Most people in the aviation industry have never heard of the General Aviation Joint Steering Committee (GAJSC) and the work that it accomplishes. The GAJSC was formed in 1997. FSANA is one of the participating partners that collaborates behind the scenes to help improve GA safety.

In its official description, the GAJSC states:

The GAJSC is like an aviation safety warehouse which creates safety related reports which are distributed to the GAJSC's 19 participating aviation partners. The partners then take the information and share with their members and constituencies.

Bob Rockmaker, FSANA President & CEO and Tom Hoffman, Managing Editor of FAA's Safety Briefing are co-chairing a marketing and outreach working group which is developing an updated logo, tag line and related scope for the GAJSC. The work group is developing new and improved delivery process for the quality safety information generated by the GAJSC.

Industry representatives from multiple aviation segments including government, aviation associations and the private industry come together regularly to accomplish the work of the GAJSC. The GAJSC provides safety information to the businesses, training providers, agencies, and more within the aviation sector to attempt to improve the GA safety record.

A recent product that is directly relatable to the flight training community is a report on controlled flight into terrain (certainly a hot topic in many of the Airman Certification Standards documents).

You can see the Controlled Flight into Terrain (CFIT) Working Group Report is Available at: https://www.gajsc.org/2021/06/the-controlled-flight-into-terrain-cfit-working-group-report-is-available-now/

FSANA engages actively with GAJSC and encourages the flight training community to take advantage of the work and documents that are created that can be used to help inform and affect positive safety change.

If you want to know more about the GAJSC and its work, you can visit: https://www.gajsc.org/

This past week saw the U.S. House of Representatives pass an amendment that further defines the definition of flight training. The amendment is part of the 2021 Defense Authorization Act and is a part of positive legislative progress that may help re-define what is a "commercial activity" in relation to a recent interpretation o the FAA that has generated a requirement for a Letter of Deviation Authorization (LODA) for certain flight training efforts. Specifically, the LODA has become required when training is being obtained/provided in special use (most commonly Warbird) and experimental aircraft.

Not to confuse everyone from many headlines that you may have seen that seem to indicate that something had been passed that alleviates this now, the devil is in the details. What passed this week was an amendment in the U.S. House that will then refer back to the original legislation in the U.S. Senate to keep the process moving. We all remember Schoolhouse Rock How a Bill Becomes a Law, right?

There are multiple steps along this process but FSANA and many other organizations are working together to help the process keep some momentum and eventually generate a law that will direct the FAA to reclassify some of these activities in a way that will no longer require a LODA for this type of training.

We all know things in the government can take some time, but this step this week is positive movement and FSANA will keep you updated as it progresses and hopefully generates relief.

If you would like to see more details on the original U.S. Senate bill S.2458 — 117th Congress (2021-2022), click here.

FSANA thanks all of our Annual Partners, Sponsors and Exhibitors for your dedication and support to the flight training industry. The supply chain is a vital link in the flight training system and together makes flight training in America the best in class delivery system.

FSANA thanks all of the exhibitors who attended and shared their products and/or services during the 2021 Annual Flight School Operators Conference in Orlando. A new record was set with over 30 exhibitors.

FSANA is hosting the first Annual Symposium for the flight examiner community in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 26-27, 2021. Tuesday includes sessions beginning at 2:00 and an evening reception. Wednesday is packed with a full day of sessions. The symposium will bring together designated pilot examiners and those interested in becoming DPEs to share and exchange information which will lead to improvements in the examiner segment. FAA officials are planning to attend and participate.

The event warms up on Tuesday, October 26 at 2:00 pm with a session for those wanting to become DPEs plus three general sessions for everyone. The following day is comprised of a series of general sessions along with a workshop where attendees will break into smaller groups.

Topics of importance to the work of DPEs and how the flight training community work together will include:

Designated pilot examiners (DPEs) form the backbone of the airman practical testing system in America. There are over 800 DPEs in the designee system and they are responsible for providing over 40,000 airman practical tests each year.

ROOM RESERVATIONS

For Symposium dates October 26-27, 2021, reserve rooms by Monday, October 15 for a special rate of $139.00 single/double plus tax. After this date rates may be higher or rooms may not be available.

Group code: FSA

RESERVE A ROOM BY PHONE: 844-886-4136

FSANA is pleased to announce a return to its traditional winter schedule for the next International Flight School Operators Conference. During the recent conference in Orlando it was announced that the next conference will return to Las Vegas, Nevada, on February 16-18, 2022.

