Join us in Philadelphia for a Halloween treat
Philadelphia is known for its founding fathers — those who founded the United States, and those who founded AOPA at Wings Field. AOPA Expo sets continual records of firsts, and this year is no exception — it's the first time Expo will take place in this city so important to national history. The Philadelphia Convention Center hosts Expo this year, while the aircraft static display will take place just 15 minutes away at Philadelphia International Airport. Atlantic, the FBO (it recently dropped the word aviation from its title), has one of the largest ramps in the country and plays host to 60 of the latest aircraft models available. All the top manufacturers will be there. There is free shuttle service from Atlantic to the convention center. Those of you who are veterans of past Expos take note: Expo now runs from Thursday through Saturday. This year it takes place from October 30 through November 1.
Exhibit hall
The hall is one of the most spacious in the country — fully able to accommodate our hundreds of exhibitors — and is located within blocks of 10,000 parking spaces. Trains, buses, and trolleys all pass by the center. You'll see a broad cross-section of the general aviation industry in the exhibit hall, from fly-in communities to avionics, including artwork, engines, propellers, headsets, weather services, aircraft modifications, and aviation apparel.
Maybe you already own some of the latest avionics or other products and just want to know more about their features. Product demonstrations lasting up to 30 minutes provide the detailed information you need to get more from your purchase, or help you decide which product is best for you.
Cockpit screens, handheld GPS units, transceivers, and transponders that communicate with air traffic control and bring valuable traffic information into the cockpit are hitting the market almost faster than we can report on them. Now you can cruise the aisles and review them all under one gigantic roof. The growing list of exhibitors is available on AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/expo/).
Seminars
Training and information, especially on enforcement actions, have never been more important than they are today, with airspace restrictions that appear and disappear overnight. Philadelphia lies between the nation's two largest blocks of airspace, around the New York City and Washington, D.C., metro areas. The information you need to stay up to date and out of trouble is included in the 80 hours of seminars offered on six individual tracks. Two of the more popular tracks focus on safety, including such seminars as "Ups and Downs of Takeoffs and Landings," and proficiency, including the session "Handling In-Flight Emergencies." Medical issues remain a popular topic, and seminars may provide the answers you need to keep flying. Standing-room-only seminars, such as aviation humorist Rod Machado's popular "Defensive Flying," are back. The All Pilots track includes a session on "Pilots' Guide to Special Use Airspace."
It isn't all business, however, and your family and nonaviation friends can enjoy a specially arranged tour of the Pennsylvania Dutch Country while you are at the convention center getting up to date on the latest news from general aviation. However, space for the Dutch Country tour is limited, so sign up early.
General sessions
Free general sessions each day from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. give you a broad overview of the latest topics of concern to general aviation. Speakers include AOPA President Phil Boyer and FAA Administrator Marion Blakey. The leadership of AOPA will present "Team AOPA," a session on the newest programs and benefits designed exclusively for members.
Special events
An opening luncheon on October 30 features an entertaining program and awards to members of the various news media who have done the most to explain general aviation to the public. You'll not want to miss our Halloween party on October 31 — plan on coming in costume. There'll be no tricks, only treats. And don't forget the closing banquet on Saturday, November 1, that provides good food and first-class entertainment.
For those of you flying to Philadelphia, arrival procedures will be posted on AOPA Online in September. To pre-register, visit AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/expo/) or call 888/GO2-EXPO (888/462-3976) to request a registration and hotel form.
Lots to see and do
Philly is a great vacation destination even without the extra incentive of Expo. Sights to see include Independence Hall, Penn's Landing, the Liberty Bell, and the fabulous Franklin Institute Science Museum, which, incidentally, is scheduled to reopen its world-class aviation exhibit called "The Franklin Air Show" on October 18, just in time for Expo. It's a special treat for kids that adults will find informative as well. The centerpiece exhibit is a restored Wright Model B Flyer.
On July 4 a new museum featuring the Constitution was scheduled to open. The two-story National Constitution Center expects a million visitors a year. Located on the third block of Independence Mall and serving as the northernmost anchor of the mall complex, the center tells the story of the U.S. Constitution through more than 100 interactive and multimedia exhibits, photographs, sculpture, text, film, and artifacts. To learn more about the center, visit the Web site ( www.constitutioncenter.org).
