Colleen Mondor
@chasingray.bsky.social
Aviation journalist, especially on Alaska. Never met a federal database I didn't love. "Probable Cause" newsletter is here: https://colleenmondor.substack.com/
Pinned
#39: There's some other 2025 aviation issues we need to talk about
I’ve got seven years of Part 135 data I want to share from 449 accidents.
colleenmondor.substack.com
Newsletter went out last night wherein I wrote about some 2025 aviation issues that we haven't talked much about, namely small commercial operators under Part 135.
Absent a major crash (like Bering Air 445), no one talks about Part 135 operators. /1 colleenmondor.substack.com/p/39-theres-...
Absent a major crash (like Bering Air 445), no one talks about Part 135 operators. /1 colleenmondor.substack.com/p/39-theres-...
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Dear #BookSky Minneapolis has an absolutely incredible literary culture. In fact, three of the most important small presses call the city home; Coffeehouse Press, Graywolf, and Milkweed. There are also a ton of great bookstores in the Twin Cities. So here's the assignment...
January 21, 2026 at 11:28 PM
Dear #BookSky Minneapolis has an absolutely incredible literary culture. In fact, three of the most important small presses call the city home; Coffeehouse Press, Graywolf, and Milkweed. There are also a ton of great bookstores in the Twin Cities. So here's the assignment...
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
My @mprnews.org colleagues today produced a ton of great journalism today around the ICE surge in the Twin Cities. Here's a link to our daily liveblog. It's an easy way to get a quick look at much of what happened Thursday.
www.mprnews.org/live-updates
www.mprnews.org/live-updates
The latest on ICE in Minnesota
Live updates on ICE enforcement in Minnesota, with the latest developments and links to deeper reporting as events unfold.
www.mprnews.org
January 23, 2026 at 12:15 AM
My @mprnews.org colleagues today produced a ton of great journalism today around the ICE surge in the Twin Cities. Here's a link to our daily liveblog. It's an easy way to get a quick look at much of what happened Thursday.
www.mprnews.org/live-updates
www.mprnews.org/live-updates
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Our community deserves someone willing to stand up and deliver impactful leadership. And yet Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez, along with 6 other Democrats in the House, just voted through a funding bill that will give ICE billions of dollars with minimal guardrails.
1/6
1/6
January 22, 2026 at 10:47 PM
Our community deserves someone willing to stand up and deliver impactful leadership. And yet Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez, along with 6 other Democrats in the House, just voted through a funding bill that will give ICE billions of dollars with minimal guardrails.
1/6
1/6
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
WA-3 primary challenge is likely to be Brent Hennrich (brenthennrich.com). Decent guy, not a millionaire, and appears to understand the moment.
Home - Brent Hennrich
Brent Hennrich is a candidate for Washington's third congressional district for the 2026 midterm elections. Brent Hennrich is focused on the affordability crisis and the threat Trump poses.
brenthennrich.com
January 22, 2026 at 10:50 PM
WA-3 primary challenge is likely to be Brent Hennrich (brenthennrich.com). Decent guy, not a millionaire, and appears to understand the moment.
So succinct and so true.
Jack Smith: "My fear is that we have seen the rule of law function in our country for so long that many of us have come to take it for granted. The rule of law is not self-executing. It depends on our collective commitment to apply it."
January 23, 2026 at 12:03 AM
So succinct and so true.
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
The ombudsman for Stars and Stripes, the deployed servicemember's paper of record, writes in its pages that the publication "is in peril of losing its editorial independence and becoming nothing more than a public relations arm of the Pentagon."
www.stripes.com/opinion/2026...
www.stripes.com/opinion/2026...
Pentagon wants a ‘refocus,’ but Stripes hasn’t wavered from its true mission
www.stripes.com
January 22, 2026 at 11:50 PM
The ombudsman for Stars and Stripes, the deployed servicemember's paper of record, writes in its pages that the publication "is in peril of losing its editorial independence and becoming nothing more than a public relations arm of the Pentagon."
www.stripes.com/opinion/2026...
www.stripes.com/opinion/2026...
I’m unfollowing everyone who doesn’t know how to count votes in the House for my own sanity.
