AirVenture 2018 Recap

[MichaelFarley56]

Hello Everyone,

I hope everyone has made it home safely from an outstanding EAA AirVenture 2018! Once again, the leadership of the Sonex Builders and Pilots Foundation hosted our annual Foundation meeting on Wednesday and were met with a good turnout of approximately 30-35 attendees and a discussion that lasted approximately an hour. I’d like to offer up some pointers and notes that were discussed during the meeting so members of the Sonex community know what all was discussed.

- First off, congratulations to Board of Director Mike Singleton for being re-elected for another term on the Board. Mike also currently serves as the Foundation’s Vice President and has helped many builders with the first flights of their Sonexes. Thanks Mike!

- The second topic of discussion centered on the current lack of transition training and what can be done about it. A potential new plan was discussed which essentially takes the T-Flight Transition Training Syllabus and modifies it for generic transition training use in similar make and model aircraft. Basically, the Foundation wants to take the T-Flight program syllabus and make it a little more comprehensive and informative for people who may be getting Sonex transition training in other similar airplanes (Vans RV’s, Zenith’s, SLSA’s such as Gobash’s and Piper Sport’s and similar were pointed out as examples). The hope is we can get people as useful training as possible and hopefully give CFI’s a good starting point to prepare owners for flying in Sonexes. Stay tuned for more updates soon on this project.

- Foundation member and SonexFlight Podcast owner Jeff Shultz spent some time discussing his proposed plan of creating a Mentorship Program, where experienced Sonex builders could be paired with new local builders who are just starting on their own projects. This isn’t meant to replace official Tech Counselor visits, but having an experienced local Sonex builder to help people just starting on their projects seem to be an idea people were very interested in. The hope would be to create a list of qualified and willing mentors and have a database on the Foundation website to use as a reference for builders, and hopefully include situations where one mentor may be able to help multiple new builders in their area. If anyone has an interest in helping with this program by being a Mentor, please let us know so that we can create a list of qualified participants for the program.

That mostly completed the discussion topics of the meeting. Again, it seemed to be very well received and appreciated by those in attendance.

I'd also like to offer a special note of thanks to Sonex builder, Oshkosh resident and all around great guy Mr. Wayne Daniels for once again hosting our Wednesday evening Sonex Foundation cookout at his house. Around 90-100 people attended and we as a community all owe Wayne a huge thanks for hosting us! Thank you Wayne for everything you do!

I think this about does it for now folks! I hope everyone is enjoying a great summer and getting a lot of good flying in!

Thank you,
Mike Farley