The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) Foundation announced Wednesday that the Lake Missoula Flight Club in Montana has become the 300th flying club established through its Flying Clubs Initiative. The program, launched in 2015, has helped establish clubs in 45 states.
Montana Club Reaches Milestone
Based at Missoula Montana Airport, the club has 30 members ranging in age from 22 to 75 and operates five aircraft, including two Cessna 150s, a Grumman AA-1C Lynx, a Piper Tri-Pacer and a Cessna 182. The club began accepting members in August 2025 and completed its AOPA registration earlier this year. AOPA representatives recognized the milestone during an Oct. 8 visit.
“Putting together a flying club is a ton of work, but the benefits are just as great,” AOPA acting Co-President Katie Pribyl said in the association’s announcement.
Pribyl noted that sharing fixed costs such as hangar expenses, insurance and annual inspections can make aircraft ownership more affordable for participating pilots.
Sharing Costs and Building Community
The club was established after local pilots had discussed creating a flying club in the area for more than five years. Founding members Joe Featherly and James Wasem helped organize the group, which operates as a nonprofit social club. Beyond reducing ownership expenses, the flying club model provides members opportunities for shared flying, recurrent training and aviation activities.
“It is one thing to go to meetings, it is another to actually get in the airplane and do something,” Wasem told AOPA.
He said the club’s founders wanted to establish a general aviation community that would provide opportunities for local pilots to continue flying for years to come.
0 replies