FSNews-Masthd
JANUARY 8, 2015

FLIGHT TRAINING CONFERENCE
 

John and Martha King to Speak about Power Marketing for Flight Schools at Sixth Annual International 
Flight School Operators Conference This Month

 

With just days until this year's International Flight School Operators Conference, there is still time to register to be a part of the event in San Diego. In addition to the previously noted keynote speaker, Roger Cohen, the President and CEO of the Regional Airline Association, day two of the event will feature speaking by John and Martha King from King Schools.

  

John and Martha will be speaking about Power Marketing for Flight Schools. John and Martha have been business partners for nearly 50 years, and in the process have been both broke and "not broke." John says they like "not broke" better. The two experiences have made them very thoughtful about what they did differently to get "not broke." In this intimate and revealing talk, the Kings will share why they think choosing the aviation business was so key to their success.
 
FSANA is confident that this is a presentation that will be entertaining and informative for flight school operators. If you operate a flight training business, the years of knowledge that the Kings have to share will be something you don't want to miss at this year's conference.


Rooms are still available at the Hilton San Diego Mission Valley hotel. Call 800-682-6099 to make your reservation today. Use the GROUP CODE "FS2" for conference rates. The Hilton has added rooms to the FSANA room block and extended the room cutoff until January 16, 2015. After January 16, 2015, please contact Jane Won in the sales office at 619-767-5569 to determine if rooms are still available at the special FSANA room rate.  

 

Want to see a full list of who is going to be representing the industry at this conference?

 

Are you a company not currently on the list of Exhibitors and Sponsors but would like to be? There is still time!
FLIGHT TRAINING CONFERENCE
 

Regional Airlines Exhibiting at FSANA Annual Conference in San Diego  

 

FSANA is pleased that several regional Part 121 air carriers are planning to participate at the 6th Annual Flight School Operators Conference January 27-30, 2015 in San Diego.


According to Bob Rockmaker, President & CEO of FSANA, "The career airline pilot topic has always been a focus point for the association and now we are entering the next phase of our business model which includes the air-carrier component. We are pleased to welcome representatives of Endeavor Air, a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Airlines and United Express, operated by CommutAir to our conference and welcome their participation".

 

FSANA announced a few months ago that the association was planning to create an air-carrier working group which would explore and develop new programs and pathways to assist the carriers with their human resource requirements with respect to staffing the cockpit. The work we have been doing will result in relationships with airlines that will help FSANA member schools place their training customers into airline hiring pipelines. 

FSANA AeroChapters Program Launch Scheduled 

 

On Monday, January 12, 2015, the Flight School Association of North America (FSANA) plans to launch the associations new AeroChapters program. The program will be

supported by FSANA members who will become chapter hosts. Chapters will have chapter advisors and assistant advisors. 

 

The program offers young men and women (youth) in grades 6-12, the opportunity to learn and explore the aviation and aerospace industry. Youth members will develop their leadership skills and explore aerospace industry disciplines that include science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in their local community. 

 

The primary objectives of the AeroChapters program are:

 

1. Introduce aviation and aerospace to the youth of America through monthly activities.

 

2. Educate youth about and promote career opportunities in the aviation and aerospace industry.

 

3. Provide an opportunity for youth to develop leadership skills by leading their AeroChapter.

 

4. Teach youth about the steps to becoming a pilot.

 

5. Explore with youth the various STEM elements that help define aviation and aerospace.

 

6. Provide a pathway for youth to participate in other FSANA programs.

 

FSANA members will be receiving their detailed AeroChapters toolkits which includes how to start and operate a local chapter. The FSANA programs committee has worked collaboratively to create the new program. AeroChapters is designed to help young people become acquainted with the aviation and aerospace industry in a real time environment.

 

Chapters will offer a variety of educational and leadership opportunities which will help to create the future aerospace backbone for America.  Chapters will be lead by youth with mentorship from adult advisors. 


"This program will help drive interest in aviation and aerospace and help build critical skills for participating young people who will one day become involved with the program said Bob Rockmaker, FSANA's President and CEO. AeroChapters has the potential to someday engage with over 100,000 young people on an annual basis.

FSANA members in the following membership categories are eligible to host an AeroChapter.
  • Flight School Operator
  • Business Partner
  • Associate
Please contact Debbie Sparks, FSANA Director of Business Development at 561-767-6826 or dsparks@fsana.com
if you have questions or would like to host a chapter. Non members are welcome to contact Debbie with questions.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT 

 
The Year Ahead...

