AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 30
honoring our mission.
AOPA’S MISSION STATEMENT
WE PRESERVE THE FREEDOM TO FLY • Advocating on behalf of our members • Educating pilots, nonpilots, and policy makers alike • Supporting activities that ensure the long-term health of general aviation * Fighting to keep general aviation accessible to all * Securing sufficient resources to ensure our success
>> 2013 is a pivotal year to make that happen. There’s a lot going on that will affect your flying—in the short term, and in the long term. We blast you with a lot of information, but if you read nothing else from us this year, please take a few minutes and read about our initiatives and why we believe they are important. If you agree, tell your friends. If you disagree, tell us why. We’ll listen and nudge the yoke a little left or right as we traverse the turbulent but promising future.
AOPA’s mission statement says that “we preserve the freedom to fly.” I stand by that statement. In fact, it’s more important than ever as general aviation struggles with economic, regulatory, and demographic challenges. But in my mind, these are not just challenges—they are opportunities. With your support, we can reverse the trend from GA decline to GA growth. As AOPA prepares for its seventy-fifth anniversary in 2014, we know that the organization and all of general aviation must evolve in order to preserve for our children and grandchildren the sort of flying experiences we enjoy. If we don’t act, we can see our future across the Atlantic in Europe. Stifled by heavy fees and over-regulation, pilots there recognize how fortunate we are in this country and encourage us to be vigilant. I spend a lot of time with AOPA members and pilots of all types. Whether I am flying my Husky in the backcountry, discussing the issues at town-hall-style events, or taking part in one of the many big conventions and airshows throughout the year, I meet pilots who fly just about every type of aircraft for every imaginable reason. Without exception, they tell me they want AOPA to play a leadership role in moving GA forward—and the survey responses, emails, and phone calls we get confirm that the feeling is widespread. For 2013, AOPA has developed priorities that help us advance our freedom to fly: Protecting the freedom to fly through our unflagging commitment to advocacy; sharing the freedom to fly by providing information and extending knowledge through our print and electronic media outlets; and building on the freedom to fly by inspiring and engaging the next generation of pilots, while helping today’s pilots find cost-effective ways to spend more time flying.
SPEAKING UP FOR GA
One of the things AOPA does very well is advocate for our members and all of general aviation—in fact, if you’re familiar with my
30 | AOPA PILOT January 2013
background, you know that advocacy is a central theme of my professional life. Along with the ability to fly my Husky, advocating for general aviation is what gets me up in the morning—and I don’t think I’m bragging when I say AOPA is really good at it. Our legislative affairs staff in Washington, D.C. is among the strongest and most respected of any aviation organization. And we routinely partner with other associations to maximize general aviation’s presence in Washington. Our focus there is unwavering. That’s why we were ready when we saw that user fees would be a threat in the 2010 budget. We acted quickly to bolster our expert staff with support from outside counsel; looked for new ways to educate members of Congress; and used the power of the web, video, and celebrities to influence opinions about the value of general aviation. We asked Harrison Ford, a passionate aviator and respected actor, to be the national spokesman for our GA Serves America campaign. His message made an impression on both lawmakers and the public. Recognizing the importance of GA to our national transportation system and economy, forward-thinking members of Congress formed GA caucuses in both the House and Senate—groups that have grown to be among the largest on Capitol Hill. With the help of our friends in Congress and the awareness generated by Harrison Ford and others, we saw user fees stripped from the budget. Similarly, in 2011 powerful lawmakers in both chambers, many of them GA caucus members, sent letters to the White House with a reminder that any budget including aviation user fees or “segment fees” would not be accepted. Again, we were victorious. No doubt, the idea of user fees will return in one form or another, and we are ever vigilant on the issue. But the point is, we laid a strong strategic foundation for support, and it has worked. Federal issues such as user fees have the greatest visibility, but we can’t overlook the importance of what happens outside the
P H OT O G R A P H Y B Y C H R I S R O S E
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013
Contents
President’s Position
Visual Approach
Letters
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
Safety Pilot
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
Strength In Purpose
Watch What You Eat
Milestones
AOPA Foundation
Test Pilot
News
LSA Focus: Light Years Ahead
LSA Focus: Personal Vision
LSA Focus: Buying Into the Dream
Will Fly For Food
Technique
Ownership
Avionics
Efficiency
Never Again
Frugal Flier
State & Local Action
Products and Partners
Products and Services
Air Safety Institute
AOPA Insurance Services-Aviation
AOPA Member Benefits
Fly by Wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Visual Approach
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Safety Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Strength In Purpose
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 30
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 32
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Watch What You Eat
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Milestones
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 38
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - AOPA Foundation
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Test Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - News
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - LSA Focus: Light Years Ahead
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - LSA Focus: Personal Vision
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 58
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - LSA Focus: Buying Into the Dream
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Will Fly For Food
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Technique
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 78
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 81
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 82
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Ownership
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Avionics
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 87
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Efficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 94
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Frugal Flier
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - State & Local Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - I1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - I2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Products and Partners
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Products and Services
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Air Safety Institute
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - AOPA Insurance Services-Aviation
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - AOPA Member Benefits
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 107
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Fly by Wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - January 2013 - Cover4
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