President:             Mike Close, PO Box 146, West Pennant Hills NSW 2125

     Telephone: 02 9872 6469    Fax: 02 9871 0408

Vice President:     Paul Winter 25 Jasmine Drive Mill Park VIC 3082

                             Telephone: 03 9436 0717

Secretary:             Kevin Dodd, 16 Illidge Rd Victoria Point QLD 4165

     Telephone: 07 3207 9067   Fax: 07 3207 8175

Treasurer:             Garry Anderson, PO Box 471 Devonport TAS 7310

Comp. Rules         Ross Cant, PO Box 670 Mount Lawley WA 6929

Secretary:             Telephone: 08 9227 9131

MAAA Internet:  www.maaa.asn.au

Manual of Procedures

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

The MAAA has recently released the following amended documents in the Manual of Procedures:

MAAA MOP 008 Close Fields Procedure – Amended following recent changes to MOP058 2.4GHz Policy.

MAAA MOP 028 Disciplining of Affiliate Members – This MOP forms part of the soon to be released Member Protection Policy suite of documents and required some minor upgrading. The Member Protection Policy is to replace the MAAA Code of Ethics MOP041 and is enhanced with provisions including antidiscrimination, as required by the Australian Sports Commission to comply with Australian legislation.

MAAA MOP 055 Alcohol, Drugs & Medical Condition Policy – Amended in part as per MOP028 but with additional information regarding therapeutic use of drugs in FAI competitions and the cost of providing testing facilities.

MAAA MOP 056 Safe Flying Code – An addition in the General section regarding flying near power lines.

MAAA MOP 058 2.4GHz Equipment –The addition in Appendix A of the MAAA acceptance of Multiplex M-Link equipment.

Flying Near Powerlines

Members are advised that MOP056 Safe Flying Code was recently amended to include all models flying near powerlines. During investigations with State and Territory Power Authorities into specific distances for the operations of models it became clear that these distances ranged from 100 metres to not having any policy or distance; hence the wording now in MOP056. One consistent theme did however arise from the investigation. Personnel from the Power Authorities were unanimous in the requirement that if a model should strike a power line or insulator it be reported. If damage has occurred, reporting the matter will save them a lot of time and expense should they receive warnings of power problems around the same time. It also goes without saying that if a model is caught in power lines that it be reported immediately and arrangements will be made for the correct people to retrieve the model.   

MAAA Rules Book - 2009 Version

The amended Helicopter Rules as requested by the 2009 Rules Conference have now been added to the MAAA Rules Book on the MAAA web site. www.maaa.asn.au

CIAM Subcommittee Positions

Congratulations to the MAAA President, Mike Close, who has been accepted onto the CIAM Education Subcommittee selection panel. This panel comprises of seven persons from member countries and is responsible for evaluating applications for the CIAM Aeromodelling Scholarship. This annual educational scholarship of €2000.00 is available to all Juniors. Only one person a year from each country may be nominated by that country’s NAC. For application forms and further information, contact the MAAA Secretary.

Congratulations to Joan McIntyre who has been accepted as a member of the CIAM F2 Working Subcommittee. Joan’s tireless work in National and World F2 events is renowned, and being appointed to this position is an indication of the appreciation and esteem in which Joan is held within the World F2 community. 

Secretary Election  2010

As required by MAAA Rules, MAAA Affiliated Members are advised that expressions of interest may be submitted for the position of MAAA Secretary for the three year period from June 2010.  Registrations of interest should be received by 30 January 2010. An information pack and application form will be forwarded following this date.

The Secretary position (contractual three year term) is full time, with a negotiable salary of between $50,000 and $60,000 p.a. (which is subject to an annual review) plus superannuation and work cover.

Expressions of interest should be sent to the MAAA Secretary.

From Incident Reports

One of the benefits from receiving Incident reports is our ability to use the data received to increase awareness of problems that may arise. From September 2009, the monthly MAAA Executive meeting minutes (available from your State Secretary) will include a ‘rolling yearly’ table of incidents and close out actions. It is considered that this will make incidents more ‘visible’ to members.

