AOPA Expo '95

Atlantic City hits attendance jackpot despite bad weather

For years, AOPA members in the northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states have been asking when Expo would return to the Northeast. (The convention's last visit to the area was at Atlantic City, New Jersey, in 1969.) In return, AOPA staff members would ask them: "If we hold it there, will you come?"

The answer is in, and it is an emphatic "Yes." AOPA Expo '95 was held in Atlantic City from October 19 to 21, and members came — from the Northeast, from the Mid-Atlantic states, and from across the country. Attendance of 8,921 set a new record, topping the previous mark of 8,358 people set just last year in Palm Springs, California; Expo '93 in Orlando, Florida, drew 7,159 participants. "We probably would have topped 10,000 attendees this year had it not been for the really ugly flying weather Friday night and Saturday," AOPA President Phil Boyer said.

The annual event set several other records. Inside the cavernous Atlantic City Convention Center exhibit hall — which hosts the Miss America pageant each year — 366 booths composed Expo's largest indoor exhibit area ever. At nearby Atlantic City Municipal Airport-Bader Field, which is operating under the threat of closure, 59 aircraft formed the event's static display. And 92 hours of educational sessions represented Expo's most extensive seminar program ever.

AOPA Expo is not combined with an airshow or open to the public, and it differs markedly from conventions that are the central focus of the sponsoring organization's annual activities. "People come to Expo for information and education, and they do so on their own time by spending their own dollars," Boyer said. "They're not on a company expense account."

Expo '95 earned high marks from attendees, particularly for the scope and quality of its educational programs — topics of which ranged from flying after age 50 to flying the North Atlantic, and from reading sectional charts to shooting GPS approaches.

Eric Priebe of Okeana, Ohio, found seminars on collision avoidance and vision to be particularly beneficial. Priebe was one of the newest pilots at Expo — he received his private pilot certificate on October 18, the day before Expo opened. Last Christmas, Priebe's wife gave him a certificate for an introductory flight. "I guess that's what started it," he said. "[Flying is] something I've wanted to do all my life." Three hours after successfully completing his checkride, Priebe was on his way to Atlantic City. "Just having joined AOPA, I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn a little more about aviation," he explained. He said he definitely plans to attend another Expo.

The youngest private pilot at Expo was Ethan Gray, a 17-year- old high school senior from Getzville, New York, near Buffalo. Because he is eyeing a flying career, he attended a program on pilot career development. Gray started flying in August 1993 at age 15, soloed shortly after he turned 16, received his private pilot certificate three days after turning 17, and earned an instrument rating four months later. Now he's working on his commercial certificate. "I'm the only pilot in my family," Gray said. "I just decided early that that's what I wanted to do." Gray said he enjoyed his first-ever aviation convention. "I thought it would be cool to see all the pilots, all the aircraft, and all the exhibits."

Attending Expo as a newly minted pilot is nothing new. John Trindel of Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, attended the first Expo held in Atlantic City nearly 30 years ago. "It was the first big event I attended after I got my license," he recalled. "There were no headsets then. Telex had a booth in the exhibit hall and made castings of pilots' ears for custom-made earpieces that attached to the user's eyeglasses. I still have that and I still use it." A certificated flight instructor since 1967, Trindel attended Expo to stay abreast of the latest information for flight instructors.

Another CFI attending the convention was Calvin Wilson of Mill Hall, Pennsylvania. A flight instructor since 1957, Wilson worked for Piper Aircraft for 25 years in experimental flight testing and as director of engineering. His primary concern these days is flight instructors' liability. Four years ago Wilson taught his son, Glenn, to fly.

Kyler Nelson of Fremont, Nebraska, a pilot for 10 years, recently retired as a teacher and said he was enjoying his first AOPA Expo. "To be around people who fly airplanes is a great thrill," he said. His wife, Carolyn, took the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Pinch-Hitter course during the convention. Accompanying them to Atlantic City were a student-pilot friend and her husband; Nelson had just enrolled Joanne Thietje in AOPA's Project Pilot mentoring program. The foursome is already discussing Expo '96.

