Western Australian Aviation College (WAAC)
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Canberra
Age: 35
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Studying at WAAC
Hey guys i'm looking at studying at WAAC (not the JAA course). Are there any current/former students that would be able to help me out with a little info on what its like (facilities, teaching methods, aircraft etc). Im currently living in canberra, so still weighing up my options. Thanks
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Singapore
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RACWA (WAAC's owner) in Serious Financial Trouble
Dear all,
For those of you who are interested in pursuing a flying course with the Royal Aero Club of Western Australia which also owns Western Australian Aviation College, you may like to know that the Club is in serious financial difficulties. Enroll at your own risk.
Extract from RACWA's newsletter Tarmac Topics, October 2010
(http://www.royalaeroclubwa.com.au/fi...T-Nov_2010.pdf)
Hello Racwa members and staff.
This is my first report as President and it might be the most important report I ever write. I urge all members to read this carefully.
If you attended the recent AGM, or reviewed our Annual report, you will already have a sense that the club is in a position of very tight liquidity. We have substantial equity in Murrayfield, but the purchases of the remainder of Murrayfield and WAAC has resulted in net debt of over $2 million. Additionally we owe our creditors a substantial amount, and many of these debts are due (refer to Annual Report page 6). We are asset rich – but we cannot easily access the equity in our property and have been operating at a loss, so we are critically short of funds.
Your new committee has been in office for less than a month and has been working to quantify the extent of the problem. Over the last few weeks, we have become progressively more concerned by the extent of the current situation. As I promised in my acceptance speech at the AGM, I am not going to sugar-coat the truth. One of the reasons we find ourselves in this situation is that management was unwilling to admit the extent of the problem. From now on, I assure you, you will be kept informed as we battle to recover the situation.
Our first action must be to arrange funds to restore our liquidity to an appropriate level. I have just signed loan documents with our bank to access a short-term overdraft for in excess of $650,000. We have no choice but to do this now, to pay our bills. There are other potential sources of cash, such as the sale of aircraft or property, but this problem is so pressing, that we are forced to take the quickest option.
You would be quite within your rights to demand an explanation as to how our club got to this point. A number of factors have contributed. External factors outside the club’s control have had an impact – the financial downturn (GFC) that took hold in 2009 has definitely had an effect. GA training and private flying volumes have both been affected negatively. More significantly however, the anticipated income from
WAAC has not eventuated. This can be attributed to a number of causes. The GFC has caused a reduction in enrolments, and a number of mid-course cancellations.
The extremely strong Australian dollar makes our product much less competitive in an international marketplace, resulting in lost sales. These problems are largely outside our control, but there have been problems within our control as well. We have not been sufficiently thorough in the management of the WAAC business. The quality of the pastoral care has been criticised, the quality of some services has
been sub-standard and courses have consistently failed to meet deadlines – these types of problems result in cost blowouts as well as dissatisfaction, cancellations
and poor testimonials. The product could have been made more competitive by restructuring, but these corrections were never made. The club was too slow
to react to the reduced intake and consequently costs exceeded income substantially for a long period of time. We have taken steps to address the immediate liquidity
issue. In the longer term, we must ensure we only embark on profitable projects, that proper business processes are defined and followed, and that our financial tracking and oversight are bulletproof. A number of exciting future possibilities exist with development at Murrayfield, and future partnerships in flying training. These must be properly managed and monitored so that we never again lose track of where our money is going. However these projects will not raise money for the club in the very near future, and we are a long way from being out of the woods yet. We are all going to have to tighten our collective belts for a number of years to come to ensure the club is on a sustainable financial footing.
The overdraft facility we have taken came with a number of onerous conditions, but given the criticality of our cash position we had no choice but to accept them. We have mortgaged Lot 11 at Murrayfield, which was previously unencumbered and we must meet an aggressive repayment schedule, set by the bank, to pay down the overdraft. If we suffer further unanticipated expenses or poor financial performance, then without the most drastic of actions, there is the very real risk of default. The bank could then foreclose and exercise its right over the mortgaged properties. I don’t need to spell out the consequences of this.
In order to reduce the risk, the committee is urgently considering options to raise cash in the immediate future, reduce expenditure and capital to sustainable levels, improve aircraft utilisation and improve cashflow in the short to medium term.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Nobody wants to impose any additional burden on members, but the very survival of Racwa might depend upon the generosity and loyalty of you, the members.
