Waypoints: The new normal

Every few years that need for change strikes magazine people, too. Our art staff is continually assessing their work against other high-quality magazines on the newsstand. Editors at various levels bring in their favorite magazine and slap it down and ask, “Why can’t we do this?” as they point to some exceptional layout or photo or story concept. Meanwhile, design software continues to progress, and magazine printers introduce new capabilities. And after a while that fresh new design you introduced a few years ago looks kind of stale and “so last decade.”

I’ve seen this movie many times in more than 35 years of magazine publishing.

In our case, the plans for a magazine redesign actually preceded the pandemic; the pandemic just delayed it for a bit. But before you is the culmination of months of design considerations and work by a group of very talented folks who toil every month to bring you this publication—and Flight Training magazine as well.

And while we’re proud of the end product, many of you will not like it all. In fact, some will take the time to write or call and insist that we turn the clock back to the old design.

I’ve seen this movie too.

Every redesign causes a not insignificant number of people to react, usually negatively, to the change. After a few months, the noise level goes down. And then, years later, when the next redesign comes along, the same people often complain again about the new look and insist we go back to the “old design”—the same one they didn’t like when it first debuted.

Let’s face it, we all resist change to a certain extent and our first reaction to it is usually not positive. But we’re excited to share the stories of the aviation community’s most interesting people, innovative technologies, and helpful techniques in this fresh, clean, new format—all while showcasing the stunning aviation photography you’ve come to expect from AOPA.

As our designers know, I’m a big stickler for readability—especially as I now am the average age of an AOPA member. So, to meet my needs, you will note that we did not change the body font—either the style or size. Too many young designers love small and delicate fonts that look great in concept and yet are unreadable by those of us who remember what an NDB is.

If you like the new look, great! We hope you’ll let us know. If you don’t like it and can articulate why, let us know. We’d like to hear your ideas for improvements. If you don’t like it and really can’t say why, that’s OK. You’re not alone. Wait a few months and this will be the new norm that you will enjoy, especially when the next redesign comes around.

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