Portfolio & Broadcast Work
The Wright Flyer’s FAA-certified aerial work has been featured across print, broadcast, and documentary media.
Press coverage of The Wright Flyer’s FAA Part 107–certified drone operations spans local, regional, national, and international outlets, with a consistent focus on historic preservation, public lands, and documentary storytelling. Early reporting highlighted the expanding role of professional drone operations in Grand County, including coverage in the Grand Gazette (“Expanding drone use in Grand County,” February 21, 2019) and multiple outlets documenting public discussions surrounding the reopening of Rollins Pass Road and preservation planning for the Moffat Tunnel corridor (Winter Park Times, January 30, 2020; The Weekly Register-Call, February 6, 2020).
A significant concentration of coverage followed the East Portal Work Cabins being named to Colorado Preservation, Inc.’s “Most Endangered Places” list, where The Wright Flyer’s aerial documentation was featured prominently in CBS4 Denver broadcasts and related specials hosted by Dave Aguilera throughout 2020. These included multiple airings of Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2020 (January 30, March 28, April 1, and April 18, 2020), as well as focused segments such as “East Portal Moffat Tunnel” (CBS4 Denver, February 20, 2020). Complementary print and digital reporting in The Mountain-Ear, The Weekly Register-Call, and Sky-Hi News documented preservation momentum and public engagement driven in part by aerial visuals that made the site’s condition and context legible to a broad audience.
The Wright Flyer’s work has also been examined explicitly through the lens of aviation and storytelling practice, including Colorado AeroLab’s feature, “Using Drones to tell the story of the East Portal Moffat Tunnel Project” (February 27, 2020), which addressed how Part 107–compliant operations can support interpretation, documentation, and advocacy without compromising safety or regulatory rigor. This framing reinforced the distinction between hobbyist imagery and mission-driven aerial work designed to withstand technical and institutional scrutiny.
Between 2020 and 2023, continued coverage reflected an expanding preservation portfolio, with articles in the Grand Gazette, Winter Park Times, and Sky-Hi News tying aerial documentation to fundraising, interpretive projects, and successful historic designations. Notable examples include reporting on the preservation and eventual historic designation of the East Portal Cabins (The Mountain-Ear, May 25–26, 2023) and a centerfold feature, “East Portal Cabins—history didn’t end when the tunnel opened” (June 8 and June 11, 2023), which relied on aerial context to connect architecture, landscape, and labor history.
Broadcast work has extended beyond local news into statewide and international documentary production. The Wright Flyer’s aerial cinematography has appeared in multiple seasons of CBS4 Denver’s Colorado’s Most Endangered Places series (2020–2026), as well as Rocky Mountain PBS documentaries including Emily Howell Warner: Pushing Frontiers in the Sky (premiere March 28, 2023; broadcast April 6, 2023). Internationally, the work reached a global audience through World’s Most Scenic Railway Journeys (Season 4, Episode 5), airing on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom on July 1, 2022—underscoring the role of disciplined drone operations in high-end factual television.
Recognition of this body of work culminated in statewide acknowledgment, including the State Honor Award presented at the 32nd Annual Dana Crawford & State Honor Awards Ceremony at the Denver Botanic Gardens on June 9, 2022. Subsequent CBS4 Denver and Colorado Preservation, Inc. announcements for the 2024, 2025, and 2026 Endangered Places programs continued to feature The Wright Flyer’s aerial imagery, reinforcing its ongoing role in documenting—and safeguarding—Colorado’s most vulnerable historic and cultural landscapes.
