MODEL AERONAUTICAL

MODEL AERONAUTICAL

ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA INC.

Newsletter

NO. 1/2006

Manual of Procedures

The Manual of Procedures is a “live” document and is continually being updated. Please check the M.A.A.A. web site form time to time to ensure that you are aware of the latest editions of the documents.

At the 2005 M.A.A.A. Council Conference it was decided to allow, on a trial basis, model rocketry within the M.A.A.A. Limitations were placed on the size of rockets that would be allowed to operate under the M.A.A.A. umbrella. The following motion to allow rocketry was passed;

“The M.A.A.A. will, for a trial period of approximately one year, concluding on June 30 2006, allow Model Rocketry to be included under its umbrella subject to the following mandatory conditions:-

1. The M.A.A.A. Insurance Company formally confirm that the Policies will cover rocketry and any addition requirements imposed will be adhered to

2. Only rockets that conform to FAI Class S requirements, that is up to size F motors, and using commercially available motors, will be allowed.

3. Model rocketry will only be allowed at the fields of current M.A.A.A. aircraft clubs and the M.A.A.A. Executive are required to formally approve the operation of rockets prior to their introduction at each site.

4. Model rocketry shall conform to all Commonwealth, and the relevant State, legislation, including CASR 1998 Part 101 and Explosive and Mines legislation.

5. All conditions within the M.A.A.A. MOP's that can be applied to model rocketry will apply, even if these exceed other requirements for rocketry.

6. In addition the operation of model rocketry shall conform the CASR 1998 Advisory Circular AC 101-2(0) unless overridden by M.A.A.A. MOP's.

A Sub Committee of rocketry specialists shall be formed, including persons from outside the M.A.A.A. The sub committee shall be provided with Terms of Reference by the M.A.A.A. Executive and shall provide final proposals for all Procedures and the required changes to the M.A.A.A. Rules to formally incorporate rocketry within the M.A.A.A. These will be considered at the next Annual Council Conference scheduled for the end of May 2006.”

Therefore model rocketry is now possible under the M.A.A.A. umbrella but with the conditions as noted above.

A Rocketry sub-committee has been formed and is currently working on preparing documents/rules for rocketry that is compatible with and consistent to the M.A.A.A. Manual of Procedures. These will be considered at the next Council Conference

Team Trials – 2007 World Championships

Although it seems a long time away, Special Interest Groups will soon be getting ready to run team trials for places in 2007 World Championship teams. The world championships will be run for the following disciplines in 2007;

If you are interested in trying to gain a place in any of these teams you should make contact with the relevant Special Interest Groups to find out when and where the team trials will be held.

The dates and times of team trials will be published in this Newsletter when they are available. However, due to the infrequent publishing of this Newsletter you may not get sufficient notice via this publication. The Special Interest Groups are the ones that organise the team trials so they will have the latest information.

Nominations for M.A.A.A. President & Competition Rules Secretary

The M.A.A.A. President and Competition Rules Secretary three-year terms conclude at the M.A.A.A. Annual Conference in May 2006 and an election for the positions will be held at that Conference.

The position of M.A.A.A. President is very prestigious and requires a considerable commitment in terms of time and energy. He/she is responsible for the day to day running of the M.A.A.A. and implementing the policies and direction of the M.A.A.A. Council. The President chairs all meetings of the M.A.A.A. Council and Executive. The Executive generally meet monthly via a telephone link. These meetings usually last about 2 hours.

The President closely liases with other members of the Executive and in particular, the Federal Secretary. The Federal Secretary, an employee of the M.A.A.A., reports to the President. It would be reasonable to expect that the President would have to devote about 1.5 hours per day to M.A.A.A. duties. It is considered essential that persons wishing to nominate for the position be very computer literate as all business between the President and Executive is via computers and the Internet.

Currently, no honorarium is paid but expenses are reimbursed. The President is expected to attend National Championships and any World and Continental Championships that are held in Australia.

