Illustration: John Holm
AOPA working hard for you
Protecting your freedom to fly is AOPA’s essential mission—we tackle the big issues and the small ones that affect our members’ rights. Jim Coon, AOPA senior vice president of Government and Advocacy, reports that these top priorities have his attention:
• “We continue to push for passage of the Pilot’s Bill of Rights 2, which includes third class medical reform, and have made significant progress. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) filed an amendment to a surface transportation bill in July. Unfortunately, the amendment—along with more than 250 other amendments—was not considered. We are working to include reform language in the FAA reauthorization bill or pass it standalone. We’ve made progress like never before on this issue. There remains opposition from some lawmakers and we are trying to address their concerns, along with the Air Line Pilots Association, which surprised everyone when it sent a letter to every senator in opposition to reform. We are going to work to move third class medical reform any way we can and we need AOPA members to continue to contact their representatives.
• “AOPA remains strongly opposed to any user fees on GA. The current fuel tax is an efficient and effective way to collect revenues to operate our aviation system.
• “Implementing a risk-based approach to facilitate GA cross- border trade and travel is a key item. We are working closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to move this forward. The agency responded well to AOPA concerns and we remain hopeful that we will have the same success on this initiative as we did in stopping unwanted stops and searches of GA aircraft.
• “AOPA’s Airport Support Network volunteers are on the front lines defending airports and GA, and it’s this grassroots effort that helps make us a strong organization. I can’t say enough about the nearly 2,500 volunteers that help protect our freedom to fly. We are committed to this program, to these individuals, and the protection of GA airports across the country.”
SURVEY
593,499: The total number of pilots in 2014, predicted to increase to 617,000 in 2035.
ICAO delay granted
The FAA has agreed to an AOPA-requested delay in implementing changes to flight plan requirements. The agency had planned to require all flights to use the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) flight plan, also known as Form 7233-4, beginning October 1. Although the ICAO form is already required for international travel and certain other flights, many general aviation flights continue to use the FAA’s familiar domestic flight plan, Form 7233-1. AOPA asked that the aviation community be given six additional months to make the transition to the international form.
“We appreciate the FAA’s desire to harmonize the system by moving to a single flight plan form. But the aviation community needs time to educate pilots about the changes, get answers from the FAA about how it will handle special situations, and make changes to automated flight plan filing systems and software,” said Rune Duke, AOPA director of government affairs for airspace and air traffic.
While the FAA has said it will postpone the implementation deadline by at least six months, no firm timeline has been announced.
AOPA has also asked the FAA to answer questions about its plans to update the Aeronautical Information Manual and other literature and to make regulatory changes to reflect the new requirements. AOPA has asked the FAA to develop a solution for filing Defense VFR, composite IFR/VFR, and Special Flight Rules Area and Flight Restricted Zone flight plans—all of which currently rely on the agency’s domestic flight plan form.
AOPA Action
Action in the States
Alaska Region
AOPA is asking the FAA to keep producing a few key world aeronautical charts (WACs) commonly used by general aviation pilots, including the one for Alaska. Eighty-seven percent said they would not have enough information to navigate safely when flying VFR without the WAC. The FAA said it would stop producing all WACs in September because making the charts had become cost-prohibitive. But AOPA asked that key charts be maintained or the FAA offer an acceptable alternative.
Northwest Mountain Region
AOPA Director of State Government Affairs Jared Esselman paid a visit to Portland, Oregon, to take part in the General Aviation Industry and Security Conference. Also in Oregon, AOPA urged members to comment on an airspace initiative by the Oregon Air National Guard that could have a major impact on GA IFR operations in the state’s airspace. The plan includes proposals for several military operations areas (MOAs) to extend from 500 feet agl to FL180, with an impact on the airways that transit the airspace.
Western Pacific Region
AOPA encouraged members who fly in Southern California’s busy airspace to review the Southern California Metroplex Project Draft Environmental Assessment and submit comments on the proposed procedures. AOPA is a member of the Southern California Airspace Users Working Group, which has been closely involved in the review process. The SoCal Metroplex Project has the potential to increase efficiency for both local and transient IFR traffic in the region and to improve access to smaller airports.
Central Southwest Region
AOPA is working with stakeholders in Louisiana on legislation to mark and register meteorological evaluation towers in the state. Also in the works is legislation to modify the legal definition of “aviation gasoline” to ensure that whatever fuel replaces leaded avgas will be covered under the law. AOPA Central Southwest Regional Manager Yasmina Platt visited Grand Lake Regional Airport in Oklahoma, one of many airports on her list of “Friendly Airports in the Central Southwest Region.”
An AOPA survey found that discontinuing all the WACs would leave dangerous coverage gaps.
Great Lakes Region
After being alerted to a plan by the Ohio legislature to divert nearly $6 million in GA airport funding to unrelated economic development projects, AOPA helped defeat the plan and the Ohio Department of Transportation Office of Aviation used the money to expand its state airport grant program, adding runway and taxiway marking, and upgrades. In Michigan, AOPA is working with users and tenants of Mason Jewett Field to oppose attempts to limit tenant access to hangars and flight training.