One incident recently dealt with by the MAAA Executive is that of a low flying model. The model struck the ground shearing off the control horns from the ailerons and elevator and bounced back in the air in a different direction under power. It continued to fly over the top of onlookers and a car park before the pilot, with limited rudder control to steer the model clear of people and vehicles, was able to shut off the engine prior to the inevitable crash. MAAA is in no way against low flying models, however both organisers of events and individuals need to assess all the risks involved at the time of such flying and should consider how low is ‘too low’ under the circumstances existing at the time, including the number and nearness of anyone else, coupled with the size, speed and agility of the model. Failure can happen at any time no matter how good the pilot’s abilities are.

63^rd MAAA Nationals Hosted by VMAA

The 63^rd Nationals are to be held in and around Albury from December 28 2009 to Wednesday 6 January 2010. Details and the program of events are available on the MAAA web site at www.maaa.asn.au as well as the VMAA web site www.vmaa.com.au. These Nationals will host Team Trials for several upcoming World Championship events so the flying promises to be exciting for competitors and spectators alike.

2010 F5B & F5D Electric World Championships

Team selection trials for the 2010 F5B & F5D Electric World Championships in the USA are scheduled to be held at the VMAA 63^rd Nationals at Albury. Dates of the event are Sunday 3 and Monday 4 January 2010. For further details contact Ray Pike stingray_f5b@westnet.com.au

2010 F2 World Championships Team Trials

63^rd MAAA Nationals (VMAA): F2A, F2B, F2C, F2D, 28 Dec 2009 to 4 Jan 2010.

2010 F4C Scale World Championships

Team selection trials for the 2010 F4C Scale World Championships in Poland are scheduled to be held at the VMAA 63^rd Nationals at Albury. Dates of the event are Thursday 31 December 2009 and Friday 1 January 2010. Entry nomination will close on 30 November 2009, and a non-refundable entry fee of $150.00 which will be applied to team expenses will be required in addition to the Nationals entry fee for those wishing to be considered for Australian team selection. Entries, together with deposits, should be sent to the VFSAA secretary, Keith Schneider at 15 Darvall Street, Donvale, Vic, 3111.

2011 F1A, B & C  World Championship Team Trials

Multiple Team Trials for this event to be hosted by Argentina in early 2011 are programmed as follows:

Proposed Events Program

63^rd Nationals

F1A  Wed 30^th Dec 2009            Springhurst

F1B  Sun 3^rd Jan 2010                Springhurst       

F1C  Tue 29^th Dec 2009               Springhurst

Southern Cross Cup

F1A      Tue 30^th Mar 2010          Narrandera

F1B      Mon 29^th Mar 2010         Narrandera

F1C      Tue 30^th Mar 2010          Narrandera

AFFS Championships

F1A      Sat 3^rd Apr 2010            Narrandera

F1B      Fri 2^nd Apr 2010             Narrandera

F1C      Sat 3^rd Apr 2010            Narrandera

Qld State Championships

F1A      29^th May 2010    Dalby

F1B      30^th May 2010    Dalby

F1C      14^th Mar 2010     Dalby

Victorian State Championships

F1A, F1B and F1C flown over 8-9-10 May 2010

Location tentatively Springhurst

Western Australia State Championships

F1A      16^th May 2010                Meckering

F1B      24^th Jul 2010                  Meckering

F1C      25^th Jul 2010                  Meckering

Additional Team Selection event for F1A classes

5^th to 7^th Jun 2010                      Meckering

NSW State Championships.

No firm date yet but likely to be long weekend 12^th, 13^th and 14^th of June 2010.  The event is usually held on the Queen’s Birthday weekend.  Location will be Narrandera or Springhurst

International Events

All these events are to be F1A, F1B and F1C classes open to all flyers, sanctioned by CIAM and published on the CIAM website, flown to FAI rules and conducted within the selection period.

World / Continental Championships and Trans Tasman Events Calendar