AOPA has unashamedly chased youth with the appointments of Ben Morgan as CEO and Baz Scheffers as a board member. Both these men are enthusiastic flyers and aircraft owners; exemplars of both the base membership and the group of aviators most suffering in the current regulatory climate. Morgan is the man handed the sword to take the fight to Canberra, but for him the challenge is to learn how to get politicians to listen and temper the "match bearings and shoot" approach displayed in Tamworth last May. Certainly what AOPA has needed for some time is board members who will be a part of the general aviation community for many years to come, rather than those for whom the larger part of their flying careers are now behind them.
It would appear that the Regional Airspace Procedures Advisory Committees (RAPACs) have circled their wagons and dug in for a long battle with CASA over the frequency issues. Regular readers of Australian Flying will remember that CASA issued an advisory stating that if an airstrip is not marked on a chart, pilots should use the area VHF frequency rather than Multicom 126.7. Not only was this done without the RAPACs involvement, but also CASA subsequently told the RAPACs it had nothing to do with them. The issue of the right frequency has become quite emotional, even drawing threats of legal action from Dick Smith, who supports the Multicom. The RAPACs also support Multicom, and their arguments are quite potent, as has been laid out in a new website. Most interesting is that the RAPACs are CASA institutions, so does this mean a state of civil war?
Lachie Smart is now in the USA, having flown an SR22 across the Pacific Ocean. For me, this highlights not only Lachie's maturity and determination, but also how important the role of parents are to the future of general aviation. This young bloke could never have done this without his parents' support, and the same applies to thousands of other teens who announce at the dinner table that they want to learn to fly. For many parents, the constant driving to the airport and waiting around is not really palatable, but so many do it anyway because they know how much it means to their daughter or son. And we can't ignore the impact on families of the cost of flight training; it is a real burden compared to some other past-times youngsters may want to pursue ... such as chasing Pokemons (Pokemen?). Lachie's parents are now being repaid for all their time and money in a currency they can't borrow from a bank: pride.
Huge congratulations to Nicola Scaife for securing her second straight World Women's Ballooning Championship. She has done Australia very proud on the world stage; a great ambassador for Australia and the sport in this country.
A personal thanks to the Australian Division of the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and Lady Cosgrove for hosting the 150th anniversary celebrations at Admiralty House last Friday. The gathering brought together several identities of the aviation community in one room in a very congenial atmosphere. It was most heartening to see some people with opposing positions able to put them aside for one night and chat amicably about the one thing we are all passionate about: aviation.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch