Celebrating and protecting model aviation
View from HQ by Dave Mathewson, AMA Executive Director
National Model Aviation Day (NMAD) will have concluded by the time this issue of Model Aviation magazine reaches you. NMAD was created in 2013 to increase awareness of model aviation and AMA by encouraging clubs to celebrate the hobby and share it with the public.
Hundreds of AMA chartered clubs have accepted the challenge and have done a remarkable job working to accomplish this goal. Many clubs were featured on their local news and in newspapers, and several clubs went the extra mile to work with their respective state governments to receive a proclamation officially recognizing National Model Aviation Day in their states.
Although the primary goal of NMAD is to raise awareness of what we do as model aviation enthusiasts, we also wanted to use the opportunity to, in some way, give back to our communities. As was done in 2013 and 2014, AMA suggested that proceeds generated by clubs hosting NMAD events be used to support a worthwhile charity.
Our nationally recognized charity for 2015 is again Wounded Warrior Project. Last year, our clubs collectively raised $100,000 for this charity by participating in the event and we hope to exceed that amount this year.
As with any gathering of this type, sponsors and supporters play important roles in its success. AMA is extremely appreciative of this year’s national sponsors. Our thanks go to platinum-level sponsors Hobbico, HobbyKing, Horizon Hobby, and ReadyMade RC, and to gold-level sponsors Hostetler’s Plans, Tower Hobbies, RCGroups.com, and Volaré Products.
AMA and our entire membership are extremely fortunate to have such a dedicated resource among our ranks ...
Rich Hanson has led AMA’s government and regulatory affairs efforts since 2008. Since the beginning, Rich has done a masterful job of guiding AMA though sometimes uncharted waters and through the maze of government bureaucracy that, if not kept in check, has the potential to impose unnecessary and onerous regulation on aeromodeling.
AMA and the model aviation community recognized Rich’s extraordinary efforts by inducting him into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame in 2013. Rich was recently selected by the members of the FAI as a recipient of the Paul Tissandier Diploma. He was nominated by the National Aeronautic Association. This diploma, established by the FAI in 1952, is named after Paul Tissandier, secretary general of FAI from 1919 to 1945. It is awarded to those “who have served the cause of Aviation in general and Sporting Aviation in particular, by their work, initiative, devotion, or in other ways.” Those of us who work alongside Rich every day know how deserving he is of this honor. It is a wonderful acknowledgement of the contributions he has made to modeling and sport aviation in the United States. Rich will, no doubt, share this honor with the group of individuals—mostly volunteers—that he has put together to help manage the FAA sUAS regulatory effort. AMA and our entire membership are extremely fortunate to have such a dedicated resource among our ranks who gives so freely of his time to ensure that all of us will be able to enjoy model aviation in the future as we do today and have done since AMA’s inception in 1936.
In 2012 AMA worked to have the Special Rule for Model Aircraft included in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. This amendment outlined provisions within the law that provide guidance to the FAA in addressing model aircraft operation in the National Airspace System.
Later this year, Congress will begin considering the 2016 version of this legislation. AMA is working with Congress to ensure that the provisions included in the 2012 version of the bill remain intact. We have also suggested that, if included in the new bill, it will provide more clarity and direction for guiding aeromodeling throughout the next several years.
We’ve reached out to club officers in select states and asked them to contact their representatives asking for their support. As the process moves forward, we will likely reach out to our entire membership asking the same.
As always, we want our members to remain vigilant and stay abreast of what’s taking place in the regulatory arena. The best way to do that is to regularly visit the AMA website at www.modelaircraft.org.
See you next time ...