January 22, 2026 at 11:52 PM
I’m unfollowing everyone who doesn’t know how to count votes in the House for my own sanity.
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947 (over Truman's veto) to make general strikes so incredibly difficult to organize that there hasn't been one since.
That there is a general strike happening in a major US city on such short notice is nothing short of a miracle.
That there is a general strike happening in a major US city on such short notice is nothing short of a miracle.
National media should really be covering the fact thay every major school, museum, and arts institution in the Twin Cities, and hundreds of local businesses are closed tomorrow to protest federal occupation.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
Nothing like this at this scale has happened anywhere in America anytime in living memory.
January 22, 2026 at 9:28 PM
Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947 (over Truman's veto) to make general strikes so incredibly difficult to organize that there hasn't been one since.
That there is a general strike happening in a major US city on such short notice is nothing short of a miracle.
That there is a general strike happening in a major US city on such short notice is nothing short of a miracle.
I get that folks turn to social media to blow off some steam but based on what is being posted here lately, some folks really need to seek professional counseling.
These posters not coping well and I can only assume their friends & families are suffering because of it.
These posters not coping well and I can only assume their friends & families are suffering because of it.
January 22, 2026 at 11:01 PM
I get that folks turn to social media to blow off some steam but based on what is being posted here lately, some folks really need to seek professional counseling.
These posters not coping well and I can only assume their friends & families are suffering because of it.
These posters not coping well and I can only assume their friends & families are suffering because of it.
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
***DEEP SIGH***
This is just the latest in our centuries-long fight over how to commemorate George Washington's involvement in slavery. It began while he was still alive, and continued immediately after his death, in the lead-up to Civil War, through Jim Crow, Civil Rights, and Black Lives Matter.
This is just the latest in our centuries-long fight over how to commemorate George Washington's involvement in slavery. It began while he was still alive, and continued immediately after his death, in the lead-up to Civil War, through Jim Crow, Civil Rights, and Black Lives Matter.
Signs about the history of slavery in the U.S. and the 9 people George Washington enslaved are being removed right now at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia, across from Independence Hall, months after the Trump administration threatend to do so.
How far we have not come in 250 years.
How far we have not come in 250 years.
January 22, 2026 at 9:52 PM
***DEEP SIGH***
This is just the latest in our centuries-long fight over how to commemorate George Washington's involvement in slavery. It began while he was still alive, and continued immediately after his death, in the lead-up to Civil War, through Jim Crow, Civil Rights, and Black Lives Matter.
This is just the latest in our centuries-long fight over how to commemorate George Washington's involvement in slavery. It began while he was still alive, and continued immediately after his death, in the lead-up to Civil War, through Jim Crow, Civil Rights, and Black Lives Matter.
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
I need a cigarette…. And i don't even smoke. Holy hell what gaslighting
January 22, 2026 at 7:25 PM
I need a cigarette…. And i don't even smoke. Holy hell what gaslighting
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Jan. 22 @ 2:05 PM — Most of Rhode Island and Massachusetts' Bristol County could see 1 to 2 feet of snow on Sunday & Monday, according to our meteorologists' latest predictions. Get details and updates on 12 News and WPRI.com .
January 22, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Jan. 22 @ 2:05 PM — Most of Rhode Island and Massachusetts' Bristol County could see 1 to 2 feet of snow on Sunday & Monday, according to our meteorologists' latest predictions. Get details and updates on 12 News and WPRI.com .
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
NEWS: The FAA has moved to codify existing helicopter restrictions around DCA airport into law, according to a new interim final rule posted today.
via @theaircurrent.com theaircurrent.com/feed/dispatc...
via @theaircurrent.com theaircurrent.com/feed/dispatc...
FAA moves to codify existing DCA helicopter restrictions into law
Helicopters and powered-lift operations now permanently limited in airspace following fatal January 2025 crash
theaircurrent.com
January 22, 2026 at 6:42 PM
NEWS: The FAA has moved to codify existing helicopter restrictions around DCA airport into law, according to a new interim final rule posted today.
via @theaircurrent.com theaircurrent.com/feed/dispatc...
via @theaircurrent.com theaircurrent.com/feed/dispatc...
