Dear Members,
President Trump today signed the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 into law, which contains several provisions relating to our hobby. As we previously mentioned, AMA championed some of the provisions included in the bill on behalf of our nearly 200,000 members. Other provisions will require a closer dialogue with the FAA in the months and years to come.
We wish to thank all of you for the calls and emails to members of Congress over the past couple of weeks. Congress has heard your message loud and clear. There are few voices as effective in Washington, DC as AMA members, and you should all be proud of the work we collectively achieved as a community.
With your help, there are no changes that members need to follow immediately. AMA members should continue to fly in accordance with AMA’s safety guidelines, including flights over 400 feet, and in coordination with local airports, as we have for decades.
AMA’s leadership met with the FAA’s leadership in Washington this week, and we are encouraged by the positive tone of the dialogue. The FAA recognizes AMA’s commitment to safety and has already initiated steps to lean on our institutional knowledge and work collaboratively ensuring that our hobby can continue to thrive for generations to come.
In fact, the FAA encouraged us to share this message with our members, including the guidance to maintain the status quo for now while we work collaboratively on a long-term solution, including having our safety programming formally recognized. We have established a working group with the FAA to cooperatively address issues relating to our hobby, a major achievement that gives AMA, and our members, an even stronger voice in Washington. Please continue to monitor your emails, www.modelaircraft.org/gov, Model Aviation magazine and social media for the latest information as implementation of this law is undertaken.
For our part, the passage of the FAA reauthorization bill marks a new chapter in our organization’s history, and one that has many positive benefits. For the first time ever, AMA stands to gain official recognition as a community-based organization. Meanwhile, as a community, we now have an even larger role to play in lending our decades of expertise to the FAA, helping to educate the broader recreational community and working together with the FAA to promote and enhance safety.
We will provide further updates as we embark on this new chapter of cooperation with the FAA and greater AMA leadership in Washington. Thank you for your passion, engagement and support for our beloved hobby.
Thank you,
AMA Government Relations Team