacks

Dozens of pilots from across the region touched down on the Plains Penn Stohr Field’s tarmac in search of some free pancakes Saturday.

About 70 planes landed and around 300 to 400 people showed up at the Plains Airport for the annual fly-in breakfast, according to Randy Garrison, the airport manager. “That’s a lot of pancakes,” Garrison said. He said the 70 airplanes is about what the breakfast has been averaging since the new airport facility was built in 2006.

Garrison said the airport has had been having the annual fly-in breakfast for 20 years. He said besides being a fundraiser, the breakfast also brings people to Plains and gives them a chance to see different planes. Garrison said this year’s 70 planes included, a number of home-built and experimental planes and about a dozen antique planes. He said the kids really like to come out and see all the different planes. “The kids really enjoy it. They don’t get too many chances to see planes upclose,” he said. Derick Curry, a 6-year-old from Plains, was one of the kids who got to enjoy the fly-in. Curry said it was “awesome” and his favorite part was watching the planes take off. A crew of six volunteers from the Sanders County Chapter of Montana Pilots’ Association directed the airport traffic during the four-hour breakfast.

The breakfast also gives the pilots a chance to talk to people with similar interests. Ron Tilton of Spokane, Wash., flew his Cessna 172 to the breakfast. Tilton said he is amongst a group of six pilots from Spokane who try to go to a breakfast like the one in Plains every Saturday. Tilton was unsure exactly why the group does it. “Just for the fun of it, I guess,” Tilton said. “It gives us an excuse to go flying,” he said. While Tilton isn’t positive on why he attends the fly-ins, he knows it’s not for the free pancakes. “There $150 hotcakes, when you figure in the gas and maintenance. That’s our joke,” he said.

Ron Haworth, one of the six pilots from Spokane, was at the fly-in with his RV9A, a plane he took two years to build. Haworth, who has been flying for 30 years, said that the joy of flying is something that is unexplainable to people who don’t fly. He said the fly-ins give them a chance to talk to other people who share the same passion.

Delbert Schwarderer from Stevensville was one of those people that had the same passion as Haworth. Schwarderer, a pilot of 32 years, flies for Western Montana Aviation and even though he has to fly for work he still enjoys flying for his recreation. “Once in a while I get to sneak away and have some fun,” he said.

Garrison said besides being a fundraiser, the fly-in breakfast also brings new people into Plains. He said the new people often return to Plains after seeing what the airport has to offer. Garrison said the airport provides an important service to the community. He said the St. Patrick Life Flight planes are able to land at the airport. He said the airport also provides a landing space for the firefighting planes of the Forest Service and the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

The original Plains Airport building was constructed in the 1930s and a new facility was constructed and dedicated in 2006. Garrison said the airport typically draws 2,000 planes annually, including small single engine aircraft and business jets.