What an amazing time we had at the Spokane Fly-In! The view was spectacular and the pilots were enthusiastic! While this was one of our smaller fly-ins with more than 1,500 people in attendance, the excitement was high!
Many people were eager to learn more about flying clubs. I learned that while there is no shortage of pilots in eastern Washington, there does seem to be a scarcity of clubs in that part of the country. The pilots I spoke with were looking for reasonable aircraft to fly at reasonable rates. The catch was they also wanted to drive a reasonable distance, which is a challenge in the scenic rural area. Challenge, of course, opens the doors to the opportunity for a few innovative pilots to start a club to meet the demand. My hope is that pilots, such as one I had the pleasure to meet, named Bruce, will feel inspired by speakers like Jeff Fouche, of Air Coeur Flying Club in Coeur D’alene, and Dan Mencke, of Sky Raider Flying Club in Spokane, and start a club at their local airports.
Mark your calendars for AOPA’s upcoming Fly-ins. We will be on the east coast on Oct. 4 for a Homecoming Fly-in at AOPA in Frederick, MD, and then south to St. Simons, GA on Nov. 8. Hope to see you there to talk flying clubs!
