District II
Contact
Gary Fitch District II Vice President [email protected]
Regions
- New Jersey
- New York
- Europe
Team Selection Committees
Thirteen Team Selection Committees select our FAI competitors. Each committee is made up of one representative from each district, if available.
In our district, we have four positions that need to be filled:
- Outdoor Junior Free Flight Team Selection Committee
- Indoor Free Flight (F1D) Team Selection Committee
- Control Line Race (F2C) Team Selection Committee
- Electric (F5B/F5D) Team Selection Committee
If you compete in any of these disciplines and would like to volunteer some time as a Team Selection Committee member, please write, call, or send me an e-mail with your background and competition experience.
District Seminars
Gordon Schimmel, a member of the AMA Education Committee and former chairman, approached me about holding a roundtable seminar for club representatives in District II this fall. I thought it would be beneficial to have two — one in New York and one in New Jersey.
The intent of the seminars is to show our clubs how to use AMA's education programs to work with schools, local governments, etc. We also want to listen to your ideas concerning what is needed to assist you. More information on this will be forthcoming.
AMA Affinity Programs and Member Benefits
AMA Affinity Programs are meant to provide increased value to our members and at the same time help AMA contain our membership dues. Special deals with Harbor Freight and Motel 6 are the latest member benefits and can be found on AMA's website. Check it out.
Membership Renewals and Insurance
Renewals go out in September and you have until the end of December to pay them with no lapse in membership or insurance coverage.
Many of us fly indoors in the winter, and having insurance is still necessary unless you have the means of replacing a school gym or inflated dome on your own.
AMA youth scholarships are based on a 36-month continuous membership, without lapse. Membership dues are not prorated, so there is no discount when renewing in the spring. You just lose out on receiving all issues of Model Aviation, one of the best modeling-related publications in the industry.
Member Spotlight — Gee Bee Reunion
Henry Haffke of Gee Bee Scale Model Designs in Malta, New York, sent a great letter. Henry moved to the Saratoga Springs area and, together with Curtis Smith and a few other local pilots, formed a new AMA club: the Saratoga County Radio Aero-Modelers (SCRAM). The members fly at a field at the Saratoga Speedway.
Being lifelong friends with the famous Granville family of Gee Bee fame, Henry has stayed in contact with them. Ron Spooner, son of Pearl Granville Spooner, and his wife, Diane, planned a visit with Henry last October, hoping to see a Gee Bee fly. Ron has recently started flying RC.
The day arrived with black clouds, high winds, and heavy rain, but as Henry describes, a miracle happened. The skies cleared for a brief period when all met at the field. The winds calmed, the sun began to shine, and expert pilot Curtis took that Gee Bee Model Y to the skies for a 10-minute flight, making smooth, low passes, scale maneuvers, and a flawless touchdown.
Ron was impressed to see his family history fly again. They packed everything up, left, and the heavy rain and winds started again, but Henry and Ron got their wish: to see each other and see the Gee Bee fly again!
Events
The AMA District II Fun-Fly will be September 25 at Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, New York. The event will be sponsored by the Pennsylvania Avenue Radio Control Society (PARCS).
Until next month, Keep 'em Three in the Green.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