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
tonight, we learned that nearly 100 students have withdrawn from mount edgecumbe high school this year
that’s 1/4 of the entire student body
also, sitka tribe of alaska council just unanimously approved a resolution requesting alaska dept of ed create an ad-hoc committee on student safety at mehs
that’s 1/4 of the entire student body
also, sitka tribe of alaska council just unanimously approved a resolution requesting alaska dept of ed create an ad-hoc committee on student safety at mehs
January 22, 2026 at 5:06 AM
tonight, we learned that nearly 100 students have withdrawn from mount edgecumbe high school this year
that’s 1/4 of the entire student body
also, sitka tribe of alaska council just unanimously approved a resolution requesting alaska dept of ed create an ad-hoc committee on student safety at mehs
that’s 1/4 of the entire student body
also, sitka tribe of alaska council just unanimously approved a resolution requesting alaska dept of ed create an ad-hoc committee on student safety at mehs
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
this is why I included Katie Miller's phone call in FIRESTORM.
January 22, 2026 at 12:48 AM
this is why I included Katie Miller's phone call in FIRESTORM.
Meanwhile, in my personal life, the plaintiff appealed my anti-SLAPP win from 2024 & we should have an Appeals Court date soon for their last ditch attempt to discredit my journalism.
Having this hang over your head for two years is exhausting and expensive as hell.
Reporting isn't easy, folks.
Having this hang over your head for two years is exhausting and expensive as hell.
Reporting isn't easy, folks.
January 21, 2026 at 11:32 PM
Meanwhile, in my personal life, the plaintiff appealed my anti-SLAPP win from 2024 & we should have an Appeals Court date soon for their last ditch attempt to discredit my journalism.
Having this hang over your head for two years is exhausting and expensive as hell.
Reporting isn't easy, folks.
Having this hang over your head for two years is exhausting and expensive as hell.
Reporting isn't easy, folks.
Usually I love an aviation angle but this is stupid.
As weight-loss drugs grow in popularity amongst Americans, U.S. airlines could be surprise beneficiaries, a new report suggests.
The lighter a plane is, the less fuel it requires — and fuel is one of an airline’s biggest costs, according to an equity analyst. https://wapo.st/4sW6ZMc
The lighter a plane is, the less fuel it requires — and fuel is one of an airline’s biggest costs, according to an equity analyst. https://wapo.st/4sW6ZMc
January 21, 2026 at 11:03 PM
Usually I love an aviation angle but this is stupid.
Oh, FFS.
Go read BAD BLOOD by @johncarreyrou.bsky.social and see what a criminal Elizabeth Holmes is.
Sigh. That probably means he will grant her request. abcnews.go.com/US/elizabeth...
Go read BAD BLOOD by @johncarreyrou.bsky.social and see what a criminal Elizabeth Holmes is.
Sigh. That probably means he will grant her request. abcnews.go.com/US/elizabeth...
Elizabeth Holmes asks Trump administration to commute her prison sentence
Holmes, 41, has almost six years left of her sentence after she was convicted of defrauding investors with false claims about her company's blood-testing technology.
abcnews.go.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:47 PM
Oh, FFS.
Go read BAD BLOOD by @johncarreyrou.bsky.social and see what a criminal Elizabeth Holmes is.
Sigh. That probably means he will grant her request. abcnews.go.com/US/elizabeth...
Go read BAD BLOOD by @johncarreyrou.bsky.social and see what a criminal Elizabeth Holmes is.
Sigh. That probably means he will grant her request. abcnews.go.com/US/elizabeth...
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Providence Mayor Smiley signs Executive Order prohibiting the use of city property for civil immigration enforcement activities
"With this executive order, we are making clear that city property will be used to serve our community, not to carry out civil immigration enforcement," said the Mayor.
"With this executive order, we are making clear that city property will be used to serve our community, not to carry out civil immigration enforcement," said the Mayor.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley signs Executive Order prohibiting the use of city property for civil immigration enforcement activities
"With this executive order, we are making clear that city property will be used to serve our community, not to carry out civil immigration enforcement," said Mayor Smiley.
steveahlquist.substack.com
January 21, 2026 at 7:27 AM
Providence Mayor Smiley signs Executive Order prohibiting the use of city property for civil immigration enforcement activities
"With this executive order, we are making clear that city property will be used to serve our community, not to carry out civil immigration enforcement," said the Mayor.
