AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2020 - 102

DETAILS

5,087

The number of public-use
airports in the United States.

News & Notes
MEMBERSHIP

Share your flying experiences
Providing feedback on great airports and amenities
B Y A M E L I A WA L S H

"AOPA's rating and review platform is a great tool to
give pilots added confidence to get out, fly, explore, and
visit the thousands of great destinations that GA can
take them. Crowdsourced reviews are a critical customer
expectation today, and they drive every industry to get
better at serving its customers and foster transparency
by sharing firsthand experiences-it's a win for pilots,
airport managers, and local businesses."
AOPA SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT
OF MARKETING: Jiri Marousek

DESTINATIONS

AMERICA'S GENERAL AVIATION airports
have a lot to offer: spectacular backcountry terrain, southern hospitality, and $100
hamburgers that are worth it. Using the
updated ratings and reviews feature of
AOPA's Airport Directory Online, pilots
can review and rate airports and onsite businesses, and share their flying
experiences.
From the airport itself to FBOs, restaurants, flight schools, and maintenance
shops, pilots are encouraged to give their
feedback-the good, the bad, and the
ugly-on all aspects of an airport's amenities, and to check the experience other
pilots had at those locations. The new
rating functionality allows users to provide up to five-star ratings, post reviews,
upload photos, and like other users'
comments. Just as important, managers
and business owners can interact with
customers by responding to user comments, recognizing great feedback, and
addressing customer concerns that would
otherwise go unanswered.

102 | AOPA PILOT March 2020

The member-requested feature is a
welcome addition to the Airport Directory
Online as more consumers turn to online
reviews. According to research from
Gatherup, 88 percent of buyers are influenced by online reviews; 91 percent of 18- to
34-year-olds say they trust online reviews as
much as personal recommendations.
Along with the new ratings and review
feature, AOPA's Airport Directory Online
also has an updated and rebuilt kneeboard
format. The kneeboard now displays airport
manager reported traffic pattern altitudes in
addition to FAA-reported pattern altitudes.
Comments on runway conditions, noise
abatement information, pilot-activated
lighting details, and clearance delivery

|

phone numbers also are available.
Users leaving reviews must be logged in
to AOPA.org but do not need to be AOPA
members. Airport and business managers
do not need to have a paid AOPA membership in order to respond to a review but
must have administrative access to their
listing, which is provided at no cost.
The new additions to the Airport
Directory Online combined with the AOPA
Travel Portal and biweekly AOPA Travel
Pilot newsletter make it easy for pilots to
discover fun new places to fly and to share
their adventures.
aopa.org/destinations
EMAIL amelia.walsh@aopa.org

AOPA'S TRAVEL PORTAL
It's all here-guides to airports, discounts, flight planning, international travel.
AOPA's Travel Portal takes you to the places you need to discover before you fly
to the places you want to see. Find out how to get great discounts, read reviews,
and flight plan for the trip of a lifetime. All in one easy-to-use site.
aopa.org/travel
http://www.AOPA.org http://www.aopa.org/destinations http://www.aopa.org/travel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - March 2020
