OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
The following information is taken in parts from an article written by Delano Halde that appeared in the Ivanhoe Times this past April, but we weren’t made aware of it until just recently.
Barbara Mack, who was born in Minneota in 1943, was inducted into the Aviation Hall of Fame on April 1, 2023 at Mystic Lake Casino in Prior Lake. Mack graduated from Ivanhoe High School in 1961 and then attended St. Cloud State University where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. She then furthered her education by spending three additional years at Eau Claire University in Wisconsin where she earned her Master’s degree.
Mack then went into teaching and was hired by the Robbinsdale School District.
When she was 21 years old in 1964, Mack learned to fly airplanes, and earned her pilot’s license a year after that. She continued to earn various other licenses for different aircrafts and also qualified to become a flying instructor.
Over the years, Mack has flown hundreds of different models of planes and almost every modern type of aircraft, including corporate jets.
She currently owns two airplanes, a Mooney 201 airplane and an Experimental RV-4 that she often flies today. She also flies in air shows, dressing as a “granny” to perform crazy acts in an American Champion Citabria.
Mack is also a founding member of the Minnesota Pilot’s Association. She has been awarded the prestigious Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award from the FAA in 2017, which awards those who have flown safely for 50-or-more years.
Mack was named the FAA Safety Team Representative of the Year in 2010 and has been a guest speaker several times at the Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering, providing valuable insight to student pilots and flight instructors in the examination and certification process.
Public nominations for the Aviation Hall of Fame are studied by a research committee panel before deciding which nominees will be inducted each year. There were six inductees this year, including Mack, who currently lives in Andover, MN.