"With this executive order, we are making clear that city property will be used to serve our community, not to carry out civil immigration enforcement," said the Mayor.
Meanwhile, in Alaska….
The caribou herd at the center of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling debate has declined by about a third over the past eight years, writes @yjrosen.bsky.social for the @alaskabeacon.com alaskabeacon.com/2026/01/21/p...
Porcupine Caribou Herd, in Alaska oil debate spotlight, sustains population decline | Alaska Beacon
The herd that roams between northeastern Alaska and northwestern Canada is down in size from its all-time high but still the state's biggest.
alaskabeacon.com
January 21, 2026 at 9:47 PM
Meanwhile, in Alaska….
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
This year we should be supporting our fellow artists and writers as much as possible. Help us continue to give independent creativity a space to be celebrated by reading Locus Magazine! linktr.ee/locusmagazine
January 21, 2026 at 12:33 PM
This year we should be supporting our fellow artists and writers as much as possible. Help us continue to give independent creativity a space to be celebrated by reading Locus Magazine! linktr.ee/locusmagazine
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
Americans are realizing that unfettered federal power to detain and arrest is a very dangerous thing. I learned that lesson as a child when they put us into internment camps just for looking like the enemy. Don’t go further down this road.
January 20, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Americans are realizing that unfettered federal power to detain and arrest is a very dangerous thing. I learned that lesson as a child when they put us into internment camps just for looking like the enemy. Don’t go further down this road.
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
A bunch more details here: www.adn.com/alaska-news/...
Basics:
Fairbanks North Star Borough and the Kuspuk school districts are the plaintiffs. Represented by a very pugnacious attorney, Matt Singer. Intentionally timed to send a message to the Legislature on the first day of the session.
Basics:
Fairbanks North Star Borough and the Kuspuk school districts are the plaintiffs. Represented by a very pugnacious attorney, Matt Singer. Intentionally timed to send a message to the Legislature on the first day of the session.
In lawsuit, 2 school districts say Alaska fails to meet its constitutional obligation on public education
The lawsuit filed by the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District and Kuspuk School District seeks an injunction directing the state to fulfill its obligations on funding public schools and provid...
www.adn.com
January 20, 2026 at 10:47 PM
A bunch more details here: www.adn.com/alaska-news/...
Basics:
Fairbanks North Star Borough and the Kuspuk school districts are the plaintiffs. Represented by a very pugnacious attorney, Matt Singer. Intentionally timed to send a message to the Legislature on the first day of the session.
Basics:
Fairbanks North Star Borough and the Kuspuk school districts are the plaintiffs. Represented by a very pugnacious attorney, Matt Singer. Intentionally timed to send a message to the Legislature on the first day of the session.
Meanwhile, in Alaska….
Onto Sen. Stedman, who goes down a long list of major capital projects that are going without funding:
School maintenance
Transportation maintenance
Basic gov. services
"We're gonna have another tight year. At some point, the dam's gonna break."
School maintenance
Transportation maintenance
Basic gov. services
"We're gonna have another tight year. At some point, the dam's gonna break."
January 20, 2026 at 8:42 PM
Meanwhile, in Alaska….
Reposted by Colleen Mondor
You cannot overstate how startling it is to see a politician just say the thing with clarity and poise. No fearful hemming. No overwrought qualifying down til it’s meaningless. No lingering sense that there is a loyalty to a donor class or an ideology of stasis that they’d never admit to.
Mamdani: "I am in support of abolishing ICE. What we see is an entity that has no interest in fulfilling its stated reason to exist. We're seeing a government agency that is supposed to be enforcing some kind of immigration law, but instead what it's doing is terrorizing people."
January 20, 2026 at 6:17 PM
You cannot overstate how startling it is to see a politician just say the thing with clarity and poise. No fearful hemming. No overwrought qualifying down til it’s meaningless. No lingering sense that there is a loyalty to a donor class or an ideology of stasis that they’d never admit to.