 

On behalf of the entire FSANA organization, I would like to wish you a happy and healthy 2015.

We are weeks away from our 6th Annual International Flight School Operators Conference in San Diego. It is wonderful to hear school owners, operators and managers say how wonderful it is to be able come together to learn and share information about the ever changing flight training industry.


Thanks to our members, supporting "Partners", sponsors and advertisers, we are honored to be able to grow and advance the association. One of the most exciting parts about FSANA is that our members engage collectively to help create many of our programs. We estimate that FSANA members received over $10K  in benefits and value in 2014. That figure will grow as we continue to create new and exciting programs that are focused on "The Business of Flight Training."

 

FSANA is an industry association that welcomes flight school owners, managers, supply chain vendors, chief flight instructors, assistant chief flight instructors, related support staff and others interested in the flight training industry.

 

With the launch of our new "AeroChapters" program next week, members will begin to build bridges to the youth of America. This new program will become a portal for many young people who will go on to become engaged aviation and aerospace leaders and quality workforce participants.

 

We estimate that if every flight school in America hosted an "AeroChapter", the student pilot start rate would increase by 3%-5% each year over the next decade.


FSANA is here to serve those that elect to engage. There is a saying, "You can lead the horse to water but you can not make it drink." Since launching the Aero series of programs, it is clear that flight schools that engage are reaping the benefits of their FSANA membership many times over.  

    

FSANA is a trade association designed to compliment both fixed and rotary wing flight schools. FSANA does not compete or threaten any existing program in the GA industry. The association was founded so that flight schools would have a place to call home. A FSANA member recently commented, "We are pleased that FSANA does not play favorites."

 

We are committed to working with the willing and supporting the "Business of Flight Training." The Japanese word, "Kaizen" means, constant and never ending improvement. We encourage everyone to embrace this pathway to help make each day better then the day before. Some will sit back while others forge ahead. That is the nature of the world we live in.

 

We look forward to seeing you in San Diego at the end of January. Be well. 


 --Robert Rockmaker 

AVIATION INSURANCE
 

Non-Owned Coverage and Pilot Services

by: Jason Wissmiller, Regal Aviation Insurance
www.regalaviation.com

If your flight school is like most, you will have an occasion to provide an aircraft owner with a flight review in his or her aircraft...or maybe you have been asked to ferry a customer's aircraft. When it comes to protecting the flight school for such operations, Non-Owned Hull and Liability is the necessary coverage.

What is non-owned insurance?

Non-owned hull and liability insurance is designed to cover the insured while operating an aircraft that they do not lease or own in whole or in part.

What does non-owned insurance cover?

There are two parts to the non-owned coverage - non-owned hull and non-owned liability. Non-owned hull insurance will cover the physical damage to the non-owned aircraft the flight school is operating. Non-owned liability will cover the property damage and bodily injury to third parties that results from the negligence of the flight school while operating a non-owned aircraft.

Key points to remember about non-owned insurance -
  • Non-owned coverage is liability coverage, so negligence must be proven before the non-owned policy will pay.
     
  • Non-owned coverage is not primary coverage for the aircraft the flight school is operating. Because of this it is important for the pilot operating the non-owned aircraft on behalf of the flight school to be approved on the aircraft owner's primary insurance policy.
     
  • Non-owned coverage is issued with limitations on the types of aircraft that the non-owned coverage applies to. As an example, the non-owned coverage might have the following limitation: "Any single engine land aircraft with a standard airworthiness certificate and no more than four (4) total seats". 
Insurance recommendations for providing pilot services in customer aircraft -
  1. Verify the aircraft owner has primary coverage on the aircraft
     
  2. Confirm the flight school pilot is approved on the aircraft owners primary insurance policy
     
  3. Request the aircraft owner's primary insurance company add the flight school and pilot as additional insured and provide a waiver of subrogation.
     
  4. Confirm the customer aircraft meets the definition of the non-owned aircraft under the flights schools non-owned coverage.

FLIGHT TRAINING CONFERENCE
 

Roger Cohen to Speak at Sixth Annual International Flight School Operators Conference in January

 

Not sure yet if you are going to attend the Sixth Annual International Flight School Operators Conference next month? Maybe the fact that Roger Cohen, the President and CEO of the Regional Airline Association will be speaking will convince you.

