Membership News and Notes: Start a Flying Club

Spreading the acquisition cost of an aircraft—as well as its monthly recurring costs such as a hangar fees, annual maintenance, and insurance—among several people makes economic sense. But clubs offer so much more than just affordable flying. The benefits include quality flight training opportunities, access to a variety of aircraft, and the opportunity to build community. Flying clubs offer a great path to get into aviation or a way to reconnect to that passion.

What a flying club can do:

• Flying club members can receive flight training in flying club aircraft from anyone authorized by the airport authority to provide flight instruction on field.

• Flying club members who are CFIs can provide instruction to other club members in club aircraft.

• Flying club members who are mechanics can perform maintenance on aircraft that are components of their club.

• Compensation for member-performed maintenance and flight instruction is dependent on approval from your airport manager.

What a flying club cannot do:

• Flying clubs cannot offer scenic flights, charter service, or any other commercial activity.

• Flying clubs and their members cannot lease or sell any goods or services to anyone other than a member of the club (unless it is the sale or exchange of its capital equipment).

SURVEY:
56% of AOPA members own an aircraft.

Looking for more insight? Call 1-800-USA-AOPA to chat with one of AOPA’s Flying Club Specialists.

Flying club 150 giveaway

AOPA is giving away a completely remanufactured Cessna 150 to a startup flying club. To be eligible to win the Cessna 150 giveaway, your club must meet the following criteria:

• Have a minimum of four members.

• Have a named set of club officers including president, secretary, treasurer, safety officer, and maintenance officer.

• Possess a set of bylaws (drafts are acceptable).

• Receive a quote from AOPA Insurance.

• Be listed as a “club in formation” on AOPA’s Flying Club Finder.

• Complete an online application.

Web: www.aopa.org/flyingclubgiveaway

Meet Les Smith, AOPA senior director of Pilot Community Development

Les Smith joined AOPA in 2015, transferring from the Seattle area to AOPA’s Maryland headquarters to help lead the association’s initiatives to grow the pilot population. He was an active member of the Washington Pilots Association, including three terms as the president. Smith also was a founding member of the Washington State Aviation Alliance, which brings together various state aviation associations for common goals. He is a 1,200-hour instrument-rated private pilot.

“Being part of a flying club can help turn flying from an activity into a lifestyle,” Smith says. “Clubs can be social hubs with activities and adventures for the whole family. Clubs give pilots the means and the reasons to fly.”

Products and services

Together we can make a difference. Join AOPA member philanthropists who have funded AOPA Foundation initiatives this year.

Air Safety Institute

Are you tapping into ASI’s free programs?

Get your safety fix online and in person

A visit to AOPA’s Air Safety Institute (ASI) website  provides a good overview of the many free programs available, as well as an opportunity to hone your aviation knowledge and improve your skills. Check for new or updated courses, as some have undergone a facelift to improve user experience and incorporate updates as necessary, such as the Runway Safety course. Also, all new courses are produced in a tablet-friendly format, making it convenient to take a course when and where you want. ASI has expanded its lineup of brief, informative safety videos, providing an easy way to review a particular topic before your next flight, so look for new releases online.

New seminars are held across the United States each year, and if you attend this summer’s AOPA Fly-Ins and the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture, you’ll get a chance to hear from expert educators and seminar leaders, including ASI’s senior vice president George Perry. For example, in “Mind Over Matter,” Perry discusses the importance of having more than good stick-and-rudder skills and simple techniques to increase pilot performance and reduce pilot error.

If you want a quick brush-up on safety topics, see ASI’s safety advisors (www.airsafetyinstitute.org/safetyadvisors), or if you prefer to delve deeper into the statistical realities of aviation, download the Joseph T. Nall Report. ASI also produces a free digital newsletter, CFI to CFI. As the title suggests, the publication is aimed at flight instructors, but any pilot from student to ATP can subscribe to this digital resource for insightful tips from designated examiners and flight instructors.

These free programs would not be possible without your support of the AOPA Foundation, and ASI thanks donors and pilots like you for furthering its quest to keep pilots safe.

DID YOU KNOW?

When financing an aircraft, a 15 to 20 percent down payment is common. Buyers may obtain a longer loan term by putting down a larger down payment. Adam Meredith, president of AOPA Aviation Finance, discusses factors that affect aircraft loan terms online.

Web: www.aopafinance.com

Flash update: Prevent security breaches

If you use Adobe Flash Player to take some of ASI’s popular Flash-based courses, make sure you regularly update your computer’s Flash Player plug-in to keep your system secure. Adobe recently released an emergency update after security researchers discovered a flaw that permits system security breaches. Updates should only be downloaded from the Adobe website directly.

Pilot Protection Services

Legally speaking

Unwanted attention

FAA monitoring ADS-B Out equipment problems

By Jared Allen
AOPA Pilot Protection Services

If Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) Out equipment is already installed in your aircraft but isn’t functioning properly, you may receive some unwanted attention from the FAA.

Once ADS-B Out equipment is installed, it must be operational and broadcast the required information at all times. While FAR 91.225 provides that aircraft must have ADS-B Out equipment installed to operate in designated airspace “after January 1, 2020,” the regulation also affects present-day operations by requiring that “each person operating an aircraft equipped with ADS-B Out must operate this equipment in the transmit mode at all times.”

The FAA’s ADS-B Compliance Monitoring System is operational and is capable of detecting each flight of an aircraft with ADS-B Out equipment that is failing to broadcast the information required by FAR 91.227. The information required by the FAR includes 19 different indications, such as the aircraft’s latitude and longitude, barometric pressure altitude, and transponder identification code.

We are aware of several cases in which aircraft owners have received a “Letter of Finding” from the FAA’s Avionics Branch in Washington, D.C., notifying the owner of the date of the flight in question and the nature of the ADS-B Out equipment’s deficiency. The letter also provides a point of contact to call within 30 days to discuss a plan of corrective action. As with any potential FAR violation, aircraft owners and pilots are advised to contact an attorney prior to discussing the matter with anyone.

How can you confirm that your ADS-B equipment is functioning properly? According to the FAA’s website, you can send an email to the agency ([email protected]) with your aircraft’s registration number and request an ADS-B Out equipment check. However, consult with your attorney or the AOPA Legal Services Plan before you do so, as both the aircraft owner and the pilot of the aircraft could be liable for any regulatory violations discovered.

Jared Allen is an attorney for AOPA’s Pilot Protection Services Legal Services Plan.