Among the highlights of Expo '95 was the Team AOPA general session presentation on Thursday morning. Applause greeted the announcement that the Federal Aviation Administration had restored veteran airshow performer Bob Hoover's medical certificate. Boyer said that corporatization of the FAA's air traffic control system appears dead — but proposed new user fees have replaced corporatization as the greatest threat to general aviation. In the six months since its introduction, AOPA's Project Pilot Instructor program, which recognizes the contributions of flight instructors to the GA industry, has grown to become the nation's largest organization of CFIs.

FAA Administrator David R. Hinson addressed Friday morning's "Meet the FAA" general session. "There is no doubt in my mind that 1995 has marked the beginning of a resurgence in our industry," he said, citing General Aviation Manufacturers Association statistics indicating that this year has been the best year for GA aircraft manufacturing since 1980. Stating that the FAA's budget is "under extreme pressure," Hinson said the agency plans to fully staff and fund general aviation safety programs at a time when budget constraints force cutbacks in other areas.

The administrator acknowledged opposition to the proposed user fees. "Clearly, there are substantial objections to user fees," he said, explaining that the fees are necessary to create a path for FAA funding outside of the federal budget. Hinson said there is no intention to charge air traffic control fees to general aviation aircraft operators, except for those who operate large business aircraft.

At Friday's luncheon, Bob Hoover, via a satellite television link, thanked Hinson for reconsidering his medical certification status and extended an invitation to his first airshow in the United States in nearly three years. Hoover also thanked AOPA for its help. Pioneer Civil Air Patrol (CAP) pilots were also honored during the program. The CAP, which began with a handful of ragged aircraft, now flies 13,000 hours of search and rescue each year — plus anti- drug patrols, disaster relief flights, and other missions. In recognition of CFI Day at Expo, Hinson presented Lyn Carlson of Costa Mesa, California, with the General Aviation Flight Instructor of the Year Award; David Thissell of Plymouth, Massachusetts, was honored as General Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year.

Other presentations were made during Saturday evening's awards banquet. Bill Leavens of Middle Valley, New Jersey, president of the Mid-Atlantic Aviation Coalition, received AOPA's 1995 Sharples Award for his leadership in defending general aviation airports. U.S. Representative Jim Lightfoot (R-IA) was presented with the 1995 Hartranft Award for outstanding government service. AOPA's 1995 Max Karant Journalism Awards were presented to Hugh Downs of ABC News, in the radio category; Todd C. Hewey of KUHT- TV in Houston, television; and Mary George of The Denver Post, print.

The general session Saturday morning, moderated by AOPA Air Safety Foundation Executive Director Bruce Landsberg, focused on aviation technology of the future and featured experts on weather analysis, datalink technology, and next-generation GA aircraft design. Nearly 700 Expo visitors saw how this coming technology will be evaluated at the nearby FAA Tech Center during tours that operated at capacity on Thursday and Friday.

The New Meyers Aircraft Company announced at Expo a new airplane, the high-performance, four-place M200. Meyers plans to produce the M200, along with its two-place SP20, at a new factory now under construction in Fort Pierce, Florida.

Other manufacturers and vendors were represented in the convention center and at Bader Field, where the emphasis Friday became the weather. Forecasts were issued for approaching severe weather, and there were 514 aircraft parked at Bader and 474 more at Atlantic City International — few of which were tied down. But, from Johnson Controls, which provided aircraft services at Bader and on the FAA Tech Center ramp at International, came Kevin Willis and his crew, who devised a plan. Aircraft at International were secured by 4,000 feet of steel cable and 5,000 feet of nylon rope; two tons of steel reinforcing rods and 6,000 feet of rope did the job at Bader. The task was completed just as the bad weather arrived, and no aircraft damage was reported — despite 50-knot wind gusts.

But the weather was only one of the challenges presented by Expo '95. Bader Field has been threatened by Atlantic City with closure, but $300,000 in state-funded repairs helped the facility to better accommodate convention traffic. A hotel adjacent to the convention center closed shortly before Expo, making it necessary for the Atlantic City Convention and Visitors Authority to relocate more than 400 participants.

Where will Expo go next? AOPA Expo '96 will be held October 17 through 19 in San Jose, California. Expo '97 is being planned for Orlando, Florida, and the 1998 event will be held in Palm Springs, California.