Hi all, not sure if you are aware, but the Recreational Aviation Foundation has helped move forward an agenda across the country to help protect back country airstrips and even re-open strips that have been closed for several years. Here in AZ, with their help we were able to get Senate Bill 1229 amending AZ Revised Statutes 33-1551 passed this last year becoming law in July. Basically this agenda is to add aviation activities to existing Recreational Use Statutes, or writing new legislation that will protect land owners from possible liability, encourages land owners and managers to open their airstrips to recreational aviation use. With the newly amended 33-1551, here in AZ, we have been able to re-open one Forest Service airstrip and are working on two others that we already have commitments from the Forest Service to re-open. It still takes relationship building and trust between the land owner/manager and aviators, but with the number one objection being taken care of, that being liability, you can move on to taking care of lessor objections such as maintenance concerns and such. If you are not a member of the RAF and you love back country, you should be. www.theRAF.org

Thus far the following state have clear language in their R.U.S. including aviation:

Montana, Idaho, New Mexico, Arizona, Tennessee, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Kansas