| 1923 |
| The first air passenger to Beaver Island was a Doctor providing medical services. |
| The Beaver Island-Charlevoix Airmail route was also one of the first in the country |
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Click to see Full Size Picture |
Click to see Full Size Picture |
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| 1945 |
| McPhillips Flying Service Established |
| Joe McPhillips started this service a Sikorsky Flying Boat (see picture). The McPhillips family (Joe, Ane’, and Bruce) ran this business until 1975 |
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| 1965 |
| Welke family purchased farm from Mel Gallagher (Big Owen Gallagher's daughter). |
| Work was started immediately to convert vacant farm fields into a "landing strip." |
| By the time the family moved to the Island in the late 60s the east/west runway was complete and the airport was a licensed facility. |
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| 1969 |
| Welke Family Moved to Beaver Island |
| Bill & Betty moved their family to the Island and started several businesses including Welke Excavating |
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| 1975 |
| Welke Aviation established by Paul, Bill, and Betty Welke with one Piper Apache in January and by the end of the first year had acquired an additional three Apaches |
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| 1982 |
| First two Britten Norman Islanders added to fleet |
| Islanders are known as dependable, sturdy, and perfect for "island hopping" air services. See brittennorman.com for additional information. |
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Click to see Full Size Picture
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| 1983 |
| McPhillips Flying Service & Welke Aviation Merge to form Island Airways. |
| The combination of these companies formed the largest aviation operation in the state of Michigan outside the Metro-Detroit area. |
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| 1985 |
| Whiskey Alpha added to Island Airways fleet (Britten Norman Islander) |
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| 1989 |
| Paul Welke purchases all stock of the remaining partners. |
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| 1992 |
| Piper Seneca added to the fleet to expand charter services |
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| 1995 |
| Piper Chieftain added to the fleet |
| Used for charter service throughout Michigan, the Midwest, and Northeast |
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| 1997 |
| Mike Whiskey (137MW) added to Island Airways fleet (Britten Norman Islander) |
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| 2000 |
| Kilo Mike added to the fleet (BN Islander) (80KM) |
| This fifth airplane creates one of the largest fleets of Islanders in the United States. These planes are used throughout the world in operations similar to Island Airways |
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Click to see Full Size Picture
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| 2001 |
| Ellen Welke passes away. |
| Mirth Gault and her children survive a plane crash on Beaver Island. Paul Welke locates the wreckage the day after the crash |
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| 2002 |
| Island Airways becomes an FAA Certified Repair Station |
| This designation by the FAA signifies that the Island Airways maintenance department has been certified as a Britten Norman Islander repair station |
| Bill Welke passes away on December 7 |
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| 2006 |
| Restoration of Bill Welke’s Piper Apache (4011P) is completed |
| Paul Welke worked for nearly four years to restore his father’s last airplane. It is returned to the fleet and is known as the "red plane" – it is the most requested plane in the fleet |
| This plane belonged to Joe McPhillips in the 1950s and 1960s |
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Click to see Full Size Picture
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| 2007 |
| Islander 866JA is completely refurbished including a conversion to single pilot IFR capabilities |
| This is the first Islander in the fleet to be IFR (instrument flight rules) capable |
| Island Airways adds a Piper Aztec to the charter department. This all weather aircraft is a fully deicing equiped twin |
| Since this aircraft was added to the fleet it has chartered to Florida, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and many other destinations. |
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Click to see Full Size Picture
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| 2008 |
| After many years of lobbying and working with local, state, and federal agencies, Charlevoix Airport is granted lower IFR / GPS minimums. Paul Baron actively pursued this designation prior to his passing. This designation will allow for fewer days lost to bad weather. |
| Betty Welke passes away after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. |
| Paul Baron passes away unexpectedly |
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| Misc. |
| In the 34 years that Paul Welke has been a professional pilot, he has flown in 49 of the 50 United States, most of the Canadian Territories, Mexico, and the Bahamas. |
| Paul Welke has flown approximately 28,000 hours, 35,000 trips between Beaver Island and Charlevoix, and transported about 300,000 people. |
| In the 34 years of flying between Beaver Island and Charlevoix, Paul has gotten "stuck" in Charlevoix approximately 10 times. |
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