There's already the RAF. Recreational aviation foundation.
Bingo.
Same. But it's a pretty great grassroots organization... With some cool swag
A very large number of us were already there. EAA has been the better org for GA pilots in general for quite a while now - I'd say, at least the past 15 years. Really, more like 17 years, since Boyer retired. It's been all downhill from there.
What do they need to "cater to certified aircraft"? When they accomplish their mission for experimental aircraft, generally they are also helping out with certified aircraft. They also don't restrict themselves to experimental aircraft - They were heavily involved in MOSAIC, which makes it easier to *certify* aircraft, for example. And where do all of the certified aircraft/avionics/engine/STC/everything makers go to announce and show off their wares? Oshkosh.
And EAA already does more than AOPA on all of that.
The Recreational Avaition Foundation would like a word...
Sort of. Mostly making/keeping strips open and accessible and let one recreate. I believe @EdFred's dad had a lot to do with reopening 6y3. A few weeks ago there was a question about the "chicken strip". A landing strip not even on a sectional located in death valley. Whether or not you camp is up to you.
I think much of what goes under piston/prop-driven GenAv is better off as "experimental" anyway. Welcome the refugees with open arms -- you can do so much of your own maintenance! No more $500 "certified" versions of $50 auto parts. Anyone with a hankering to empty their wallets can fly a Cirrus.
For the sake of the flying purple spaghetti monster, NO! Seriously, I've been griping about the reduction in the quality and quantity of serious homebuilt content in EAA's magazine for 20 years. If it gets worse, I'll have to leave EAA and form a New EAA that has a focus on the experimental market, which (along with the turbine market) is the only growth in GA.
Can't we all just get along? The certified things that happen in relation is what allows EAA to exist, just like how the turbine stuff is what allows both to exist to at least some extent.
But being able to say, “we have 300,000 people behind our money,” is more effective than, “we represent 10,000 rich pilots.”
Yeah, AOPA doesn’t appear to be trying to leverage much of anything.
EAA existed just fine before they threw open the gates to certified content. I honestly don't mind the certified stuff, but when it crowds out the group that has always been the organization's backbone, something's wrong. Think about this. The warbird, vintage, and aerobatic communities all have their own dedicated publications and organizations under the bigger EAA banner. EAA discontinued "The Experimenter" and "rolled its content into Sport Aviation". Unfortunately, SA typically has 20% of the "experimental" content we used to enjoy between SA and The Experimenter. Twenty years ago, SA had tremendous experimental content every month. Now we might get one decent article. And the magazine is clogged with preachy columns and barely veiled advertisements. (See the Lift Aviation story in the latest issue.).
Sometimes these organizations employ fear mongering tactics and accomplish absolutely nothing. But they still need your help and employ more fear mongering.
That's where I'm at. Small groups in Texas did way more than the NRA ever did for 2A stuff.
Yeah, NYSRPA did way more for NY and the country than NRA, too. A good group.
That doesn't tell me that EAA is moving away from experimentals, though... That tells me that EAA reaffirmed itself as being all about experimentals.
Is there anyone who knows things and is willing to write the experimental content? That's half the battle sometimes.
It's my fault - I got tired of the same old crap and I changed my AOPA subscription to the AOPA Pilot Turbine edition so I could learn new stuff and ogle shiny airplanes I'll never be able to afford. Ironically, now I'm flying jets.
RE: Your italicized statement... I don't see how reducing the experimental content by 75% reaffirms EAA's focus or effort in the experimental arena. It suggests that EAA is meandering away from its base, just like AOPA has.
I'm sorry, but with their "efforts" on ADS-B, and other things, I'm not sure that's a real loss. If we got the GOA equivalent of aviation to augment the NRA of aviation, we'd be in better shape in the future. Also, I'm pretty sure EAA did a lot more for MOSAIC than AOPA did, so I disagree with your assessment and have chosen to give EAA more money.
There were also committees involved, and people who stepped up to the plate. I heard some about that from some people in the aerial photography world. I think EAA did more than AOPA for MOSAIC, for sure.
