EAA Chapter 430EAA Chapter 430 Newsletter, December 2025
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EAA 430 FLYER Serving Northern Olympic Peninsula DECEMBER 2025 From the Left Seat With President Ray Ballantyne It’s also a time that we recognize everyone who works so hard to make us a Gold Chapter year after year. All the board members will be recognized along with a couple other individuals. Most of the board has been re-elected for the next two years, but we will be meeting without our Vice President of the last 5 years, Rick Vaux. Also stepping away is our web master these past 6 years, Andy Sallee. Our Scholarship Chair, Dave Miller, is giving up his seat after facilitating financial support to scores of young people over the past dozen years. Our sincere thanks goes out to each of you. You have made a real impact in promoting aviation on the Olympic Peninsula. Welcome to Ernie Hansen as the incoming VP. Linda Priddle will fill-in behind Dave. Richard Howell will take over the Web and newsletter. It’s been a bit rainy this month, but I hope you are still keeping your flying skills sharp. I know Barry is working hard hoping to find a decent day for the monthly fly-out. I’m really looking forward to the coming year! We’ll have more fun events, flying trips, and might even find a clubhouse along the way. We’re getting all geared up for the EAA430 Holiday Party on December 20th (see below). It is always such a great time - we donate to Toys for Tots and we get to sing with Bud!
Page 2 EAA 430 Flyer IN THIS ISSUE From the Left Seat (Ray Ballantyne) Calendar of Events It’s Party Time!!! A Year of Fun and Friendship A Taxing Situation Minutes of the October Gathering Christmas Gathering Dec 20 Cedars at Dungeness BOD Meeting Jan 23 9:00 Mariner Cafe January Gathering Jan 31 KCLM Conference Room VMC/IMC Jan 14 Mariner Cafe @ 7:00 pm PAGE 1 2 2 3-4 5 7-8 A Note of Thanks Your kind words and support of the newsletter have been most appreciated over the past year. I’m excited to work on the Scholarships now. I don’t want these kids to wait as long as I did to follow their dreams. - Linda
A Years Worth of Fly-outs December 2025 is here Where did the time fly? Or, maybe, where did WE fly? Fly-outs during 2025 began with a fly-out planned to Bremerton. But although the weather looked good during the days before the fly-out, it was crummy on flyout morning. I look for cloud ceilings of at least 1500 ft for short trips and even shifting to Port Townsend didn’t work so I cancelled the event. With broken clouds at 1400 ft, Ray and I flew to Port Townsend for an unofficial fly-out lunch. We made up for January in February when 10 airplanes (and 21 hungry people) enjoyed Amelia’s Hangar restaurant in Bremerton. March and April were practically like January and February. Weather didn’t cooperate for a March fly-out to Arlington so we had a local drive-out instead. With good weather in April, 11 airplanes (18 people) made it to Arlington with blue skies and lunch at Ellie’s. We had clear skies in May as well (where 8 aircraft carried 12 people to lunch at Harvey’s Buzz In) and in June (where 12 airplanes arrived at Tacoma Narrows with 17 people that had lunch at the Hub restaurant). July is traditionally a month where our fly-out is to Concrete during their annual Vintage Aircraft fly-in. Richard and Mary Ann Howell and Ray and Lisa Ballantyne flew up on Friday and camped overnight before the fly-out. On Saturday we were again faced with poor weather and I cancelled the fly-out due to low clouds. With overcast clouds at 1300 ft, Bud Davies, Tracy and I made an unofficial fly-out to Concrete and joined up with our camping friends. The trip home had much higher clouds and visibilities both coming and going were good. The cancelled Concrete fly-out was replaced by one the following week when 5 airplanes brought 9 people to Friday Harbor for lunch. Page 3 EAA 430 Flyer
