IntheAir - 2010/11

November 2010 9
INtheAIR
AMA HEADQUARTERS AND MEMBER NEWS
On August 12 this year, longtime
Academy volunteers Ron and Jane
Morgan were presented with the
AMA Couples Award.
The honor was created in 2009,
to recognize couples/teams who
have volunteered much of their time
and effort in support of the
Academy. The first recipients were
Bob and Rae Underwood.
Except for the period from 1987
to 1993, Ron has served on, or has
been the head of, the Nats
management committee since 1966.
He has been the CD for the Nats, has
received many awards from
the AMA, and has been
active within his club and
district.
Jane has also
volunteered at many Nats,
and she is currently a
member of the AMA
Scholarship committee.
Congratulations,
Morgans, and thank you for
your tireless and ongoing
involvement in the AMA and its
endeavors. MA
—AMA HQ
AMA Recognizes Longtime Pair of
Volunteers
e-mail addresses on file, because information shared between LMs,
district vice presidents, associate vice presidents, and Academy HQ
is routinely distributed electronically.
To rectify this problem, our committee has launched a
multipronged approach to get in touch with all LMs, to have them
update their contact information—especially e-mail addresses—with
the AMA. If your contact information is not up to date, or if you are
unsure of whether or not it is, please check with the AMA. Call (800)
435-9262 or send an e-mail containing updates to shawng@model
aircraft.org. MA
—Frank Geisler
Leader Member Program Development Committee Chairman
Attention All Leader Members!
The July AMA Today membership newsletter featured a survey for
all AMA Leader Members (LMs). The intent was to gather data and
insight about what direction the Leader Member Program
Development Committee should go in support of its mission
statement. The questions were developed from a list of 22 committee
goals.
A problem with the survey is that it did not reach all 2,547 LMs.
This is because many of them did not have current e-mail addresses
on file with the Academy, and AMA Today is delivered via e-mail.
Based on their status in the Academy, LMs are responsible for
keeping abreast of what is happening in the aeromodeling community.
They are unable to do that if the AMA does not have their up-to-date
Included is a picture of the “Flying Scuros”
at the Coachella Valley Radio Control Club
flying field in California. Our flying history
dates back to 1923, with my father, Joseph,
who was a National Champion. He is deceased.
Now my grandchildren are active in flying.
Those shown (L-R) are Nathan, grandson;
Michael Jr., national champion and son;
Michael Sr., international champion and
grandpa; Magnum, grandson; Nikolas,
grandson; and Joe, uncle and international
champion. MA
—Michael N. Scuro
[email protected]
District X
Keepin’ It in the Family
more than 2,000 gliders, and
numerous other supplies.
A total of 54 pilots from several
CL clubs celebrated 16 years of
volunteering at KidVenture. These
well-trained volunteers provided
approximately 1,000 flights to those
who were looking to be “connected”
to a model. Two circles were often
used to accommodate the large
number of eager youngsters who were
looking to go for a “spin.”
Even I took a turn in the circle, and
found that the Tough Baby is a great
trainer to use with guests/beginners. As
did all of the first-time fliers, the
volunteers gave me encouragement
throughout the flight experience.
The club members also put on air
show-style demonstrations twice a day,
featuring pulse jets, autogiros, CL
Combat aircraft, and Precision
Aerobatics displays.
AMA groups are invited back to
AirVenture each year because of their
level of professionalism and
willingness to promote our hobby/sport
in a safe and exciting manner. The
volunteers did a wonderful job of
providing hands-on aeromodeling
experiences to the public this year, as
was evident by the smiles on the
participants’ faces.
We are fortunate, as an
organization, to have members who are
willing to share not only their passion,
but also their time to promote the
hobby. EAA AirVenture and
KidVenture serve as the perfect
backdrop for introducing aeromodeling
to aviation enthusiasts from around the
world. MA
—Jay Smith
Assistant Editor
10 MODEL AVIATION
INtheAIR
The Academy recently welcomed Life Members Marco Troccoli (Wilmington CA), Sean Byrne (Baltimore MD),
and Jeff Maire (Ankeny IA).