Duties of the Competition Rules Secretary include, examination and ratification or rejection of Australian record claims, providing advice in respect to technical aspects of the F.A.I. Sporting Code and the maintenance of M.A.A.A Official Competition Rules and Instructions. Currently, no honorarium is paid but expenses are reimbursed.

Nominations are called for from Affiliate Members of the M.A.A.A. for the positions of M.A.A.A. President and Competition Rules Secretary. Both positions are for three-year terms

Nominations for the each of the positions shall be in writing signed by two Affiliate Members of the Association accompanied by the written consent of the candidate (which may be endorsed on the nomination) and must be delivered to the Federal Secretary at the above address by March 3^rd 2006.

At the 2003 Council meeting it was decided to bring the classification of Junior Member in line with the membership year. A person that turns 18 years of age on or after July 1 will be considered a Junior Member for that membership year. For example, if a person turns 18 on or after July 1^st 2005, then they will be a junior member for the 2005/06 membership year. The junior classification for local and international competitions is still for the calendar year starting January 1^st.

2006 Nationals

The 2006 Nationals will be held in S.A. from April 18 to 26. Details, including entry forms and program are on the M.A.A.A. web site, www.maaa.asn.au

The M.A.A.A. Glider Sub-committee Chairman has advised that the team trial for the 2007 F3B World Championships will be held at the 2006 Nationals in S.A. Members interested in competing for a place in the 2007 F3B team should contact their State Glider Special Interest Group or the Gliding web site www.lsfaustralia.org.au

The M.A.A.A. Council at its 2005 Conference determined that the excess for third party claims. The amount to be paid by the Affiliate Member or Association on which the claim is made, for the 2005/06 year is $250 for claims arising out of model aircraft and $500 for claims resulting from rocketry. The total excess that the M.A.A.A. has to pay for each and every claim is actually $5,000 for model aircraft claims and $10,000 for rocketry.

This means that for each model aircraft accidents claim the Affiliate Member, or association, on whom the claim is made, has to pay the first $250. The M.A.A.A. then pays up to the next $4,750 and then the insurance company starts to pay. The amounts for model rockets are double.

Naturally the M.A.A.A. could not afford to pay these large excesses out of its reserves. To make provision for the payment of this large excess an additional $5 per members was included in the fees. The amount collected will be put into a fund to cover the excess payments and hopefully will not be fully used and so will gradually build so that in the future we can look at increasing the excess to try to get lower insurance costs.

The excess on Personal Accident claims is 7 days for weekly benefits and $50 for all other losses.

As you can see, it is to everyone’s benefit to work toward minimising insurance claims and hence the amount we have to pay out on excesses. The best method to reduce claims is for us all to fly and operate safely. Please take an active interest in safety and set a good example yourself. A good claims record is very important in obtaining coverage next year.

Who Pays the Excess?

Consider the scenario. Student is under instruction and gets into difficulties and hands the transmitter to the instructor who struggles to regain control but fails to. The model crashes into the side of vehicle in the car park and causes significant damage.

A claim will be made on the M.A.A.A. Insurance policy. There is a $250 excess payable but who pays? The student claims the instructor was in “control” of the model therefore he should pay. The instructor claims that he was just helping out and he should not be responsible for the $250 as it was not his model.

Does your club have a policy as to who is responsible to pays the excess in these types of situations? If not then I strongly suggest that you get one, now. I have seen a situation as described above cause enormous damage in clubs. It is better to have a rule, such as “the owner of the aircraft is the responsible party”. Do not wait until it happens and then try to sort out the mess. It is better to be prepared.

Replacement M.A.A.A. Membership Card

Due to the large number of Members requesting replacement M.A.A.A. Membership cards because they “lost it” or “want my new flying rating on it” etc the Executive have decided to introduce a $5-00 charge for replacement cards issued during the membership year.

Any member requesting a replacement M.A.A.A. Membership card due to it being lost or destroyed or to have their wings status shown etc will be required to pay $5-00 to the M.A.A.A. Requests for Membership Cards to be re-printed can be submitted to the M.A.A.A. Sec with the $5-00 fee. Cards will be sent directly back to the Member. Proof will be required in the case of change of flying rating.