At Trenton-Robbinsville Airport in New Jersey, a short distance northeast of Philadelphia, Steve Pitcairn keeps several aircraft representing the important role Philadelphia has played in the history of aviation. Especially important are the Pitcairn-Cierva Autogiro and Mailwing models developed by his father, Harold F. Pitcairn, and still in flying condition (see " Son of a Pioneer," April 2001 Pilot). Although his shop is a working restoration shop and not a museum, he doesn't mind if pilots drop by for a look.
E-mail the author at [email protected].
AOPA Expo Schedule of Events
Can't Stay Away
Your everyday pilot goes to Expo — again
BY JACOPO LENZI
This just wasn't a good time to be taking a Friday off. Work was piling high and "to dos" were turning into "isn't it done yets." And besides, I wasn't sure I wanted to go to AOPA Expo 2002. I'd gone the previous two years, and despite it being in Palm Springs, California, on my side of the country, I felt it would not have much to offer me.
The first year, I was still new to aviation. I had soloed and the simple fact of being surrounded by thousands of other airplane-drunk individuals was exhilarating. The exhibit hall was overwhelming, with all the bustling and chatter. I hadn't made it through the first two aisles before my arms were coming off at the seams from all the promotional material I had collected. I diligently compared prices on TSOed attitude indicators and nodded with approval as I read the Pilatus' maximum takeoff weight. None of it meant much to me, but I didn't care. I was giddy at the thought of being part of this jargon-filled world.
The second year I went to AOPA Expo, I was not only a private pilot, but an instrument-rated private pilot! I walked the aisles with that special swagger unique to low-time pilots with more abbreviations on their certificate than experience in their logbook (a maximum-gross-weight, high-density-altitude takeoff six months later would take care of that). I was on a quest to fill my flight bag with the latest technology expected of the highly skilled pilot that I was. I spent endless hours with the various exhibitors testing and comparing products before confidently handing over my credit card.
But what about this year? What had happened in the intervening year of flying that would give me a fresh attitude toward AOPA Expo? I had another 100 hours under my belt and CFI signatures swearing to my ability to operate high-performance, complex, and tailwheel airplanes. But that didn't materially change the type of pilot I was and the type of flying I was doing. The next major milestone was the purchase of a loan with wings. I could see the value in being able to talk to multiple financing companies over the course of an afternoon, the chance to hear from experienced speakers on the dos and don'ts of a prepurchase inspection, and of course the opportunity to casually survey a considerable subsegment of the FAA-blessed community on their favorite noisemakers. But that wasn't on the horizon just yet.
So what was I going to get out of AOPA Expo this year? There were the usual draws: the strange urge to hang around other pilots, the desire to see Rod Machado (somehow I had missed his seminars the first two times around), and of course, the fully rational need to tell people that I was going to a pilots convention. "Oh, didn't I tell you? Yeah, I'm a pilot."
Then a big work meeting scheduled for Friday was canceled. Was this a sign? After all, I had agreed to swing by a flight school's booth to arrange a trip to get my seaplane rating (as if e-mail couldn't handle the job), and I did hope to meet AOPA Flight Training columnist Greg Brown, with whom I had corresponded on occasion. And so there I was, making my way to Palm Springs.
All my doubts instantly vanished as I walked toward the registration tent and caught a glimpse of shiny propellers in the static display area. There they were, deservedly resting after strutting their stuff a couple days earlier during a parade through the streets of Palm Springs. An uncontrollable grin crept across my face. I had arrived early, and I was blessed with the pleasure of witnessing the waking-up ceremonies of the static display. Exhibitors hauled out marketing material and set up displays, while others wiped the morning dew off their pride and joys, carefully buffing fuselages that would soon be covered with paw marks from devoted fans. Covers were still on several beauty queens who couldn't be bothered to wake just yet.
It's true, I wasn't overwhelmed by it all as I had been at my first Expo in Long Beach, California. And I had no need to spend my way to top-dog status as I had at my second Expo in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. But AOPA Expo still had a lot to offer. This year, it was the seminars. With 300 hours in my logbook, I was still a low-time pilot, but I didn't feel like a newbie anymore. I was more aware of my skills and limitations, and had a better idea of what I was looking to gain from the experience of the seminar speakers.
Now, it's decision time again. Rest assured, I'll go through the same indecisiveness. In 2004, there will be no question. That's when AOPA Expo returns to Long Beach, the site of my first Expo experience, and there is no way I'll miss it (reserve a room on the Queen Mary for me!). Maybe that will be the year I finally get to AOPA Expo under my own power. But what about this year? Will I see you in Philadelphia?
Jacopo Lenzi, AOPA 1419884, is a private pilot with more than 300 flight hours.
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