For information about becoming a Life Member, contact AMA Headquarters at (800) 435-9262. MA
—AMA Membership Department
AMA Thanks Its Lifetime Supporters!
AirVenture: A Hands-on
Flight Experience
The relationship between model
and full-scale aircraft, as well as the
partnership between the EAA and the
AMA, was evident at the 58th annual
AirVenture Oshkosh, held in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin, July 26-August 1.
Horizon Hobby and Hobby Lobby
were at the event with booths
showcasing aeromodeling products.
Members of the AMA staff were set up
in the EAA AirVenture Museum with
displays and tons of gliders to give
away and be flown.
Hands-on action was available
throughout the week. The KidVenture
campus featured opportunities for
attendees to fly RC and CL models; the
popular make-and-take area, where
there was building and coloring; and
RC flight simulators.
This was the Northern Aces Air
Show Team’s sixth year of supporting
AirVenture Oshkosh. Its members
provided approximately 1,200 guests
with RC flight experiences during
AirVenture.
The amount of time that these pilots
put into the event and the long list of
items they took to AirVenture were
amazing. They had 30 electric-powered
models, nearly 100 Li-Poly batteries,
November 2010 11
INtheAIR
The National Model Aviation Museum Archives
contains records of aeromodeling and the AMA,
including documentation about early model airplane
clubs. One of these pieces is an overview of the Jordan
Marsh-Boston Traveler Junior Aviation League (JAL),
which was published in the Boston Traveler.
Jordan Marsh & Company (a Boston department store
chain) and the Boston Traveler newspaper formed the JAL
in 1929. Their first public address introducing the club was
made on April 6, and 1,500 people attended the event.
Speakers included the JAL’s leading organizers: Edward
R. Mitton, Jordan Marsh’s vice president of merchandising;
Joe Toye, chief editorial writer for the Boston Traveler; and
Capt. Willis C. Brown, who eventually became an AMA
president. He started as an instructor for the JAL and later
became the director, staying with the organization through
1940.
According to a piece in the June 6, 1936, Boston Traveler:
“The Jordan-Traveler Junior Aviation League was formed
with but one object in mind; to give the boys and girls of
Boston and vicinity an opportunity to receive at each weekly
meeting reliable information and instruction from qualified
experts in the aviation world, thus guiding their interest in
aviation …
“The club was founded on the belief that the transportation
of tomorrow will be through the air, as that of today is fixed
to land and water.”
News about the JAL was published in the Boston Traveler
each Friday. Weekly meetings were held on Saturdays from
September through June.
Contests that attracted most of the JAL membership were
held the first Saturday of each month. Most other Saturdays
featured meetings at which aviation notables of the time
would discuss topics that dealt with aviation.
According to an undated Boston Traveler newspaper
clipping, Amelia Earhart once attended a JAL meeting. She
handed out miniature gas engines as awards to three boys
whom the club had sent to the Nats in New York that year.
Club membership also included the opportunity to attend
an occasional aviation-related movie at the local theater.
The NAA sanctioned the JAL’s annual New England
Championship Model Airplane Contest, the first of which was
held May 30-31, 1930. Competitors flew both indoor and
outdoor events, and it was dubbed “the little Nats.” The two
competitors with the most points won a trip to the “big” Nats.
The JAL had a weekly newsletter, Wing Overs, which was
edited by Albert Lewis (who later became the second AMA
president) and written by JAL members. The publication
promoted itself as “the oldest model airplane weekly in the
world.”
History Preserved:
T h e C o l l e c t i o n o f t h e
National Model Aviation Museum
In April 1934 the JAL became a branch member of the Junior
National Aeronautic Association (“Junior NAA”). By 1935,
membership in the JAL exceeded 4,000.
The club waned during World War II, as many JAL members
went to war. Trying to bring back the spark after the War proved
to be impossible, and the organization closed its doors in 1948.
However, in the almost 20 years that the JAL was active, it
had inspired thousands of children to reach for the skies, both
with their imaginations and with their airplanes.
