AOPA continues support for aviation safety programs in the 49th State with grant to the Alaskan Aviation Safety Foundation

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association presented a $5,000 grant to the Alaskan Aviation Safety Foundation, continuing the association's long-running support for improved air safety in Alaska. AOPA President Phil Boyer gave the check to AASF Chairman Tom Wardleigh July 12 during a Pilot Town Meeting in Anchorage, Alaska.

"AOPA is proud to continue its partnership with the Alaskan Aviation Safety Foundation," said Boyer. "With so many people in the state dependent on aviation, general aviation safety is critical to all Alaskan citizens.

"And we recognize that what works in the 'Lower 48' doesn't always fit the problems in Alaska. AASF programs are tailored to the special flying environment found here."

AASF develops safety programs tailored to Alaska's unique weather, geography, and flying conditions. It conducts specialized safety seminars across the state. AASF's Hangar Flying, a weekly television program, just completed its 857th broadcast. The show is seen in more than 260 Alaskan communities.

The foundation has been involved in the development of Project Capstone, a program that provides weather information, terrain-avoidance, and traffic information on a display screen in a general aviation cockpit.

AASF has also helped develop "weather cams" in Alaska, allowing pilots to view weather conditions at specific airports and mountain passes over the Internet.

AASF's Tom Wardleigh was the 1994 winner of AOPA's Sharples Award for his lifetime of service to aviation safety and to Alaskan general aviation.

The 370,000-member Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is the world's largest civil aviation organization. More than one half of the nation's pilots are AOPA members, as are some 4,000 Alaska pilots.

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