Hospitality, Hash-Tags Morph Stranded Pilots Into Happy Campers

By Deborah Grigsby

Nestled about 34 nautical miles south of Oshkosh, the Dodge County Airport, located in the tiny town of Juneau, WI, sits quietly among the lush, rolling hills of rural Wisconsin. 

Photo credit Tim Bentheimer

When torrential rains and the subsequent standing water converted major sections of Whittman Field into swamps Florida would be proud of, many pilots inbound to AirVenture were turned away, finding themselves with limited options. Some were airborne, some--including 35 of the 85-plane Cessnas-to-Oshkosh group--were literally "stranded where they landed." A number of them landed in Juneau.

So whaddya do?

"Well, you do your best to make them feel at home," says Tim Bentheimer, Airport General Manager.

What started as simply a few extra transient aircraft suddenly bloomed into one of the biggest challenges in Bentheimer?s 6-year career at the field. "We normally have about 25 parking spaces and 25 tie downs," he said. "By 10 p.m. Sunday, I counted more than 151 aircraft."

Photo credit Tim Bentheimer

At the peak, Bentheimer says he estimates there were as many as 175 aircraft on the field.

Again, so whaddya do?

"You get really creative," he joked.  "I was parking planes in places I never imagined I could park planes. If I could have taken the fence down, we'd be parking cars elsewhere and putting planes there."

Centennial, CO-based pilot and Internet podcaster Nate Duehr, who was part of the earthbound Cessnas-to-Oshkosh group, said he had been receiving "Tweets" and text messages from others that many of the outlying airports such as Fond du Lac and Appleton were filling up--even closed to inbound traffic.

"So, I tweeted back 'Why don't you come to Juneau? It's a great little airport!" he chuckled.

Duehr hash-tagged the message #OSH10 so other pilots monitoring Twitter could easily find the updated information. Duehr went on to add that pilots relaying information to tagged groups via social media tools like Twitter played very big role in helping make a rather "uncomfortable situation, more comfortable."

Photo credit Tim Bentheimer

Over the next few days, with ground conditions in and around Whittman Field remaining questionable, more and more aircraft began to arrive in Juneau, and the Dodge County Airport quickly grew into a small, but happy community. "My goal was to make sure everyone here had whatever they needed," said Bentheimer.

And he took that challenge to heart, finding a place for every pilot and aircraft that arrived. "So far we have not turned away a single pilot or plane," he said.  "I really did not want to close a runway for parking unless I absolutely had to because when you close a runway, a pilot with an emergency has no place to go."

Photo credit Tim Bentheimer

Bentheimer and his crew of eight basically rolled up their sleeves, set up and operated a small shelter. "We brought in pizza, local caterers, shuttled people into nearby Beaver Dam for groceries," he explained. "We made sandwiches, sold cold drinks from behind the counter and opened up our shower facilities'and we'd just leave a bucket out for donations." That bucket was always full.

Bentheimer confessed at times he'd even leave the FBO unlocked so campers and guests could get to the sandwiches, use the Internet and shower. Those without camping gear slept on the floor. "I did a lot of things I'd never do under normal circumstances," he said. However, these were not normal circumstances.

(L-R) Josh Van Egmond, seated, Mary Gasper, Glen Belmer, Tim Bentheimer

Kansas-based pilot Billy Shreve and his wife Micki were turned away at Fond du Lac and were headed home. "Really, my intention in Juneau was to get fuel and leave," said Shreve. "But the spirit (at Dodge County Airport) just really made us want to stay."

So they did.

"There was no playbook for this operation," said Bentheimer. "We pretty much improvised all the way, right down to family members volunteering to help. We have been very blessed."

Bentheimer hopes his guests feel the same.

FMI: www.co.dodge.wi.us/airport