Well, on the basis of some of the posts here I've decided to join but how about one of the AOPA hierarchy coming on PPRuNe and telling us what they are about? Or is that classified as advertising?

I would like to endorse all the "pro" comments. The need for people to fight on our behalf has never been greater. The Aircrew ID card is invaluable. I have used for, inter alia, blagging a room at the Dallas Hilton for only $40.

Also the quarterly magazine is now much improved, having become the new home of most of Pilot's old editorial staff.

Normal price is only $35 :D :D

I have found both the US and the UK AOPA to offer outstanding quality of advice and service levels that the CAA would do well to emulate. Whenever I wantd to find out about getting permission to land at some obscure military airfield in some obscure country they always came up with the correct information in next to no time. They are also there for you if you ever get into any legal turbulence as well. I bet the people running these organisations are not getting rich on it, let them at least feel appreciated!

AOPA coming on here to comment on this and that ... well, Martin Robinson did put in an appearance a while ago on another forum, and got enough GBH of the headset to last a lifetime. Mostly about people's pet peeves.

You never know, he might decide to put in an appearance here; if he does, I'd suggest we all try to keep it civilised: the result might be beneficial to all of us, in terms of exchange of opinions, priorities, etc.

I keep getting prods to contribute to this thread (not from AOPA!)

Believing that it is for the reader/member/PPRuNe poster to make any truly valid comment on either 'General Aviation' or AOPA's worth, I will confine myself to a couple of factual observations:

1. the revamped magazine is bimonthly, rather than quarterly and

2. none of us -- old 'Pilot' hands working on the magazine, or even AOPA executives -- are getting rich, for sure!

As a card carying member of UK AOPA it has stood me in good stead over the years, but sat in the back rather then in the front!

1. pre euro, they had a discount on duty free in Dublin, and I am still drinking the stuff, so membership fee paid there. Used it for others who were flying with me at the time so even more saved.
- aslo as stated above used to get discounts on hotel rooms and car hire
2. In other parts of the world got me in to places that the normal SLF would not be allowed. ( mainly the lounges when traveling or crew rooms esp in Africa).

3. pre 11 Sept, In the US. they took one look at the card and let you wander all over the place. Miami, Boston and San Jose but Dallas was the best, got on the staff bus between gates rather than walk.

but to bring it up to date, its 30 mins flying time and hotel discounts in Europe are few and far between but are useful.


but as to flying ...... I think it needs more members to gain a voice, it needs to communicate what it does.

I was heavily involved in the PFA for years and had frequent dealings with AOPA-UK as both organisations are doing far more behind the scenes that most realise. I am a firm believer in “hanging together or we will all hang separately” In the UK the CAA does consult, and listens to, both organisations on aviation issues
I moved to Ireland 18 months ago. PFA has little influence and AOPA Ireland seems to have self destructed in a welter of writs. I now feel extremely vulnerable, as there seems to be no voice for general aviation in this state.
I would advocate anyone remotely interested in any branch of aviation to join the organisation which most seems to match his or her interests. A single letter to a government minister rarely gets attention. A body or bodies, which represents over 30,000 people, will get heard.

I was due to go to Florida to finish off my PPL 2 weeks after Sept 11. AOPA-US kept everyone very well infomed and lobbied the goverment to allow GA back into the air again. In the end I only had to delay going out by a week but without their hard work it could have been much longer.

When I got the first thing I did was add my support to AOPA-UK by joining.

I sometimes feel guilty about not doing more to support the individual battles that airfields have to fight in order to survive. And this is only one of the issues facing GA today. I tell myself that there are only 24 hours in a day and I can't do everything. And I happily pay my DD to AOPA and PFA each year, knowing that it is the very least I can do towards being able to still fly as a private pilot in the UK in years to come.

Every pilot should join AOPA. Join today if you haven't already.

I have never been a member of AOPA as I perceive it to mainly support the Flying Training industry with some negative side effects for future and current GA PPLs.
I wonder why we now need fully commercial instructors and whether the Nppl would have been needed if the continual growth in PPL hours requirement had not threatened the future of GA.
I would like to think that non-commercial Nppl instructors are being actively lobbied for along with Nppl instruction from unlicenced airfields.
If the latter is so then perhaps I'll join as GA needs more recruits.

UK AOPA seems to me to be a truly worthwhile organisation. To compare it with US AOPA is not useful as it has only about 8000 members (this from memory only so please correct me if you know differently) while US AOPA has hundreds of thousands of members. US AOPA therefore can afford to provide considerable benefits and has a large fully salaried staff. Most of UK AOPA's staff are volunteers and still they do a great job of representing GA in general and fighting for us all. Not much thanks they get for it either. Remember that government take a lot more notice of an organisation like AOPA than they do of individuals even quite a lot of individuals.

Finally - don't sneer at the aircrew card. Having flown around Continental Europe and North Africa quite a bit. I have found the card to be absolutely invaluable. For example in Basle airport I had great trouble in getting back to my tiny aircraft through security. A passport was not enough. The next time I visited Basle I had an AOPA aircrew card with my photo on it and was immediately hurried through and was provided with instant, free courtesy travel to the aircraft.

Many hotels near airports will give immediate aircrew discounts on production of the card. I know because I have done it.

In Morocco the card was also useful. In fact I recommend a shirt with epaulettes as well!!

By the way I have nothing to do with AOPA apart from being a member.

B.

AOPA

I must have got that 8000 wrong!! I'll phone them tomorrow to ask

B.

I have just spoken to UK AOPA and to US AOPA. The facts are interesting.

UK has about 5500 members or thereabouts and as I said above does a good job with very limited resources.

US has about 358,000 members and is a powerful lobbying organisation with very considerable resources.

money
 

so using those numbers and a little web surfing

UK AOPA 5500 at £55 per year is about £300k ( $ 454k)
US AOPA 358000 at $39 per year is about £9.3M ($ 14M)

Hmmm now I wonder who has the biggest clout
I suppose I could have looked at the accounts but I think this is near enough


back to work cos no matter what ratings you have its too wet to take the cover off the plane