Who will you select?
It has been an interesting two months since my last column. Since the August issue, we have two nominated candidates, one of whom will become your new executive vice president (EVP). AMA is accepting ballots until mid-November.
The EVP position is a step below the AMA president. The job function is to help reduce the workload of the president, oversee the work of our committee structure, chair several committees, attend all national AMA meetings and events, attend events by special invitation, occasionally meet with Congress and the FAA, and write six magazine columns each year. The position can be demanding, sometimes requiring more hours than a regular workweek—most of which is behind the scenes and out of view of our members. This position is more important than it might appear, because the EVP is influential, and potentially the next AMA president.
AMA’s Executive Council (EC) has an ethics code by which the nominees, as well as sitting EC members, are required to abide. Because this election is critical to the future of our organization, I strongly urge you to consider what each candidate stands for and what each has accomplished during their tenures.
AMA has always welcomed new technologies into our fold. Free Flight members weren’t worried about Control Line when that came on the scene. The same can be said when RC, helicopters, and turbines were invented. Many older discipline supporters have said that those new technologies would kill our hobby. It didn’t happen then, and it won’t now!
We are at a similar crossroads with multirotors and FPV racing. Some members feel that drones have caused our issues with the FAA. There might be some truth to that because the people who buy these aircraft don’t have to be pilots, perhaps don’t have the same passion for our hobby, and often aren’t AMA members. I was in my first year on the council when the FAA issues really began, and drones and multirotors hadn’t yet been invented. There was a new administration in Washington, D.C., that felt more regulation of the national airspace was needed, to include our fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Drones and multirotors didn’t start our governmental issues and we mustn’t lose sight of that.
If you have been to a flying field in the last decade, you realize that we aren’t overwhelmed with Youth members flying what we traditional members fly. The 30-and-under crowd is into cellphones, iPads, and electronics. They are naturally attracted to programming, multirotors, and FPV racing. When clubs welcome multirotor flying, they are more attractive to our youth. And when youth are exposed to fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, their interest level grows in the more-traditional segments of our hobby.
A recent AMA club marketing survey shows that more than 90% of clubs welcome multirotors, and that 21% of new AMA members consider themselves multirotor enthusiasts. Guess what? Clubs tell us that they are seeing multirotor enthusiasts also becoming pilots of fixed- and rotary-wing disciplines. This is exactly what we predicted.
AMA was started in 1936 by a couple dozen people when Free Flight was the only form of model aviation. AMA has welcomed every new technology and discipline since then, and each time a new technology comes on the scene, our membership grows, making us stronger. Today, we have roughly 200,000 members. A significant majority claims to have and fly drones or multirotors, and our core membership remains strong.
What does this mean? This year’s election is more than just selecting an EVP. It is about you as an Adult member, helping to establish the future direction of the AMA. This is why I ask that you do a little homework.
Carefully read the campaign statements and ask questions. Make an informed decision, and determine for yourself which candidate is prepared to work to move our organization forward, and which one wants to restrict technology, potentially leading to the decline of AMA.
Governmental regulation is here to stay, whoever is elected. I do know that the stronger and louder our voice, the more influence AMA has in protecting our future.
Although I’m not a multirotor enthusiast, I certainly recognize that our future will forever be intertwined with them, and I would much rather have them working with us than not. It has been stated that AMA has lost its way. Nothing could be further from the truth. Accepting new technologies is part of the fabric of AMA’s 80-plus-year history! If you haven’t already voted, please do so!
I typically don’t comment on the blogs that I have seen on AMA’s website. I accept that we will always have a few people who aren’t happy with us. One was a man who claimed he wasn’t going to renew his membership because we raised dues two years ago just to pad our already fat salaries at the top.
I had to laugh as it brought to mind what comedian Ron White often says about people like that. As I have often stated, all elected offices on the EC, as well as the chief financial officer, are unpaid, volunteer positions. Many of us take money out of our own pockets to carry out our jobs.
One last comment. We have seen people run to become an AMA district vice president, sometimes for the wrong reasons. When elected, they find that they don’t understand what they signed up for. Most step up and become productive members of the EC. A few do not and it creates problems.
I will ask the EC that we include a step in the nominating process. I believe that before a nomination is accepted at AMA, the nominee must read the “Duties Guidance for AMA Vice Presidents,” found in the AMA Membership Manual, and sign an affidavit that he or she understands and accepts this. When the nominee realizes what the job entails, those willing to dedicate the time and work that an officer position requires will knowingly accept those responsibilities.
Thanks for reading. Please help us secure our future and take a youngster flying!