The committee is considering a number of alternatives for raising cash and/or improving Racwa’s net cash position. These include:
• Inviting RACWA members to take up an offer of debentures with a minimum value of say $5000 to $10,000 to be repaid with nominal interest in say three
years.
• A sale or part sale of Murrayfield. Murrayfield has always been touted as the insurance of Racwa’s future. Is it now time to make a claim against our insurance policy?
• A levy of say $150 to $250 on all financial ordinary members. With approximately 1200 members, this could raise as much as $200,000.
• Introduction of a minimum periodic contribution to aircraft hire – if not spent the balance is forfeited to the club e.g. minimum of $250 per quarter.
• A combination of an increase in membership fees together with an additional one-off levy.
• Sale of one or more of the poorly utilised vintage aircraft which could net more than $150,000.
• Requesting early payment of membership fees, or offering benefits for pre payment of multiple years of membership.
Please note that these are only ideas at this time. We anticipate a period of brainstorming, investigation and analysis, after which some hard decisions will be made. The solution might be a combination of a number of these alternatives. We need to do something quickly, because our debt needs to be reduced by the end of the year at the latest. One thing is certain - the club is going to ask for your assistance in the next few months. In the meantime the best thing we can all do to support the club is to hire aircraft and use the facilities.
Racwa is a proud club, with an extraordinary history. In times of difficulty in the past, the club has called on its members, and the members have always risen to the
occasion. Debentures have been issued and repaid in the past, so there is a precedent for this type of action. I have faith that our members will once again support their club, and I thank you in anticipation of your understanding and
support.
I am keen to hear from members with other ideas or feedback. As a committee we will do our best to maintain open lines of communication through this challenging
period. Working together, I am confident we can ride over this speed bump and prove that Racwa truly is a great club.
Andrew Eldridge, President
For those of you who are interested in pursuing a flying course with the Royal Aero Club of Western Australia which also owns Western Australian Aviation College, you may like to know that the Club is in serious financial difficulties. Enroll at your own risk.
Extract from RACWA's newsletter Tarmac Topics, October 2010
(http://www.royalaeroclubwa.com.au/fi...T-Nov_2010.pdf)
Hello Racwa members and staff.
This is my first report as President and it might be the most important report I ever write. I urge all members to read this carefully.
If you attended the recent AGM, or reviewed our Annual report, you will already have a sense that the club is in a position of very tight liquidity. We have substantial equity in Murrayfield, but the purchases of the remainder of Murrayfield and WAAC has resulted in net debt of over $2 million. Additionally we owe our creditors a substantial amount, and many of these debts are due (refer to Annual Report page 6). We are asset rich – but we cannot easily access the equity in our property and have been operating at a loss, so we are critically short of funds.
Your new committee has been in office for less than a month and has been working to quantify the extent of the problem. Over the last few weeks, we have become progressively more concerned by the extent of the current situation. As I promised in my acceptance speech at the AGM, I am not going to sugar-coat the truth. One of the reasons we find ourselves in this situation is that management was unwilling to admit the extent of the problem. From now on, I assure you, you will be kept informed as we battle to recover the situation.
Our first action must be to arrange funds to restore our liquidity to an appropriate level. I have just signed loan documents with our bank to access a short-term overdraft for in excess of $650,000. We have no choice but to do this now, to pay our bills. There are other potential sources of cash, such as the sale of aircraft or property, but this problem is so pressing, that we are forced to take the quickest option.
You would be quite within your rights to demand an explanation as to how our club got to this point. A number of factors have contributed. External factors outside the club’s control have had an impact – the financial downturn (GFC) that took hold in 2009 has definitely had an effect. GA training and private flying volumes have both been affected negatively. More significantly however, the anticipated income from
WAAC has not eventuated. This can be attributed to a number of causes. The GFC has caused a reduction in enrolments, and a number of mid-course cancellations.
