August 13, 2010
From the President
Vice President Andrew Andersen and myself attended the Airservices Waypoint 2010 industry consultation forum in Canberra on Wednesday June 2. The program was divided up into four workshops. Attendees were split into four groups, rotating through each workshop, so that each workshop was presented four times and input from each group collated at the end of the program.
Andrew and I were in separate groups, which enabled us to present AOPA’s views effectively. I compliment Greg Russell (CEO Airservices) on the initiative; this is the second Waypoint Forum I have attended, and the opportunity for industry to have input is extremely valuable.
We attended the dinner held that night at the War Memorial, where tables were set up under the wings of “G” for George, the Lancaster Bomber that flew more than 90 missions during WWII. This was another great opportunity to network with colleagues in a relaxed and informal setting.
At our AGM, held on Saturday May 22 at the Sportsman Club at Bankstown, we announced a loss for the year 2009/10 of $50,000 – the result of a difficult year with the Global Financial Crisis and unexpected expenses as a result.
We took some hard decisions towards the end of last year. We reduced overheads, made some significant staff changes, and re-negotiated our printing contracts. This was not an easy task, but we needed to ensure we could operate effectively, while still delivering an efficient advocacy service for our members and improve our magazines.
I consider we have met those goals and I am pleased to announce that the latest financial balance sheet reflects this turn around with a surplus of $7,000 for the month of May. This is a very significant result and with the savings we are generating, we expect to have a very healthy balance sheet at our next AGM in 2011.
June is shaping up as a busy month, with meetings at our Bankstown office on various regulatory matters and two more Canberra trips for myself. I will be reporting on those in our member’s magazine, Pilot Extra.
Sunday June 20 is a big day for Clamback and Hennessy. Their Hangar Bash will, of course, be finished by the time this edition is distributed, but we will be in attendance and we expect a good turn out from the Bankstown aviation community.
Fellow Director, Jeff Muller, and I took the opportunity to assess the new Class D procedures on a VFR flight to Murwillumbah and return on the 10th June and to Temora and return on Sunday the 13th June. Both flights went smoothly and on our return flights we reported our position inbound prior to the entry points.
On the first flight we were directed to enter via Prospect Reservoir and on the second told to report over Warwick Farm. We were not delayed and the procedures presented no problems. I believe the new system will function well once everyone is familiar with the changes.
I have not had the opportunity to assess the IFR procedures in flight, but certainly did not experience any difficulties with the VFR procedures, or any delays, however our flights were departures and arrivals, and we were not conducting circuits.
We have two new Directors, Mr. Peter Rejto and Dr. Tony Van Der Spek. Peter will be working on Airspace and Airport issues initially, and Tony will handle AVMED issues, but like all our directors will be involved in all aspects of AOPA.
Brian Hannan did not stand for re-election at the AGM. It is with regret that we have accepted Brian’s resignation. Brian has been a board member for 5 years and also vice president for two years. Brian has worked tirelessly for AOPA, and his efforts on regulatory and airworthiness issues have resulted in favourable outcomes for GA.
Brian has decided to step back for personal and family reasons, but we are hoping to utilise his services on projects from time to time. I would just like to add: thank you Brian for your work on behalf of GA.
Phillip Reiss
AOPA President
