Latest Updates
- President's Fly-in Cancelled.
- Association's Constitution has been updated
Who Are We
The Airtourer Association is a group of enthusiasts for the Australian designed Airtourer Aircraft. A related but separate organisation is the Airtourer Co-operative which owns the intellectual property of the Airtourer design and is responsible for ongoing airworthiness. The Airtourer Co-operative has the support of the Airtourer Association and is included in the web site. Please explore our site and share our enthusiasm for a great little aeroplane.
A Brief Update from the President
Welcome from the Corona Capital of Australia, otherwise known as Victoria!
The plague has affected everyone in large and small ways including the Airtourer Association program for 2020. At the end of last year it was very satisfying to be able to publish a full programme covering all of the coming year. Who could have predicted what has eventuated? We managed to hold the Convention and AGM at Parkes in March, unfortunately since then everything has stopped. More concerning is that remaining events are all in the pariah state.
The situation from the Airtourer Association's perspective is:
- The current closure of state borders effectively excludes a traditional “national” event for the present.
- The 2020 program and next year’s AGM are all planned for Victoria. Even if the Victorian restrictions allowed these to go ahead other states may not be able to attend.
- The association plans to postpone events forward into next year, or whenever. Nothing will be wasted, just delayed.
President's Fly-in, Echuca 9-11 October 2020 is cancelled
Given that Victoria is currently closed for business and the variety of border restrictions that are in place across the country, the Events Committee has no option but to cancel the President's Fly In.
However, all may not be lost. Depending on the next directive from Spring St we may be able to have an informal get together on that weekend. We will consider our options after 13th September when we know a bit more about what may be possible but we are optimistic that at least members based in regional Victoria may be able to catch up.
If it is feasible to do something we will place an update on the website and will email you all.
Members outside of Victoria could not understand how catastrophic the mismanagement of the pandemic has been down here and the ruinous effect it is having on lives and business. To Victorian members, all I can say is it is not your fault.
For those of you in the "Land of the Free", don't wait for us in Victoria, feel free to catch up in your local area or wherever you are allowed to go. If you want to organise something let us know and we can at least get the word out on the website and by email.
Mike Fisher
President
Vale
Richard "Dick" Sims
The Airtourer community farewelled one of the 'originals' on Friday 21 August 2020. Dick Sims passed away just after his 90th birthday and despite the COVID-19 restrictions his friends were able to attend via an internet video link.
Proposed Updates to the Association's Constitution
The current constitution has served the association well, however the underlying legislation was updated in 2009 and the committee believes it is appropriate to update the constitution to align with the current Act. The draft of the proposed constitution is based on the model rules which form part of the regulations. This ensures that it complies with the Act. Nevertheless, some changes are proposed by the committee to better serve the association's requirements. These changes all comply with the Act and are highlighted in red in the draft.
The Airtourer Association Convention for 2020 got underway on Friday 20th March in spite of increasing restrictions due to the Covid-19 virus. Updates on the activities will be posted here over the weekend, the following photos are from Friday at Parkes Aerodrome.
The Arrivals
The Airtourers, (and a couple of ring-ins), safely tied down as the setting sun throws a long shadow of the photographer.
The weather is very different from our last, unplanned, visit a year ago when five Airtourers diverted into Parkes on their way to Orange due to thunderstorms.
