AOPA membership.

upstateny said:
What is this annual hat of which you speak? Got one when I joined 25+ yrs ago, haven't seen one since.
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This is my haul for the past few years...I even got a charging bank one time too. This year I got the hat to the far left. I have another hat that my wife took so I have gotten at least 5 hats. hats.jpg
 
Tantalum said:
YES! If you want to get a member back spamming them asking for $60 is not the way to do it. Tell us what you're actually doing and what value you will bring me.. that goes beyond a hat or a gimmick
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I'm going to spend 2 hours up to SJC and 2 hours back on Friday lecturing you about the benefits of AOPA
 
simtech said:
Yep I have a friend who is on auto renew gets nothing. I dont auto renew and every year I get an offer for a hat if I renew. So I pay for my expensive hat every year. So if you're on auto renew cancel it and you will get a hat every year. haha
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I just re-upped yesterday. I have too many hats already, so they are sending a headset bag. Last year I talked them out of a flashlight . . . . My favorite flying hat says "John Deere" on the front. :p
 
simtech said:
This is my haul for the past few years...I even got a charging bank one time too. This year I got the hat to the far left. I have another hat that my wife took so I have gotten at least 5 hats.
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Hat addiction?
 
I've got the black and tan hats. There's an olive green hat that's my favorite. All slightly too small though.

As for AOPA, I dropped my subscription shortly after Claire left the boards. She was all the motivation I needed to pay the annual renewal.

Really, I'm very much in favor of the organization. It did leave a bad impression when someone posted how millions were misspent, used as a private party play money, and when they went private on when and where the jet was flying. Like almost every non-profit, I'd like to see better use of the funds. And like someone else said, Phil was really, really good about publicity, and that just doesn't exist anymore. But at this point I'm letting people like Bob support the organization that supports my cause. And I'm glad they do.
 
A while back, I took advantage of their lifetime membership offer. I use their flight planner and the aopa safety foundation courses all the time. That said, I haven't received a hat from AOPA. When I got my lifetime membership, I did get a very inexpensive windbreaker that says "lifetime member" on it. I use it periodically, but it looks cheap. The pockets are also aligned that not much stays in them.
Perhaps I will be entered in the sweepstakes for the cub this year, not really sure how that works for a lifetime member. I would love to get that cub....
 
Now that they are brokering airplane insurance again, it is useful to have a membership.

I use the flight planner to create and save routes. Nice.

Oh, and I have the hat...
 
Fabio said:
Hello there.
Low time pilot here.
I am receiving constantly in the mail and emails, offer about joining AOPA.
I would like to know what’s the advantage and disadvantage of carrying a membership.
Not a big deal for $70 but just curious to hear your opinion.
Thanks all for the help.
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To me, I am a member not primarily for the benefits, but for the fact that AOPA and EAA are really the only people out there to advocate for GA. While I could find stuff to nitpick, without those orgs, there would literally be no voice fighting to keep small airports open, ensure GA is at least heard in legislation/etc.

For as much as I value flying, paying a little each year to help ensure it'll be around down the road is worth it to me
 
Arrow76R said:
51 year member here...the medical assistance folks helped me a lot during my "special issuance" days. Air Safety Foundation has very good videos and I do the Flight Instructor re-cert through this mechanism. The magazine is a good read and you have the choice of not responding to solicitations just like any other entity.
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Let me use you post to amend mine a bit. The Air Safety Foundation is well worth our support. You do not need to be an AOPA member to support ASF. Only a couple bucks from AOPA dues go to ASF.
 
All you need to know about AOPA comes from the way they handled the end of the DC ADIZ and subsequent SFAR. When that was happening, AOPA posted a note on their website from Phil that said "no changes are imminent, you're just hearing rumors.". Then like 3 days later the change happened and AOPA dedicated an entire portion of their website and the next magazine claiming full credit for the changes occurring.

Weak sauce
 
I am a member of both AOPA and EAA. And you get the neat AOPA window sticker to boot. I'm waiting on these guys to get the Cherokee and C-150 into LSA. No brainer AOPA
 
ircphoenix said:
AOPA spent forever long and who knows how much money on BasicMed... but now their big push is spending membership dollars to build brand new hangars for themselves at their airport.
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With a 2-3 year wait for a hangar @ KFDK there are a bunch of us looking forward to those hangars that have been on the wait list. Even though AOPA is financing/building them they're going into the pool with the other hangars at the airport. I wish they would keep the mid-field hangars too but that's part of some city plan for the airport businesses. We may well move from MD before I get one.
 
Hangar waitlist often are political. That’s why I drive 1hr:20 to my hangar. Been on waitlist at CKV almost 3 years. Moved down on list fro 11 to 15 :rolleyes:
 
Member of EAA and AOPA here. I like the AOPA flight planner for dreaming while it's raining. Oh, and I am definitely calling to get the new hat.
 
Mooney Fan said:
Hangar waitlist often are political. That’s why I drive 1hr:20 to my hangar. Been on waitlist at CKV almost 3 years. Moved down on list fro 11 to 15 :rolleyes:
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Blame EAA for most airport hangar wait lists. Way too many projects that take years to complete, assuming they are ever completed, occupying way too many hangars.
 
Clip4 said:
Blame EAA for most airport hangar wait lists. Way too many projects that take years to complete, assuming they are ever completed, occupying way too many hangars.
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I'm sure there are examples, but most folks build their airplanes at home. I've been in the homebuilt world assisting people and doing tech counselor stuff for 25 years and have never visited a hangar or airport location for building help or building consultation. Hangar visits are typically final assembly.
 
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