District IV
Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland,
North Carolina, Virginia
Jay Marsh
Vice President
amadistrictiv@modelaircraft.org
3227 Pine Needles Rd.,
High Point NC 27265
(336) 687-0973
www.amadistrict-iv.org
www.facebook.com/amadistrictIV
ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENTS
Nic Burhans, VA; (540) 219-9646; nic@ama-d4.org
Bob Burnett, Washington, D.C. SFRA; (703) 742-9682; bobb@ama-d4.org
Rick Cawley, NC; (919) 630-1649; racbgc2@yahoo.com
Jack Hamilton, NC; (828) 206-5281; scorpionjacks@hotmail.com
Rusty Kennedy, VA; (757) 812-2812; rusty k716@gmail.com
Richard “Rick” Moreland, MD; (301) 261-7366; rmoreland1@verizon.net
Mark Smith, NC; (704) 798-2776; marksmithsmitty@yahoo.com
Terry Terrenoire, VA; (412) 760-4593; terry@ama-d4.org
Mark Weiss, DE; (302) 547-4917; ama82824@yahoo.com
EVENT SANCTION COORDINATORS
CL AVP: Jack Rosemere, 609 William St., Cambridge MD 21613; (410) 330-4663; jrosemere@verizon.net
FF AVP: Bob Sowder, 84 Misty Hills Ln., Troutville VA 24175; (540) 525-7086; bsowder@rbnet.com
RC: John Bergsmith, 1438 Piney Church Rd., Concord NC 28025; (704) 699-6977; RCcoordinator@ama-d4.org
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS AVP
Ray Stinchcomb, (443) 618-8998; govrelations@ama-d4.org
WEBMASTER
Jack Upchurch, webmaster@ama-d4.org
SOCIAL MEDIA ADMINISTRATOR
Douglas LeRoy, social@ama-d4.org
Associate Vice President Nic Burhans has been busy attending club events in his area. Here are a couple of reports on his outings:
The Giant Scale Aeromodelers Association Club, https://gsaa-rc.org, held its first Fun Fly & Swap Meet on Saturday, June 8, 2024. The club is Northern Virginia’s newest club with 27 members who want to grow. Located on a private airstrip that is on the edge of the Washington, D.C., Special Flight Rules Area in Catlett, Virginia, the club is an FAA-Recognized Identification Area flying site.
Although the name implies “Giant Scale only,” it is open to all sizes and types of aircraft. Therefore, the main purpose for the event was to focus on area pilot awareness and draw new members.
Forty-five area pilots attended and there was a good smattering of aircraft, from electric slow fliers to A-10 jets. The club’s Noon Show featured Ashleigh Heath doing the 3-D demonstration that she performed at the EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, last year.
This was my first outing with this new AMA club, and we all had a great time.
This year, the Fauquier Aero Recreation Modelers (FARM) club, https://farmclubrc.com, is celebrating 17 years of charity float-fly events at the Lake Ritchie Pavilion site in Bealeton, Virginia.
In 2010, the club expanded its charity float-fly event to twice a year, exclusively in support of the Fauquier County, Virginia, Community Food Bank.
The FARM club has conducted 30 of these charity events and expanded them to include all kinds of RC aircraft, boats, and sailboats.
This year’s 8-hour sanctioned event included an FAA Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) designation and associated AMA waivered altitude and Remote ID restrictions. The Lake Ritchie Pavilion site includes a covered eating area, kitchen, inside bathrooms, and unlimited parking.
The club provided a picnic lunch followed by a raffle and 50/50 drawings. Aircraft pilots and boat captains, and their required spotters, all operate from a single launch area to allow for constant communications.
This year’s new and old aircraft were from Virginia, Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Delaware. The new speedboat configurations allowed for self-righting, which required the club’s rescue boat captain to make fewer runs this spring.
No major aircraft crashes or boat sinkings were recorded by recovery boat captain Ralph Graul. The 26 pilots and captains and 13 observing guests donated 15 pounds of non-perishable food and $800 in donations for the Fauquier Food Bank to purchase food for distribution to the Fauquier community.
It was a very pleasant and successful day at Lake Ritchie at this year’s FARM Spring Float-Fly event.
Go fly and have fun safely.