Page 4 EAA 430 Flyer August kicked off this year’s two-month period to gather the Washington State Airport Passport stamps needed to qualify for our chapter’s Poker Run. Five qualifying stamps could be obtained from a list of 15 airports which included our fly-out choices for these months. The August fly=out was to Orcas Island where 9 airplanes brought 16 people. The September fly-out to Chehalis saw 9 Chapter 430 airplanes participate. Our group included several from other chapters, bringing 18 of us to the Riverside Bistro for lunch. October’s fly-out to Roach Harbor was led by Aidan Lara. Several aircraft and people went including Aidan, his mother Sondra and Linda Priddle, Scott Alair, Richard Howell and Sid Vandiver, Rob Stephens and Ernie Hansen, Ray and Lisa Ballantyne with Wells and Evangeline Hutchins, Bud Davies, Cenk Ozer and his friend Scott, and Tracy and myself. We ate at the Lime Kiln Café. November’s fly-out to Arlington should have been cancelled. Weather was crummy with low clouds in the local area. I checked weather hourly and delayed making a go/no-go decision until almost departure time because the weather kept improving. At the last minute, weather in Port Angeles reported 1900 ft broken and it was clear in Everett and Arlington and I announced the flyo-ut was on. When I stepped outside a few moments later, however, I saw that clouds in Sequim were quite low. I learned later that Port Angeles cloud cover was probably 800 ft, and between there and Sequim even lower. There was a good size hole south of our house in Sequim (near the shoreline) so, having turned the fly-out on, Aidan and I, along with Bud Davies, flew to Arlington in clear skies above 2000 ft. We were joined by Tim Alentiev from Crest and had lunch at Ellis’s. Weather was much better when we returned home. And that takes us to December! As I write this, unreliable weather forecasts have squashed plans for a fly-out to Forks in favor of an upcoming drive-out in Sequim for a Mexican lunch! (26 attended this one!!) All in all, we’ve had an exciting year with great attendance in many fine weather fly=outs, and only few cancellations along the way. I hope you are all planning on another year of great flying in 2026! Barry Halsted A Years Worth of Fly-outs
Page 5 EAA 430 Flyer Good Turn-Out! Good food, Good friends The crowds are getting bigger
Page 6 EAA 430 Flyer In 2025, the Washington Legislature adopted a luxury aircraft tax that imposes an additional 10% tax on the sale or use of an aircraft over $500,000. The tax takes affect in April 2026. • New Tax is Indiscriminate: Impacts volunteer healthcare and charity organizations, emergency operations, agriculture and timber operators, flight training programs, recreational pilots, and all business users. • Migration of Investment: Aircraft owners are highly mobile and choosing to purchase and register aircraft in neighboring states with lower tax burdens. Early signals from the tax have created uncertainty that affects fleet planning and long-term hangar development. • Economic Leakage: High-value aircraft represent substantial maintenance, storage, and service spending—much of which is being diverted out of Washington. Reduced in-state aircraft operations results in fewer contracts for maintenance shops, avionics firms, and fixed-base operators. Reports so far include: o Client moving King Air out of state and selling home. o CJ3 Gen2 deal immediately rescinded. o A CJ3+ customer is selling his aircraft. o NetJets share-owner is moving residence to Nevada. o Denali prospect froze conversations. o SEL is moving jet to Idaho. o Citizen Air froze $1.5 million in new investments in Port Angeles area. o Modern Aviation froze conversations with prospective client. o Fortive customer backed out of deal to lease hangar for an $80 million aircraft.