Southern Region
AOPA Ambassador Jamie Beckett will present the third Rusty Pilots program at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in central Florida. Participants will have the opportunity to schedule a flight with a local flight school. In November the Sun ’n Fun campus will host AOPA’s “Maximum Fun, Minimum Cost: How to Form and Operate a Flying Club.” The program will show attendees how they can fly less expensively while sharing the fun with family, friends, and fellow club members.
Eastern Region
Eastern Regional Manager Sean Collins presented testimony before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Revenue in opposition to two bills that would have repealed a variety of aviation tax exemptions. Collins spent time in Maine and New Hampshire connecting with flight training providers and educators in the area. In Vermont, he has begun working with legislators to build early support for a bill that will level the playing field for the state’s aviation industry by cementing a sales tax exemption on aircraft maintenance.
Products and Services
Pilot Protection Services
Blazing the paper trail
Tricks of the trade that will help the medical process
Well, we got through the busy summer flying season with great attendance at the king of U.S. aviation events—EAA AirVenture—and our regional fly-ins. As in the past, during peak flying months, we saw some fairly nasty processing delays in getting special issuance medical authorizations out to pilots. Although the FAA did a better job of holding down the backlog volume than in the past, 60- to 90-day delays were not uncommon.
Some members may not be aware of some of the tricks of the trade that can mitigate the time it takes to get a response from the FAA. The first and most important point is to be educated about the medical condition that you are reporting. I can’t tell you how many members we speak with who innocently report a disqualifying medication (including antidepressants, stimulant-type attention deficit disorder medications, and “sleep” meds such as Trazadone) and then are shocked when the aviation medical examiner defers the application and they receive a denial letter.
Please don’t assume that because your treating physician tells you it will be OK, that the FAA will agree. Please give us a call in the AOPA Pilot Information Center so we can advise you about how to handle your situation.
Once you know what you need, you have to produce the historical records and/or new testing to satisfy the FAA. Be sure to get everything that the FAA is going to need. Review the medical certification information online or speak with the medical certification staff in the Pilot Information Center.
This is where things can go sideways. If you rely on someone else, such as your treating physician’s office staff or the AME’s office staff, to send your records to the FAA, the likelihood is high that those records won’t get to the FAA. Although we all want to trust others to be accountable, no one else cares as much as you about getting your records where they need to be—so take the responsibility of mailing your information to the FAA. AOPA can provide the correct mailing address and contact information so you can follow up with the FAA to keep track of your records. Better yet, as a Pilot Protection Services participant, we can make some inquiries with the FAA once your information is received to keep it on track.
Gary Crump is a senior medical specialist in the AOPA Pilot Information Center.
Web: www.aopa.org/pps
Say yes to a business aircraft
You don’t have to be a Fortune 500 company or multinational corporation to benefit from using a GA aircraft in your business. Thousands of entrepreneurs and small companies use GA aircraft and gain a competitive advantage.
Eliminate the downtime. You’re wasting time sitting at airport gates, waiting to board a flight that’s no doubt delayed anyway.
It’s not just LAX, ORD, and LGA. If your business destination isn’t a major commercial airline hub, it takes you twice as long to reach it.
Sleep in your own bed. See your children when they’re awake. A GA airplane can take you to meetings in different locations—all in one day.
Consider the value of time. It’s more cost-effective to have employees working instead of waiting for delayed or canceled flights.
Get ahead of your competition. During times of economic pressure, companies need to be efficient and proactive.
GA allows you to make your own schedule—you fly where you want, when you want, at times that are convenient for you. That’s just smart business, and AOPA Finance is here to help. There are links to frequently asked questions, a loan calculator to assist you in figuring out which loan fits into your budget, and more. Reach reach out to one of the aviation finance specialists at 800-62-PLANE (800-627-5263).
Answers for Pilots
Selling an aircraft
Everybody likes shopping for a new airplane! It’s exciting to consider the expanded options a different aircraft could offer. But, behind every airplane for sale is, of course, its seller, hoping to connect with a qualified buyer. If you are the one selling, how do you attract just the right pilot for the aircraft you have to sell? This month’s Answers for Pilots offers some tips for aircraft sellers, as well as a review of what’s involved in the sales process. Read it online. If you have questions about buying or selling aircraft, or any other aviation-related topic, call the aviation experts in AOPA’s Pilot Information Center, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time, 800-USA-AOPA (872-2672).
AOPA Foundation
Safeguarding the future of general aviation is a task we take seriously at the AOPA Foundation, and your donations help us move the needle.
