President's Perspective
Joe Nall Giant Scale Fly-In
It's been a busy month. The annual Joe Nall Giant Scale Fly-In is one of the premier modeling events in the country. The fly-in continues to grow, this year drawing more than 600 pilots and thousands of spectators to Triple Tree Aerodrome in Woodruff, South Carolina.
As has been tradition for the last several years, AMA was again offered the opportunity to hold a general membership meeting on Thursday evening during the fly-in. Despite less-than-ideal weather conditions, something I've been told is rare during the Nall, turnout for the meeting was exceptional.
Several AMA vice presidents and committee chairpersons were on hand to discuss projects and programs that AMA will be developing during the coming year. At the end of the prepared agenda the floor was opened for questions from the audience.
I'd be remiss if I didn't take this opportunity to thank:
- Pat Hartness for his generous hospitality
- Kirby and Carol McKinney for their hard work organizing the post-meeting cookout
- All of the members of the Confederate Air Farce who pitched in setting up seating and the sound system, and who staffed the grills during the cookout
Vegas Aces — Park Pilot Program
The following week I was in Las Vegas, Nevada, to meet with members of one of AMA's newest chartered clubs and our first dedicated Park Pilot Program club: the Vegas Aces. Using AMA's new How to Start a Park Flying Site package, the Aces worked with the local school district and gained access to a sports field adjacent to one of the community's elementary schools.
Because of its flying site location and community outreach program, the club's membership more than doubled during its first few weeks in existence. What the Vegas Aces have done is exactly what AMA envisioned when we created our new Park Pilot Program. Smaller, slower, and quieter park flyer models are bringing model aviation back into some of our more urban areas, making it easier and more convenient to become involved in aeromodeling.
The Vegas Aces story and how the members accomplished what they've done in their community were documented in the July issue of MA.
Toledo Weak Signals field dedication
Next was a trip to La Salle, Michigan, to attend the Toledo Weak Signals' dedication of the club's recent field-improvement project. Many of you will recognize the Weak Signals as the club that hosts the trade show in Toledo, Ohio, every April.
The club's field is just past the Ohio border in Michigan and is a first-class facility that includes:
- A paved runway
- Covered pit area
- A large clubhouse complete with power and water
All of this is on more than 100 acres that the club owns. What made this site possible is the dedication and hard work of the club's members coupled with strong leadership of its officers.
While I was there I also had the opportunity to present the AMA Fellowship Award to Joe Vislay for his 25 years of work as an AMA associate vice president in District III. Joe has been a longtime supporter of AMA and, in addition to his work in the district, he also serves on the AMA Nats Management Team, spending much of his time in Muncie every summer working at and supporting AMA's National Aeromodeling Championships.
Extreme Flight Championships (XFC)
As soon as I finish this column and fire it off to our MA editors I'll be heading to Muncie, Indiana, to attend the annual Extreme Flight Championships (XFC). This is the second year the event will be held at the International Aeromodeling Center. The XFC is a high-profile, intense, aerobatic competition for both RC helicopters and fixed-wing models featuring some of the best pilots in the world.
The value I see in this event is that it is exactly the type of flying that lends itself to television exposure. The vast majority of flights are choreographed to music, have an upbeat and enthusiastic style, and are flown directly in front of the spectators at "stage center." This all makes for the perfect combination that I think would attract the attention of anyone who has even a casual interest in model aviation.
Promoting model aviation
One of the issues AMA has begun to focus on is doing more to promote model aviation. Building the credibility of aeromodeling will pay dividends when we go to our communities looking for support—especially when it comes to acquiring a new or keeping an existing flying site.
To help, we have partnered with JWalcher Communications from San Diego, California. JWalcher Communications is a public and media relations company comprising marketing and community relations professionals with experience in developing successful strategic communication campaigns.
AMA's Marketing Committee will be working with the JWalcher staff to spread the word about the value of model aviation as an educational tool as well as an exciting recreational activity appropriate for the whole family. I see some good prospects here and look forward to the results of our working together.
See you next time ...
Dave Mathewson AMA president [email protected]
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
