ACONE honors McSpadden with evening of safety

The Richard G. McSpadden event will be the thirty-fourth annual safety gathering hosted by the Aero Club of New England (founded in 1902 and the oldest continuously operating club of its kind). Safety presentations will focus on preventing power-loss accidents, with FAA Wings credit offered to those who attend on March 28. The program starts with a social hour at 6 p.m. at the Marriott in Burlington, Massachusetts (a 15-minute drive from Laurence G. Hanscom Field in Bedford).

McSpadden led the AOPA Air Safety Institute from 2017 until his death in October. McSpadden was flying with former NFL player and longtime pilot Russ Francis, and both men died in a crash that followed a loss of power on takeoff. The preliminary NTSB report shed little light on why the Cessna 177RG with two experienced pilots aboard was unable to land safely.

Landsberg became the forty-third member of the NTSB when he was sworn in as vice chairman in August 2018, having retired from AOPA in 2014 after 22 years of leadership in various roles, including executive director of the Air Safety Institute. He will headline a program focused on power-loss accidents, the content of which was coordinated with ACONE, the FAA, the NTSB, and AOPA.

"There will be key takeaways for pilots, owners, renters, and maintainers—everyone has a role to play in prevention and mitigation," said Paul Diette, co-chair of the club's safety programs, in a news release. Attendees are encouraged to study the recently updated FAA advisory circular on the topic.

The event (a fixture on the spring calendar for aviators across the Northeast since 1991) will begin with a social hour at 6 p.m., followed by presentations from Landsberg and Baker (who has prepared a tribute to McSpadden, "A Flying Life Well Lived," to present at the event).

“Richard dedicated his professional life to aviation safety, and to have this event named in his honor pays great tribute to someone so passionate about keeping us safe in the skies,” said Baker.

Diette will review accidents in the region from 2023, as well as an expanded study of power-loss accidents from the past several years, for the audience of pilots, flight instructors, mechanics, airport managers, inspectors, air traffic controllers, and others who have made the event a collaborative learning opportunity for the entire GA community. FAA Wings credit will be awarded through a program code provided to attendees at the conclusion of the evening.