Air Safety Institute
Don’t just wing it—recognize reaching critical angle of attack
Early in flight training, we learn that an aircraft can stall at any airspeed and at any attitude. So in order to prevent loss of control of the aircraft because of a stall, we practice stall recognition and recovery, and are required to demonstrate that we can fly the aircraft at minimum controllable airspeed. While the airspeed indicator, stall warning horn, and tactical feedback from the airplane are helpful cues that the wing is close to reaching the critical angle of attack, wouldn’t it be nice to have a precise way to gauge when you’re about to wander beyond the wing’s lift capacity? That’s where an angle of attack (AOA) indicator comes in.
To understand the concept of AOA indicators and what systems are available for general aviation cockpits, the Air Safety Institute developed a short video, Margins of Safety: Angle of Attack Indicators, which provides an introduction of AOA and an overview of how these systems can benefit your safety with improved stall awareness and prevention. The video discusses advantages and disadvantages of the three main AOA indicators—vane, pressure-differential, and Attitude Heading Reference System (AHRS)—and how they measure relative wind, compute the data, and display the result in the cockpit.
Although AOA indicators have been used by the airlines and military, until recently they have been cost-prohibitive for GA cockpits. Thankfully, technological innovations and eased installation requirements (your A&P mechanic can install most systems and seal the deal with a signed logbook entry) are allowing AOA indicators to become a reality in GA cockpits.
Watch the video, developed with technical assistance from Aspen Avionics, and learn how an AOA indicator can help you avoid exceeding the critical angle of attack.
The video is made possible by the Tom Davis Fund, and brought to you by Aspen Avionics.
Feed your flying passion at new seminar locations this fall
If you’d like to fly in to the AOPA Air Safety Institute’s Cross-Country Challenge seminar this fall, you’re in luck: ASI has landed seminar locations at airports across the nation where you’ll be able to taxi up to the FBO or hangar to connect with fellow aviation enthusiast and “fly” two fictional trips, answer questions, and debate answers—from preflight planning to tiedown techniques.
For those who love attending seminars at an aviation-themed location other than an airport, the institute also has been able to secure great venues at aviation galleries and museums from west- to east coasts. Check online to find your favorite location and time, and remember to visit the seminar calendar frequently for updates as new locations and dates are added through the year.
Practicing the finer points of takeoffs and landings
Need a quick refresher on acing every takeoff and landing? Then take a look at the Air Safety Institute’s Takeoffs and Landings video series. Whether you’re looking for techniques to fly a stabilized approach or wish to improve your crosswind landings when the wind kicks up, in-flight footage provides a great visual cue of what the picture should look like. In addition to the visual perspective, flight instructors share tips on how to stay proficient and be safe: You’ll discover their tricks for flying normal takeoffs and short-field landings, determining an abort point when the takeoff roll isn’t going as planned, and avoiding overshooting the base-to-final turn.
The video series is made possible by the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association and the Donner Canadian Foundation.
AOPA Insurance
Protecting your passion
The importance of the right insurance
By Jim Pinegar
we may not like to think too much about it, but no one can ignore the importance of insurance—that’s why we cover our cars, our homes, and our lives. Hopefully, you’re also insuring your passion for aviation and you carry renter’s or owner’s insurance. AOPA Insurance Services offers a number of new products designed to protect everything from your hangar to your medical certificate and your flying club.
Our hangar insurance program is available to those who own or lease a hangar and offers coverage for hangar damage, personal injury, fire or wind damage, and theft. There are even optional coverages for business property and loss of revenue. Our insurance is available even to those in high-risk areas, such as the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
For pilots who fly for a living, we’ve got a new policy to cover your loss of income if your medical certificate is lost or suspended. Even if your employer provides some disability protection, you can take advantage of this policy to get combined coverage of up to 100 percent of your income. And because the policy covers you, not your position, you can take it with you when moving to a new job. Your coverage will take effect if you’re unable to fly, even if you can continue performing nonflying duties.
For flying clubs, we offer expanded and flexible coverage that works for all types of groups, including member-owned clubs and hybrid organizations. Whether your club has three members or an unlimited number, whether you fly a Cessna 172 or a new Light Sport, there are options that allow you to customize a policy that will work for your group. Our policies offer low deductibles, even zero deductibles for members who complete the accident forgiveness program.
You can renew your renter’s policies and update your owner’s policies online (www.aopainsurance.org). Go online to take care of policy service needs, such as making changes to your address, lienholder, or additional insureds. If your policy is eligible for online renewal, you’ll get an email notification about 90 days before your renewal date. It’s one click from there to a customized renewal form that’s prepopulated with your information.
You may not think of AOPA as the place to go for your home and auto insurance, but we can help with that, too. Through a partnership with Liberty Mutual, AOPA members can get discounted policies. And when you do, you’re helping support AOPA’s advocacy efforts.
We continue to offer life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance options that cover you when you are flying. Our policies are built to protect GA pilots.
There’s a lot to consider when deciding how to protect yourself and your family. AOPA Insurance Services offers coverage options that match the way you live and fly.
Jim Pinegar is vice president of AOPA Insurance Services.
