District II—New Jersey, New York, Europe
Eric Williams
Vice President
rcpilot@nycap.rr.com
4242 Amanda Ln., Schenectady NY 12303
Tel.: (518) 356-2057
www.amadistrict-II.org
www.facebook.com/DistrictIIAMA
Last fall in 2016, I was delighted that the AMA Executive Council accepted my proposal to host AMA Expo East. Planning for a large trade show is usually a one-year process. The number of details is enormous. However, as soon as AMA Expo East was approved, Expo Event Manager Lora Knowlton, AMA Marketing Director Jeff Nance, and the AMA Headquarters staff went to work. They were committed to producing a great show in roughly a quarter of the needed time—not to mention their preexisting workload for AMA Expo West in January.
In the fall of last year, Lora Knowlton, Jeff Nance, and I paid a visit to the Meadowlands Exposition Center, in preparation for AMA Expo East. With little doubt, the facility’s management and staff were highly supportive and helpful. Their professionalism and efforts continued throughout the show. AMA Expo East proved to be a success with strong attendance, vendors who sold out of product, sold-out swap shop tables, and standing room only for the AMA membership meeting and guest speakers.
There are numerous reasons for AMA to produce Expo East and Expo West. These shows are important for our members, our clubs, and the future of our hobby. Competing interests and other hobbies vie for people’s time. There is no doubt that our hobby is changing. So too will the nature of shows such as the AMA Expos.
These shows serve to promote model aviation to the general public. This was evident at Expo East! Community groups such as 4-H, the Boys Scouts, a local senior group, and young Civil Air Patrol cadets visited or participated in AMA Expo East. Expo East served the important purpose of exposing our hobby to the public.
I had the pleasure of meeting many people, including University of Delaware students who made the long trip to AMA Expo East. These Ph.D., engineering, MBA, and master’s students are working on the viability of a drone safety system called “Dronespace.” The students hope to provide drone users with a low-cost, portable, modularly expandable space to fly safely.
These students, and the various community groups that attended AMA Expo East, represent the future of our hobby and open up model aviation to vast new audiences.
Remember, it’s not about what you fly, it’s about the people.
