The Haught: Corner
Here we are in the "rounding third and heading for home" spot in the magazine. After appearing in numerous locations throughout MA, this column finally appears to have found a home. But what a shock it must be for those who start reading at the back of the magazine!
It's election time, and with the office of president opening up, AMA will be facing a significant change in leadership, regardless of the election winner.
It's been nine years since Don Lowe became AMA president, and Don has decided not to run for a fourth term. It seemed proper to sit down with Don and reflect on his years in office.
Q&A with Don Lowe
Q: What is the most significant accomplishment of your years as president? A: That's easy: the establishment of the National Flying Site. It's certainly the most visible accomplishment. I believe it will provide impetus for the growth and nourishment of AMA; we'll see in the near future.
Q: The site has nearly a full plate of events now; does it surprise you that the schedule has filled so quickly? A: No, I always expected that it would be used a lot.
Q: What's the biggest disappointment of the past nine years? A: Our curtailed growth. When I took office we were growing at a rapid pace—8–10% per year. But since 1993, we've been pretty much at zero growth; we really don't know why. I think it's just a hitch in the curve, though.
Q: How is AMA different today than when you took office? A: Not a whole lot. We are a bit more sophisticated; we provide better services. We've learned that sometimes the "old ways" don't always work too well. We've looked hard at ways to make things better, and we are better able to anticipate problems now. We also have improved our insurance program, and that's a definite plus.
Q: What is your vision of AMA's future? A: After we get over the hump from the move to Muncie, there are a lot of things to be done.
We need to do more in the educational field in general. Developing educational programs should be a priority, and I think some of our new initiatives will pay off. It's an evolutionary thing. Having Bob Underwood (Education Director, and former teacher) involved in this process is important.
We need to do things that will reveal knowledge. Education and R&D (research and development) can illuminate the hobby. We should have more symposia, meetings, and related gatherings here in Muncie.
We also need to do more for the local modeler in terms of flying-site support. We need to expand the scope of our hands-on help. We can't finance a site for everyone, but we can provide information and how-to materials.
I would also like to see us bring the clubs more into the mainstream of AMA business. European countries, for instance, do this with their aero clubs. The SIGs (Special Interest Groups) should be more involved, too—maybe they should be represented on the Executive Council in some way.
AMA needs to become more involved with safety aspects of the hobby. There should be no arbitrary limits; we can't do it by intuition. In general, we need to be more scientific in the way we do things.
It's a two-edged sword; we want to push technology, but we must have safety constraints. We need to come to grips with safety.
It's a synergistic system; I want AMA to grow. I want to see more people of all ages become involved, because it's a great hobby.
Highlights of the vision (summary):
- Expand educational programs and initiatives, leveraging expertise like the Education Director.
- Increase R&D, symposia, and meetings to illuminate and advance the hobby.
- Provide more hands-on flying-site support and how-to resources for local modelers.
- Integrate clubs and SIGs more directly into AMA governance.
- Approach safety with scientific methods and clear constraints while promoting technological progress.
Q: Any advice for your successor? A: Wear a flak jacket! Seriously, you must be sympathetic. Listen to people, and be responsive—that's what you're in business for. If you don't provide services, you won't be in business. You must use your best judgment, and be open-minded and logical. Do the best you can; give it an honest effort.
Q: What are your plans after leaving office? A: I'll probably work on the Safety Committee and a few other things. Clara and I will also have more time to travel and do a few other things we want to do. I don't have any desire to compete in Pattern anymore—I'm 70 years old—but I'd like to race a T-6, if I could get one put together!
Jim Haught Managing Editor
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