 

Roger has been a long term leader in the aviation industry and understands the importance of flight training to the airline industry. Attendees will be able to hear directly from the leader of the Regional Airline Association on what is happening in their segment of the air carrier industry. Most people inside the general aviation industry know first hand that there is and will be an ongoing need for first officers (FO's) at regional airlines. FSANA believes that over the next decade, many of the new FO's will be created at local flight schools which are dedicated to creating professional career track programs.
SIMULATORS IN TRAINING

Recent Changes for AATDs

by Tracy Cook

Vice President - Marketing and Sales
Precision Flight Controls, Inc. 

 

In December, the FAA announced proposed changes in the applicability of Advanced Aviation Training Devices in training. In keeping with the FAA's recent mandate, all Letters of Authorization now have 60 month expiration dates. All non-expiring LOAs are no longer valid. Simulator manufacturer's should have already received new LOAs and should have them available for operators.


AC 61-136A reflects other changes of note including the restoration of 20 hours toward the instrument rating (under Part 61) and 40% of the required instrument time (under Part 141) as loggable. Also, the requirement for a "view limiting device" while using an AATD for instrument training has been removed from the regulations. The time that is now loggable toward a Private Pilot Certificate under Part 141 has been increased to 15% of the required time, or 5 1/4 hours.

The FAA is now promoting that AATDs are suitable to effectively teach "flight task procedures and operational skills". They further state that AATDs are "adequate training platforms for both procedural and operational performance tasks specific to the ground and flight training requirements and the instrument proficiency check". The AC includes a greatly expanded list of training suggestions. These changes imply an acknowledgement by the FAA that the latest breed of AATD systems is much more capable than their predecessors.

Finally, the FAA recommends that instructors who intend to use an ATD for training "should obtain documented training from the manufacturer (or another operator proficient in its use)".

The official comment period for all of these changes expires later this month. If the FAA receives no detracting comments, the proposed changes will take effect.

FSANA NEWS

  

Regal Aviation Insurance 
Becomes FSANA "Partner"

 

Jason Wissmiller, President of Regal Aviation Insurance stated, "we share a common vision with FSANA and look forward to working with the association and serving the flight training community to help manage the risk segment of the business."

 

Bob Rockmaker, President & CEO of FSANA said, "the association is pleased that Regal Aviation Insurance

has elected to become a FSANA "Partner."

 

Regal  Aviation Insurance is a family owned brokerage, providing aviation insurance products to the flight training and general aviation industry."  

 

Learn more about the services of Regal Aviation Insurance at www.regalaviation.com  

FSANA NEWS 
 
Constant Contact Becomes "FSANA" Partner 
 
Constant Contact, one of the highest quality online marketing platforms in the world with a suite of online marketing tools has partnered with FSANA. Through the partnership, FSANA members will receive added benefits when they utilize the Constant Contact platform.

Debbie Sparks, Director of Business Development with FSANA stated, "The association is looking forward to offering FSANA members the opportunity to utilize program specific graphics and the tremendous horsepower that comes with the Constant Contact engine."

Constant Contact has over 1,100 employees in seven offices and serves more than a half million businesses and organizations.
MARKETING

Digital Drives Engagement, 

But Not Necessarily Brand Identity

by Perry Simpson, Digital Content Coordinator
Copyright Direct Marketing News; reprinted with permission
 

Though an effective engagement medium, digital media may not be a marketers' best option for building a brand image, and ultimately, influencing buyers.

Despite its exponential growth, digital media lacks a degree of maturity relative to other, more traditional media. Marketers will either advocate or decry digital media, and the changes it has to the field of marketing.

Tom Doctoroff, CEO at marketing agency JWT Asia Pacific, raises this debate again in his latest book Twitter is Not a Strategy, and in doing so, he points to a single area where digital media and traditional media have offered different results in brand building.

Here, Doctoroff expounds on why prioritizing digital media could have negative effects on a companies brand image, the complementary relationship between mass media and digital media, and the importance of branding in today's crowded retail space.

What are some the problems that may come with placing more importance on social media and other digital marketing channels as opposed to traditional methods?

