All-new Tennessee Flying Machines hangar opens

Aaron Tippin may be known for his music career, but his real passion is aviation, and he, along with his family, has opened the all-new Tennessee Flying Machines hangar at Upper Cumberland Regional Airport and is ready to inspire the next generation of aviation enthusiasts.

“Even though I spent my career in the music business, aviation is my passion,” Tippin, who was a professional pilot before he started his music career, said. “Flying is really about fun.”

The Tennessee Flying Machines hangar houses Tippin’s fleet, including some Warbirds of which the Tippin team is quite proud. From World War II trainers to an open cockpit Steerman, from a Cessna for flight training to a Super Decathlon for aerobatic training and stunt flying, Tippin said Upper Cumberland Regional Airport provided the ideal setting for his fleet, as well as for the crafts he hopes will come in to take advantage of their mechanic and restoration services for other pilots and planes.

“This is the longest uncontrolled runway in the state of Tennessee, and Warbirds require a good amount of runway to safely operate.” Tippin explained, saying that it made more sense to build a hangar at UCRA rather than in DeKalb county where he resides. “If we are going to get guys to bring their 4-million-dollar [planes] in, we are going to need space. This airport has a huge amount of potential.”

As excited as Tippin is about the Upper Cumberland Regional Airport facility, the airport is just as excited to have him and his hangar on their premises.

“We are proud to have played a part in helping establish this new maintenance and restoration facility and look forward to watching it mature into a thriving Upper Cumberland business,” airport manager Dean Selby said of the partnership. “The Tippin family has a long history in their contribution to aviation.”

While the Tennessee Flying Machines offer mechanical services for other warbirds and general aviation planes and have hosted a Warbird Formation Clinic with plans to play host to future clinics, which bring pilots to the community and fuel sales to the airport, they also have a full menu of services for non-pilots as well.

Tippin and his daughter-in-law, Sarah, offer scenic rides that offer views of Center Hill Lake, the mountains, and waterfalls in the area, and they can even take a local resident for an aerial view of their home.

“It’s something that’s never been offered in this area before,” Tippin said. “Ride service sparks so many people, especially young people, to go, ‘wow I wonder if I could learn to fly.’”

Tippin said learning to fly is the next step, and something he is proud to offer at the Tennessee Flying Machines hangar.

“That’s the next step - we take them to the 150 and train them to be pilots,” he said, adding that while Sarah is currently licensed as a commercial pilot, she is finishing up her training and testing to become a flight instructor like himself.

“If I can do anything to get more girls involved, I want to do that,” Sarah said, stating currently there are not many females in the aviation industry.

Mechanic training through apprenticeship is another program that is happening at the new hangar at Upper Cumberland Regional Airport.

“A person can spend three years working as a mechanic apprentice here with us and qualify to take their A and P Mechanics Exam just down the road, in Lebanon, Tennessee,” Tippin claimed. “You don’t even have to leave the area. You can do it all right here in middle Tennessee.”

As well as scenic flights and flying lessons and pilot licenses, Tennessee Flying Machines is also lending their planes for special event pictures. From senior pictures to engagement photos and wedding pictures, the team is happy to have their planes available for those completely unique photo opportunities.

Recently, the Tippins officially opened their new hangar and began offering their menu of services to the public. In honor of that, they hosted a building dedication in which they announced that the Tennessee Flying Machines hangar was in honor of Aaron’s uncle and in memory of his late father.

“We are an aviation family,” Aaron Tippin said. “Uncle Billy has been a highly respected mechanic and inspector in the aviation community for several years. He and Dad and Uncle Billy’s twin brother flew everywhere. They flew over Alaska back when it was still just a territory.”

As for the future of aviation in the Tippin family, the Tennessee Flying Machines is it.

“Back before COVID hit, the aviation industry was hurting for mechanics and pilots, and that will return, and I would love to be a part of that - to see people from our community get the opportunity to get involved in aviation and fly, not just here, but all around the world,” Tippin said. “I hope it [the Tennessee Flying Machines] leads to people wanting to be involved in aviation, that is my goal in life. I am an ambassador for aviation.”