President's Page

A pilot’s vision...

Although AOPA is strong, Craig Fuller sees numerous challenges ahead. “Even though we have come so very far as an organization these past 70 years, we share today the very threats our founders faced in their day. Just as our founders and the leaders after them, we have as an organization the solemn task of ensuring that each month and each year are more rewarding and fulfilling to pilots who seek the freedom found in flying,” said Fuller.

One of his top priorities will be an outreach campaign to educate influencers about general aviation. “The broad issue is that I don’t believe that policy makers and opinion leaders fully understand the value of GA today. I say that as somebody who was in government and a private pilot and was always surprised that people in public office, many of whom use GA a lot, didn’t really see it as something that was occurring every day—thousands and thousands of aircraft and pilots utilizing GA for business or pleasure or medical emergencies. So, I think because we’re not as well understood as we could be, we become more vulnerable to some of the issues like closing of airports and slapping on user fees to disproportionably impose a cost on general aviation for air traffic control services.”

One tool already in place to help turn that around is the AOPA Foundation. One of the foundation’s goals is to raise funds that will allow AOPA to educate influencers and the public about the value of GA. “The advocacy work that the association does is probably job one in the sense of when members are asked what they care about here,” said Fuller. “A very close second and, in my mind, equally important is our communications and publication activity. When you look beyond the horizon, you have to be educating people about GA and you have to be doing the work that will bring people into GA, and the foundation will allow us to do that.”

Another broad concern is the declining pilot population. “I think finding ways to encourage people to become active again or to encourage people of all ages to get involved in aviation for the first time is a very important role for us.” In part to broaden the exposure of general aviation and to stimulate interest in flying among the public, AOPA launched the Let’s Go Flying program last fall.

“I will say as a member and as the president, we are in very good shape,” said Fuller. “And the work that he [Phil Boyer] has engaged in over the past 18 years is a big part of that and for that I am certainly very grateful.” Unlike a lot of associations in Washington, AOPA is a membership of individuals, not a trade organization. “His reminder that you need to make sure that we’re building the membership every year and renewing memberships every year is something that I’ve really taken to heart. I want to spend time with members and make sure I understand what their thinking is and be communicating with them as effectively as I can. I think his focus on membership is something that will stay with me throughout my tenure here.”