PRESS AND BROADCAST COVERAGE
The following list includes all known press articles and broadcast features referencing this work, with original publication dates:
• “Expanding drone use in Grand County,” Grand Gazette (page 7)—February 21, 2019
• CBS documentary premiere, “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2020: East Portal Work Cabins,” Colorado Preservation, Inc.—January 30, 2020
• “BOCC Workshop on reopening Rollins Pass Road,” Winter Park Times—January 30, 2020
• “Hope for East Portal Camp cabins by Moffat Tunnel,” The Weekly Register-Call—February 6, 2020
• “East Portal Cabins to be preserved,” The Mountain-Ear (page 28)—February 6, 2020
• “East Portal Cabins To Be Preserved,” The Mountain-Ear—February 18, 2020
• “East Portal Moffat Tunnel,” CBS4 Denver—February 20, 2020
• “Using Drones to tell the story of the East Portal Moffat Tunnel Project,” Colorado AeroLab—February 27, 2020
• “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2020,” CBS4 special hosted by Dave Aguilera—March 28, 2020
• “Dave Aguilera Hosts ‘Colorado’s Most Endangered Places‘,” CBS4 Denver & MSN/Microsoft News—April 1, 2020
• “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2020,” CBS4 special hosted by Dave Aguilera—April 18, 2020
• “From the Artist: Karen Vance on her newest creation for the Grand County Historical Association,” Grand Gazette (page 4)—September 24, 2020
• “GCHA unveils painting to be raffled off in support of history,” Sky-Hi News—September 25, 2020
• “Karen Vance Donates a Masterpiece to Grand County Historical Association,” Winter Park Times (page 19)—October 2, 2020
• “From the Artist: Karen Vance on her newest creation for the Grand County Historical Association,” Winter Park Times—October 2, 2020
• “The Significance of Setting on Rollins Pass,” Grand Gazette—November 25, 2020
• “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2021: Historic Bridges of Colorado,” CBS4 Denver—February 11, 2021
• “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2021: Winter Park Balcony House,” CBS4 Denver—February 11, 2021
• “Colorado’s Most Endangered Places 2022: The Reiling Gold Dredge,” CBS4 Denver—February 8, 2022
• B. Travis Wright: State Honor Award—32nd Annual Dana Crawford & State Honor Awards Ceremony at the Denver Botanic Gardens | Clear Image Media, Inc. and Colorado Preservation, Inc.—June 9, 2022
• World’s Most Scenic Railway Journeys (Season 4, Episode 5) | Channel 5, United Kingdom—July 1, 2022
• “Rollins Pass: A love story,” The Mountain-Ear (page 24)—December 22, 2022
• “Rollins Pass: A love story,” The Mountain-Ear—December 24, 2022
• “New grant will fund replacement of Cozens Ranch Museum roof,” Sky-Hi News—January 8, 2023
• “Emily Howell Warner: Pushing Frontiers in the Sky,” (Premiere at Rocky Mountain PBS Theatre) Rocky Mountain PBS— March 28, 2023
• “Rocky Mountain PBS to air documentary on Captain Emily Warner,” Sky-Hi News—April 4, 2023
• “Rocky Mountain PBS to air documentary on Captain Emily Warner,” Sky-Hi News (page 9)—April 5, 2023
• “Emily Howell Warner: Pushing Frontiers in the Sky,” Rocky Mountain PBS—April 6, 2023
• “Cabins at East Portal get historic designation,” The Mountain-Ear (page 21)—May 25, 2023
• “Cabins at East Portal get historic designation,” The Mountain-Ear—May 26, 2023
• “East Portal Cabins—history didn’t end when the tunnel opened,” The Mountain Ear (centerfold, page 17)—June 8, 2023
• “East Portal Cabins—history didn’t end when the tunnel opened,” The Mountain Ear—June 11, 2023
• “2024 Endangered Places Program Announcement,” Colorado Preservation, Inc. and CBS4 Denver—February 1, 2024
• “2025 Endangered Places Program Announcement,” Colorado Preservation, Inc. and CBS4 Denver—January 30, 2025
• “Red Cliff Town Hall on list of Colorado’s Most Endangered Places for 2025,” CBS4 Denver—January 30, 2025
• “Four new sites added to the Colorado Most Endangered Places List,” CBS4 Denver—January 31, 2025
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS
National Writers Union — Freelance Journalist & Photographer
B. Travis Wright, MPS • The Wright Flyer • FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot • FAA Safety Team DronePro (CO/WY)