The extremely strong Australian dollar makes our product much less competitive in an international marketplace, resulting in lost sales. These problems are largely outside our control, but there have been problems within our control as well. We have not been sufficiently thorough in the management of the WAAC business. The quality of the pastoral care has been criticised, the quality of some services has
been sub-standard and courses have consistently failed to meet deadlines – these types of problems result in cost blowouts as well as dissatisfaction, cancellations
and poor testimonials. The product could have been made more competitive by restructuring, but these corrections were never made. The club was too slow
to react to the reduced intake and consequently costs exceeded income substantially for a long period of time. We have taken steps to address the immediate liquidity
issue. In the longer term, we must ensure we only embark on profitable projects, that proper business processes are defined and followed, and that our financial tracking and oversight are bulletproof. A number of exciting future possibilities exist with development at Murrayfield, and future partnerships in flying training. These must be properly managed and monitored so that we never again lose track of where our money is going. However these projects will not raise money for the club in the very near future, and we are a long way from being out of the woods yet. We are all going to have to tighten our collective belts for a number of years to come to ensure the club is on a sustainable financial footing.
The overdraft facility we have taken came with a number of onerous conditions, but given the criticality of our cash position we had no choice but to accept them. We have mortgaged Lot 11 at Murrayfield, which was previously unencumbered and we must meet an aggressive repayment schedule, set by the bank, to pay down the overdraft. If we suffer further unanticipated expenses or poor financial performance, then without the most drastic of actions, there is the very real risk of default. The bank could then foreclose and exercise its right over the mortgaged properties. I don’t need to spell out the consequences of this.
In order to reduce the risk, the committee is urgently considering options to raise cash in the immediate future, reduce expenditure and capital to sustainable levels, improve aircraft utilisation and improve cashflow in the short to medium term.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Nobody wants to impose any additional burden on members, but the very survival of Racwa might depend upon the generosity and loyalty of you, the members.
The committee is considering a number of alternatives for raising cash and/or improving Racwa’s net cash position. These include:
• Inviting RACWA members to take up an offer of debentures with a minimum value of say $5000 to $10,000 to be repaid with nominal interest in say three
years.
• A sale or part sale of Murrayfield. Murrayfield has always been touted as the insurance of Racwa’s future. Is it now time to make a claim against our insurance policy?
• A levy of say $150 to $250 on all financial ordinary members. With approximately 1200 members, this could raise as much as $200,000.
• Introduction of a minimum periodic contribution to aircraft hire – if not spent the balance is forfeited to the club e.g. minimum of $250 per quarter.
• A combination of an increase in membership fees together with an additional one-off levy.
• Sale of one or more of the poorly utilised vintage aircraft which could net more than $150,000.
• Requesting early payment of membership fees, or offering benefits for pre payment of multiple years of membership.
Please note that these are only ideas at this time. We anticipate a period of brainstorming, investigation and analysis, after which some hard decisions will be made. The solution might be a combination of a number of these alternatives. We need to do something quickly, because our debt needs to be reduced by the end of the year at the latest. One thing is certain - the club is going to ask for your assistance in the next few months. In the meantime the best thing we can all do to support the club is to hire aircraft and use the facilities.
Racwa is a proud club, with an extraordinary history. In times of difficulty in the past, the club has called on its members, and the members have always risen to the
occasion. Debentures have been issued and repaid in the past, so there is a precedent for this type of action. I have faith that our members will once again support their club, and I thank you in anticipation of your understanding and
support.
I am keen to hear from members with other ideas or feedback. As a committee we will do our best to maintain open lines of communication through this challenging
period. Working together, I am confident we can ride over this speed bump and prove that Racwa truly is a great club.
Andrew Eldridge, President
If you are an overseas student at RACWA your money is "safe" as the Australian Government has in place procedures to protect overseas students investment (in ANY educational establishment). In the very worst case scenario of a flying school going under and the money cannot be recoverd the Australian Governemt itself will pay for the student to complete training somewhere else. This was introduced a few years ago after a number of failures of colleges (not flying ones) led to a lot of overseas students losing large sums of money. Australia's reputation overseas was being badly damaged and this was introduced to protect it.
However, if you are an Ozzie student - you're on your own!
However, if you are an Ozzie student - you're on your own!
Join Date: Nov 2010
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Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: As far away as possible from some idiots
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Gleavage
I am a spectator to the happenings at WAAC and Racwa. I would love to know why and how long ago were you advised to stay away.
Please pm me if you wish
I am a spectator to the happenings at WAAC and Racwa. I would love to know why and how long ago were you advised to stay away.
Please pm me if you wish
