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AMA certainly
understands
the security
implications …
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AMA
has received a number of calls and e-mails this summer from
members asking about the FAA TFRs that seem to be popping
up, regularly, all across the country. TFR stands for
“Temporary Flight Restriction,” and a TFR is usually created
in the national airspace surrounding and during the period
of some special event like the Super Bowl or a launch of the
space shuttle. In addition, they are created at locations
where the president of the United States or other VIPs are
visiting. TFRs created during presidential visits are
mandated by the Secret Service.
If you get the impression that the number of TFRs being
issued has risen dramatically in the last couple of years,
you’re right. Since the beginning of 2009, more than 125
have been issued throughout the country.
Virtually everything that flies in the National
Airspace System (NAS) is affected if flight operations
require activity within a TFR. For modelers, as recreational
users, this can certainly be an annoyance. For other users
of the NAS it can mean much more. Livelihoods can be
affected.
In 2009 when President Obama vacationed in Martha’s
Vineyard, a TFR was in place during his entire eight-day
visit. While model aircraft were grounded, so was everything
else.
Flight training, glider and glider-towing operations,
parachute operations, balloon operations, crop dusting,
banner-towing operations, and sightseeing operations were
all prohibited. The negative economic impact that this
presents can be devastating, especially in an area that has
such a limited season of acceptable weather conditions.
AMA certainly understands the security implications
that have resulted in the increase in TFRs. However, we also
believe that there are ways to maintain the required level
of safety, while offering some relief to other users of the
NAS.
In last month’s MA, AMA’s government affairs
representative, Rich Hanson, wrote a brief article which
explains TFRs in more detail and the approach that AMA is
taking to seek some reasonable relief for model aviation
enthusiasts. AMA will continue to work through this, in
hopes of finding a sensible compromise.
As you might expect, the question on most everyone’s
mind at events I attend is what kind of progress we are
making with the FAA and the regulatory process involving
small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS). AMA’s internal
workgroup charged with drafting an initial set of standards
that we will eventually submit to the FAA for consideration
continues to make good progress. Our intent, as it has been
all along, is to use the National Model Aviation Safety
Code, along with its supporting documents, as the foundation
of our submission.
The majority of the work being done now centers around
making sure that we have addressed all the issues that the
FAA has raised and to create our documents using the “form
and format” preferred by the FAA. The latter being simply
how the FAA would like our submission to be packaged. As we
get further along, our set of guidelines will be vetted
throughout the model aviation community so that everyone has
an opportunity for comment.
AMA’s new education director, Bill Pritchett, has hit
the ground running. Bill has been working with AMA’s
Education Committee and our education outreach specialist,
Dr. Gordon Schimmel, on a number of new ideas that will
enhance our education outreach efforts.
Many of these ideas will focus on creating new programs
that will support our members and clubs who want to
introduce model aviation to the members of their
communities. In addition, we are reaching out to
organizations like the Boy Scouts, Civil Air Patrol, and
ROTC to open a dialogue on how we can work together to
create programming that will support those organizations.
Over the next several months you’ll be reading much more
about these efforts.
AMA’s Web site is undergoing a major reconstruction.
In today’s world, for many, the Internet has become the
primary resource for information. It has also become a
common tool for conducting business. The AMA Web site needs
to address both of these areas.
It needs to be a place where someone interested in
model aviation can go to learn more about aeromodeling. At
the same time, our Web site needs to be a conduit to the
services and benefits we provide to our membership. Current
plans are to launch the new site sometime in the fourth
quarter of 2010.
About the time this issue of MA reaches you, the 2010
F5B & D World Championships will be taking place at the
International Aeromodeling Center (IAC). Teams from a number
of countries will be in Muncie for the competition, which
runs from August 19 through August 25.
In addition, on August 18 and 19 many of these same
teams and pilots will compete in the Neu-Castle Cup Open
International. This is a great opportunity to visit the IAC
and watch some of the best F5 Electric pilots in the world
compete against each other.
If you visit, please take some time to stop at the
National Model Aviation Museum and the AMA’s administrative
headquarters, to say hello to the AMA staff who work so hard
on our behalf. If you ask the receptionist, she would be
happy to arrange for you a tour of the building. MA
See you next time ...
Dave Mathewson, AMA president
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