Mission

During Flight Across America 2025, we took to the skies over the Flagstaff region to view wind energy projects and a coal mine with conservation partners, Tribal leaders, and the press.

Taking off from Flagstaff, our flight revealed a high-elevation landscape shaped by both ancient volcanic forces and modern energy ambitions. We circled the newly constructed Babbitt Ranch wind project, known as Forged Ethic Wind, comprised of 50 turbines. The flight contrasted this clean energy project with Miller coal mine, a token of the region’s extractive industries.

We flew over the often threatened and culturally important Little Colorado River and over Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, where the jagged lava flows and symmetrical cone of the volcano told a story of fiery upheaval. The surrounding volcanic field, speckled with cinder cones and ancient craters, looked vast and surreal.

At these elevations—above 7,000 feet—there were pockets of water resources, snow-fed ponds, ephemeral washes wove across the land, and the popular, yet controversial Snowbowl Resort. We flew near the San Francisco Peaks, their forested slopes and alpine meadows adding to the region’s ecological diversity, and it was clear this landscape is layered with human history and shaped by millennia of natural forces. Now, human decisions continue to shape the land’s future.

A big thank you to those who joined us and to those who joined for the Flight Across America presentation!

Click for the photos and geo-referenced photos from FLAA.