Why It Matters: According to WSDOT’s Aviation Economic Impact Study, there are 134 public use airport systems across the state These airports provide 407,042 jobs and $26.8 billion in labor income According to WSDOT, aviation supports $107 billion in economic impact across Washington State According to a membership survey by AOPA, more than half of respondents are actively considering relocating their operations or residency, costing the state about $75 million per year in lost economic activity Canada repealed their luxury aircraft tax in 2025 because it negatively impacted employers and the economy Luxury Aircraft Tax harms Washington’s Competitiveness The Pacific Northwest Business Aviation Association (PNBAA) was first established in the late 1990’s and made up of business aircraft and cargo operators, flight schools, and other general aviation interests around the Seattle area. PNBAA focuses on business aircraft operators and those who support business aviation in this region. For more information contact: Mike Ennis, PNBAA Lobbyist, C:360-367-1743, Mike.Ennis@ennispublicaffairs.com
Page 7 EAA 430 Flyer EAA Chapter 430 Membership Gathering Minutes Date: Nov 29, 2025 Once again, our monthly membership gathering kicked off with a delicious breakfast buffet. Thanks to our Hospitality team of Kevin and Charlene Tracy and other generous volunteers. Chapter President Ray Ballantyne called the meeting to order at 1010, in the Wm. R. Fairchild Intl. Airport terminal conference room. Ray led The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag with 27 members and 3 guests attending. October Gathering Minutes were approved as written. Welcome Guests - Brenda Sahleen, Wells Hutchins and Brian O’Conner (today a new member). Correspondence o EAA published an article, penned and submitted by Aiden Lara and Ray Ballantyne, about the recent fly-out event to Roche Harbor that was nicely coordinated by Aiden. o Chapter member Emily Westcott was recognized by the Sequim City Council for her decades of beautifying Sequim, along with an article appearing in the Sequim Gazette. Old Business ● Treasury Tracy Halsted - (Ray) Our chapter treasury is reflecting about $4800 in the scholarship account, a bit under $2000 in checking and a little over $230,000 in our building fund. ● Membership Tracy Halsted - Paid membership is now at 114. ● EAA Chapter 430 has been reaching out to help several of our local Civil Air Patrol cadets as they work their way through the (online) Sporty’s Private Pilot Ground School course. Free access to the course is a benefit of the EAA Young Eagles program and available to all kids who fly at our rallies. ● Fly-out Barry Halsted - The November Arlington (KAWO) event was almost a bust because of the weather. A low cloud ceiling, particularly near Port Angeles, kept quite a few pilots and their planes on the ground. The December destination might turn out to be Forks (S18). ● Building Committee - (Ray) is back at work considering options, but has nothing specific to report at this time.
Page 8 EAA 430 Flyer EAA Chapter 430 Membership Gathering Minutes, Con’t New Business Chapter Elections Slate of nominees/candidates was recited by Ray Ballantyne. ■ President - Ray Ballantyne ■ Vice President - Ernie Hansen ■ Secretary - Rob Stephens ■ Treasurer - Tracy Halsted Ray noted that because each of our Class I board positions - President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer, have only had a single volunteer/candidate, our Chapter Bylaws require only a simple majority show of hands by the members present is needed to confirm the board. Ray asked for a show of hands in favor of accepting the candidates as our new board. All but one member (who appeared to be dozing off) raised a hand. Asked for a show of those opposed - no hands raised. We have a Board of Directors for a two year term - 2026 through 2027. New Aviators Update Ray summarized about several of our members who are working towards their aviation goals, including Sid Vandiver, Gunner Rogers, Genna Nickel, Nathan Nelson and our 2025 Ray Foundation Scholar Jazmin Stamper - who was, during the gathering, out on the ramp preparing her Cessna 172 Skyhawk aircraft for her long cross-country solo flight(s), one of several technical requirements for Private Pilot training. Projects o Not a lot of detail, but there are a number of aircraft building and restoration projects underway. The CAP squadron would like to set up a flight simulator and could use some help, including assistance with selecting and acquiring a suitable laptop computer. Erik Petersen has offered to help. There will be no regular chapter membership gathering in December. Instead - our EAA Chapter 430 Christmas Holiday party is planned for Saturday, December 20th - 5:00pm. A buffet-style dinner is planned. Tickets will be $50 per person. Look for your invitation in your email inbox. Contact Tracy Halsted or any board member for information. The Business portion of the gathering was adjourned at 10:45. Today’s program - Ray Ballantyne summarized and also showed portions of a new EAA-produced video about MOSAIC. Respectfully submitted, Richard Howell, EAA 430