District V—Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, US Virgin Islands
Bob Brogdon
Vice President
r.a.brogdon@comcast.net
5251 Hermitage Dr., Powder Springs GA 30127
Tel.: (770) 421-8838; www.amadistrict-v.org
Hello! Thanks for joining me this month. I especially want to thank those of you who have taken the time to write a note and share your thoughts. Your interest and support are appreciated.
District V is fortunate to have good flying weather all year around, but it is especially nice now as I write this article. I hope you have been enjoying the opportunities to get out and fly this year. In addition to great flying conditions, many good things are happening in the district, and I want to bring them to your attention.
After many years with no representative on the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame committee, we now have one. Mike Helsel, of Taylor, South Carolina, has agreed to serve on the committee. Mike brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the committee, and I know he will serve us well.
Bud Williams of Morristown, Tennessee, has volunteered to represent District V on the Flying Site Assistance grant committee. Bud has many years of experience with grants and compliance issues, making him well qualified for this position.
Glenn Bond, of Fort Payne, Alabama, is our new district webmaster. I have viewed one of his websites, and I am looking forward to working with Glenn to make the district website a useful tool for our members.
Chuck Foreman, of Ocala, Florida, has returned to the district after living in District IV for several years. I have reinstated him as an associate vice president. Welcome back, Chuck!
We have a new member on the Scale Aerobatics Contest Board. Wayne Matthews, of Acworth, Georgia, has accepted this position, and looking at his background, I think he should be an asset to this board.
The following members have passed the exam and have been approved to be contest directors: Ryan O’Connor, West Palm Beach, Florida; David Putler, Clarksville, Tennessee; Thomas Lee Russell, Griffin, Georgia; Richard Slezak, Dade City, Florida; David Smith, Knoxville, Tennessee; and Frank Yates of Moncks Corner, South Carolina.
We also have two new Leader Members: David Smith of Knoxville, and Nicholas Ray of Atlanta. If you have the opportunity, I hope you will thank these individuals for giving the extra effort and working to help make modeling better for each of us. I can’t thank them enough!
The McMinn County Radio Control Association in Tennessee is in the news again. The club has recently been upgraded to Gold Leader Club status. Congratulations McMinn County RC!
I have received word that the Flying Gators RC club in Gainesville, Florida, now has a new fabric runway installed and the site is open for flying. Way to go, Gators!
Don Wise, an associate vice president in South Carolina, submitted the following report.
Members of the Charleston RC Society (CRCS) club in Charleston, South Carolina, put on a flying demonstration at the Bair-ly Pulling Tractor Pull near St. George, South Carolina, on March 11, 2017. Twelve members flew airplanes and helicopters of various types including glow- and electric-powered models.
The tractor pull organizer built a level runway near the entry road to the event. This ensured that everyone knew the club was there. The CRCS members answered questions about the aircraft and about getting into the hobby. The CRCS club also performs at similar events for the Boy Scouts. The members attend a train show in Charleston where they set up flight simulators and static displays inside the facility and perform flying demos outside.
CRCS has 117 members, making it one of the larger clubs in the state. The flying site’s landowner discourages sanctioned events, which would pull in large numbers of non-club pilots, so the club holds members-only events. Even with this restriction, CRCS has been able to introduce and educate the public about our hobby and pick up new members. I am sure this is one of many reasons why the club will celebrate its 50ᵗʰ anniversary in April 2018.
I also received this note from Don Ogren of Spring Hill, Florida.
“Bob, welcome aboard! I’m Don Ogren; I fly Control Line [CL] Aerobatics, and I have attended every Control Line Nats since 2002. I want to tell you that here in Spring Hill we have a great RC club, the Hernando County RC Club, from which we have spun off an indoor flying group, the Timber Pines Micro Flyers.
“We have use of the Performing Arts Center in the Timber Pines senior adult community. The facility is 75-foot square with a 25-foot ceiling and is almost ideal for flying small indoor models. Our flying schedule is dependent on the use of the facility by other associations, but we are able to schedule the facility for a flying session most months.
“We usually have six to eight members meet to fly drones, helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, and a few No-Cal rubber-powered models. I even fly a small electric-powered CL model on 16-foot lines. I can say that by the end of a flying session, everyone attending had fun.”
Looks like I have run out of space once again. I will have to wait until next month to continue with the reports. Meanwhile, happy landings … don’t forget to flare!
