All – There are several scholarship opportunities for both pre and post solo juniors.
So, juniors it is time to take a look and think about applying. Link to scholarship offerings is here:
Junior Soaring – Soaring Society of America | Solo a Glider at 14! (ssa.org)
A few examples:
The minutes and presentations from Saturdays Annual Membership Meeting have been posted to the Members section of the website.
Use the yellow 2-33 registration if you don’t have your own login.
Meeting Minutes | New England Soaring Association (flynesa.com)
Our special guest at NESA’s Annual Meeting was John Wood, FAA Safety Team Program Manager at the Portland, Maine FSDO, who presented Bill Batesole with the prestigious Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award, recognizing Bill’s 50+ years of support and promotion of aviation safety and accident and incident free flying.
Bill first soloed at Johnnycake Airport in CT in 1971 and received his CFI-G rating in 1975, instructing first near Waterbury, CT and later at the Schweitzer Soaring School in Elmira, NY. He graduated from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida in 1978, and began flying Piper Navajo’s and DeHaviland Twin Otters for Precision Airlines, a commuter airline based here in Springfield. In 1983 Bill was one of the early pilot hires for Federal Express, now FedEx, where over his 36 year career he flew the Airbus 310, Boeing 727, 757, 767, and 777. He has remained involved in soaring at Harris Hill, as a member of the Vintage Glider Club and long time National Soaring Museum Trustee and current Board President. Bill is a long time NESA member and has held nearly every club position. Thank you, Bill for your many years of service and volunteerism in support of soaring and aviation!
Annual Meeting presentations will be posted to flynesa.com
You can access the agenda, get instructions for the on-line meeting tool, add the meeting to your calendar (.ics) and access the Absentee ballot form (please use only if not attending in person) from the following link.
https://www.freeconferencecall.com/wall/flynesa
Everyone should have received a meeting notification a few weeks ago. Email invites with a direct connect link to the on-line meeting will be sent this week. If for any reason you do not receive an email invite you can alternatively use the above link to join.
See everyone (on-line) Saturday.
Wishing all our members and friends a safe, healthy and Happy New Year.
2021 was a fairly positive year club wise. Let’s work for an even better 2022. So, start planning your 2022 soaring goals now.
We will see everyone at the Airport in the Spring and of course on-line for the annual meeting on January 15th.
Happy New Year.
Dear NESA members and friends.
What a difference a few weeks makes. At the Board meeting seven weeks ago, the vote was to hold an in-person dinner meeting. Last week it became apparent that with the increasing COVID rates and the new Omicron variant people were no longer comfortable attending a traditional large group dinner meeting.
Instead we have scheduled an online meeting for Saturday, January 15, 2022 at 3:00pm. We hope everyone will be able to join us.
Details to follow by email. Please be on the lookout for absentee ballots and meeting invites which will be emailed soon.
Larry.
Hello NESArians…
A little fewer than half the membership has responded to the survey regarding in-person participation at an Annual Meeting in January.
Please take the survey if you haven’t already. We aren’t asking for commitments, we’re just trying to get an idea of how many members and their guests might attend.
Thanks-
Larry
A big THANK YOU! to everyone who turned out to help with the annual inspections, disassembly and put away of the club ships yesterday.
At the risk of missing someone, the put away staff included club members Bill Batesole, Greg Hunter, Mark Farley, Ben Berg and dad Tim, Sebastian, Colby von Kannewurff and his grandfather, Larry and friend John Bruno, Erik Nelson, plus Rick Sheppe from Post Mills.
Another big THANK YOU! to Andy Gelston who did the annual inspections on the 1-26 and yellow 2-33. All club gliders are good to go at the start of the 2022 season.
End of the season and glider put away is Saturday, and we need a few more volunteers to disassemble and move the three club gliders from their tiedowns to their winter hangars.
If you’re able, we’re looking at a start time of 0930 Saturday morning.
A picture from the weekend courtesy of new NESA member Rick Beck who got his first flights with Charlie Freeman on Saturday. Rick lives in Walpole, NH and is a CFI and received his glider rating in 2019.
Greg Hunter flew Saturday and found lift over a small fire and stayed up for around an hour.
One weekend left before we retire until spring. Come out and fly!