The information in this article was derived from various
newspaper clippings, Wing Overs, and other materials maintained
by the National Model Aviation Museum Archives. If you have
materials documenting the history of aeromodeling that you
would like to donate, please contact the museum. MA
—Jackie Shalberg
Museum Archivist
12 MODEL AVIATION
INtheAIR
Summers are short in Alaska. However, the 24 hours of
daylight during those summer months not only gives the
Midnight Sun RC Club of Fairbanks its name, but it also
provides us members with ample opportunity to get out and
fly.
Even though the summer flying season is relatively short,
this modest club of 28 members has a number of events
scheduled. There is an annual two-day International
Miniature Aerobatic Club contest and several shows,
demonstrations, and community showcases.
President Mike Davis explained that even though the
group is small, it is very active in the community.
“Last weekend we did a static display of model aircraft at
the local shopping mall,” he said. “We also had computer
simulators there for people to try out.”
The members were successful in spreading the model
aviation “bug.” Only two days after the mall show, Bob
Stewart, one of the people who stopped by the booth,
showed up—with his temporary AMA membership in
hand—at a demonstration that club members put on for this
article.
“I am really excited,” Bob said only two hours after
becoming a member. “I can’t wait to get started.”
The mall event is one of many activities that the club has
scheduled for 2010. According to Vice President Tom
Risdale, the group has been asked to perform demonstrations
and will provide buddy box flights for nearly 200 kids at the
Alaska Boy Scouts statewide camp.
Another event is the May Day Fly-In (a competition for
full-scale bush pilots), held in Valdez, Alaska. Mike Davis,
who has been a model aviator for nearly 35 years and a fullscale
pilot for 8 years, usually attends the gathering as a fullscale
pilot.
This year the May Day organizers asked Midnight Sun
RC to have a booth and do 15-minute flight demonstrations
during both days of the show. So Mike and six other
members packed up their models and drove the eight hours to
Valdez to participate. They made a huge impact on people
who attended the event.
The club’s annual Water ‘n’ Wheels, held the 4th of July
weekend, draws RC modelers from across the state. The
gathering showcases model aircraft that take off from both
land and water, and it garners a large amount of interest from
the community. Organizers have been impressed and
appreciative of the number of prizes that manufacturers and
suppliers have provided for such a remote and small contest.
One of Midnight Sun RC’s most interesting events is the
Midnight Sun Fly. Held when the Summer Solstice takes
place, members come out with their families to enjoy the
evening and then see how many models they can have in the
air at midnight.
The midnight sun provides plenty of light for this event.
Pilots have been able to get 12 aircraft in the air at midnight
for the last three years.
For such a small and out-of-the-way club, the members
are having a large effect on their local community. They are
great ambassadors for AMA and model aviation, not only
locally, but also across Alaska. MA
—Ty Wooten
(317) 473-5700
[email protected]
District XI
The AMA’s Northernmost Club
Joe Bock, who founded the Aero
Telemetry Corporation, created the
RC flying models that depicted fullscale
aircraft in the Academy Awardwinning
film The Aviator. At the
Expo he will display his Hughes H-1
Racer and several restorations of
historically significant aircraft
engines.
Brad Lang is a captain for Delta
Airlines and the son of Donald Lang Sr.,
who was a Tuskegee Airman. As
coordinator of media and fund-raising for
the Red Tail Project, Brad’s current
mission is to educate young people about
the inspirational story of America’s first
black fighter pilots. He flies a restored P-
51C Mustang painted in Tuskegee colors
at events across the country.
Dr. Gary Fogel is CEO of Natural Selection,
Inc., an aviation historian, and the author of
Wind & Wings, The History of Soaring in
San Diego. He speaks regularly about the
history of gliding in San Diego, California.
Gary is co-author of the original
nominations to establish the Torrey Pines
Gliderport as a National Landmark of Soaring,
an AMA Historic Site, and a San Diego City
Historic Site (315), and to have it listed in the
California National Register of Historic Places.
Expo 2011 Guest Speakers Announced!
The Academy is rich with members who have interesting careers in aviation and aerospace, and many of them were influenced
by their love of building and flying model aircraft. Three of those members will tell their stories at the 2011 AMA Expo, which
will be held January 7-9 at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California.
More guest-speaker announcements are to come. To get the latest news about Expo 2011 and to purchase tickets, go to www.amaexpo.com. MA
—Jeff Nance
Marketing/Programs Director