Returning to Bally's Hotel and Casino, attendees from the flight training community can look forward to a full conference schedule focused on the business of flight training, training safety, and industry trends.

More information will be forthcoming, but for now, save the date!

As the October 15 deadline for Regional Air Cargo Carriers Association (RACCA) scholarships approaches, applications remain open four scholarships designed to help aspiring pilots, aircraft maintenance technicians (AMT) and airline managers to pursue their careers.

“Affording an aviation education is increasingly difficult and our members and associate members are dedicated to ensuring there is funding available,” said President Stan Bernstein. “In recent years, we have helped students pursue AMT, airline management and pilot careers. Providing scholarships to deserving young people interested in a career in aviation is one of the most important efforts RACCA undertakes each year.”

RACCA, representing 50 air cargo carriers, many of which feed the FedEx, DHL and UPS networks, provides scholarships to assist in the payment of tuition, flight training, or to obtain new or additional licenses. The organization makes awards each year in November. The RACCA Aviation Scholarships were established for the purpose of promoting and assisting in pursuing aviation as a career choice and to make students aware of the opportunities in the air cargo industry.

Bernstein noted flying for a RACCA carrier is a valuable way to build flying time because it gives pilots experience in flying on a schedule, inclement weather, dealing with inflight and procedural issues surrounding cargo as well as night flying, operating in busy airspace, cockpit resource management and required recordkeeping, all of which are part of airline operations.

To qualify for the four scholarships, applicants must be:

• A college student currently enrolled in an accredited aviation program.

• A resident of the United States.

• Currently carry a Grade Point Average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.

Scholarship # 1will carry the additional requirement of obtaining a letter of introduction from an existing RACCA member or RACCA associate member since the goal is for candidates to learn about the air cargo industry. If there is a RACCA member or associate member in a candidate’s immediate area, candidates should arrange to visit their operation and become familiar with all the opportunities in the growing air cargo industry. If there is no member close, candidates should call a member and tell them who they are and ask questions about the air cargo industry.

The deadline for applications is October 15, 2021. Selections are made by November 30 and distributed on December 15 to an accredited school.

The National Aviation Hall of Fame and PBS partnered to deliver a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to an aviation/aerospace industry struggling with workforce shortages and creating pipelines for future workforce needs. With this opportunity, aviation organizations from airlines to manufacturers, MROs, and the aviation/aerospace alphabet-soup groups in Washington need to grab on to this golden opportunity to sponsor, promote, fund and otherwise support this effort because it brings PBS – the most trusted name in education – into aviation education.

But aviation/aerospace companies are not the only ones that can leverage this opportunity. Anyone working in aviation education can help scale this to a national effort and at the same time, introduce yourself as the resident aviation education expert at your local PBS station. That's what I intend to do here in Central Florida.

While elementary school programming exists, nothing has the potential of the NAHF-PBS/ThinkTV initiative delivered through their PBS-created, in-classroom curriculum; the NAHF and PBS websites; social media; PBS Kids programming; and PBS Learning Media. The program, called Learning with Will and Orv, is designed to support teachers and inspire students both in and outside the classroom and emphasizes development of aviation education at remote, rural and otherwise under-represented or under-resourced schools.

As we all pass the 20 year anniversary of September 11th, it is important that we all remain vigilant in the aviation security landscape.

Flight training providers are a key piece of the overall aviation safety and security effort in our entire aviation system. We know that flight training providers understand this and recognize the importance. We certainly hope there are never any similar events that happen, but continued vigilance in the flight training community is an important part of making that possibility less likely.

Click here to see a News Nation interview in which FSANA participated discussing the anniversary and continued security concerns.

FSANA has been collecting DPE names who have expressed a willingness to travel to help flight training providers secure practical tests since our last newsletter.

This list is published on the FSANA website and is kept up-to-date with contact information, so if you are a flight training provider who is finding a challenge of scheduling DPEs in your local area, feel free to reach out to these individuals and you may be able to have them help serve some of your local testing needs.

This effort is being made in general, but also as many DPEs have self-selected to delay a return to providing practical tests during the effects of COVID-19 periods and in some locations. FSANA will continue to hep provide this information as the flight training industry continues to move forward with both new and existing students in all phases of their training.

If you are a DPE who is not on this list but would like to be, please let us know by emailing us at info@fsana.com with your name, city, state, email and phone number and we will add you.