I am an advocate of digital communications and digital media because they allow a deeper relationship with the brand that wasn't possible during the era of so-called traditional marketing. However, there is a danger in prioritizing social and other digital media over other means of top-down communications. By top-down I mean broadcast and other channels that enable both broad reach and meticulous message craftsmanship.

Focusing only on bottom-up will result in consumer confusion which directly impacts purchase intent and loyalty. More subtly, it encourages transactionalism at the expense of intimacy.

Some feel that mass media is dying, including TV; yet you argue that mass media and digital media complement each other. Can you elaborate?

Different kinds of media reach us for different reasons; and those reason compliment each other.

Analog, or traditional media, shapes our brand preference while most digital media deepens our engagement, and leads to brand loyalty. To avoid confusing consumers, engagement needs to be both authentic and constructed. Marketers must forge a paradigm that allows consumers to participate with brands while at the same time empowers marketers to manage the message and dialog.

As consumers move toward purchasing, direct and digital media should dominate. These media provide more opportunity for engagement-that is, direct interaction with a brand idea and its creative expression. Marketers have more opportunity to trigger behavioral change and increase the probability the consumer will buy a product.

In the book, you mention that engagement ideas should remain medium-neutral. With different channels reaching different audiences, how can brands best achieve this neutrality while also optimizing their marketing messages on different channels?

It all starts with the brand idea-which defines the relationship between consumers and brand. This relationship is interactive and provides the underpinning for subsequent engagement across different channels. The brand idea is then expressed by creative that invites participation. Don't invite participation for participation's sake alone.

Then through the creative platform, we must encourage a person to do something that leads to sales-learn more, buy more, use more, or [advocate] more. Each creative expression of the brand idea should be conceived with a specific behavioral objective in mind.

How important is branding in an era of digital and social media?

Branding has always been central to marketing. I think the rise of digital has unfortunately led to many marketers taking their eye off this ball. I do believe that the explosion of digital platforms has increased the importance of message consistency. Confusion alienates. Digital media is a double-edged sword. The risk of disorientation is the flipside of deeper intimacy and engagement when it comes to any media that invites participation.

To see the article as it originally appeared in Direct Marketing News, click here.
FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS
 
Superbowl TFR in Phoenix

Phoenix is high activity flight training area and this year it is also the home of the NFL Superbowl. As is to be expected, there will be a TFR. At the request of the Department of Homeland Security, the FAA will establish airspace restrictions over Super Bowl XLIX, to be played February 1, 2015, at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ.

If your staff or students will be operating in the area on February 1, 2015 make sure to get all the details.

For full information about the TFR from the FAA and the Department of Homeland Security, click here.
FEEDBACK
We want feedback from the readers of this newsletter! Tell us what is important to you
as a school owner, manager or chief flight instructor. We will share comments received
in an upcoming edition of Flight Schools News eMonthlySend your thoughts to info@fsana.com.
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in this publication

TRAINING NEWS LINKS











Inviting the Best
Aircraft Operators
in the Business to
Join Our Network.
UPCOMING EVENTS
2015 FSANA International Flight School Operators Conference
January 27-30
San Diego, CA

Flight Training
Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C.
More information to be announced.
U.S. HOUSE AND SENATE

Find Your U.S. Congressman  

 

Find Your U.S. Senator 

 

U.S. House Aviation Subcommittee 

 

U.S. Senate Aviation Subcommittee 

 

US Senate Education Committee 

 

US House Committee on Education and the Workforce 

Click on images to download sample Aero program brochures.
AeroCamp brochure
AeroParty brochure
AeroSolo brochure

FSANA Supporting Partners

V I S I O N A R Y   P A R T N E R S


AirSpruce

PilotShop.com





B U I L D E R   P A R T N E R S


   





 

L E A D E R  P A R T N E R S









 
 

The above organizations are annual supporters of the FSANA mission and work of the association and its members.

Established in 2009, the Flight School Association of North America (FSANA) is the first and only association of its kind dedicated solely to the flight training industry. FSANA represents flight schools, firms that provide products and services to the flight training or aviation industry, and other supporting partners.

FSANA MISSION: The Mission of the Flight School Association is to work in alliance with the aviation and aerospace industry; to serve and foster the flight training industry; to provide programs and services that will enhance the ability of flight schools to serve their customers and communities; and to promote best business practices which will help flight schools and their industry thrive and increase the pilot population.
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