NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE SELECTS SLATE OF BOARD NOMINEES
Early this year, in accordance with the association’s bylaws, the ICAS Board of Directors tasked the Nominations Committee with identifying prospective candidates for three openings on the ICAS Board of Directors. The Nominating Committee, including former Board member Michael Goulian and former Board Chairmen Jim Peitz, Larry Gallogly, Charles Hutchins and Harry Wardwell, finished their work earlier this week, naming current ICAS Board Chairman Chuck Newcomb from the Cleveland National Air Show, Judy Willey from the Oregon International Air Show, and Bill Roach from the Wings over Houston Air Show as the committee’s selections to fill the three spots.
Responding to constructive criticism from the membership suggesting that the composition of the Board should better reflect the make-up of the membership, the Nominating Committee unanimously selected three event organizers from among a particularly strong field of prospects. “We were lucky to have the help, perspective and experience of an unusually well-qualified Nominations Committee and they did a very thorough job of considering both the current needs of the organization and the overall balance of the Board,” said ICAS Nominating Committee Chairman Jim Peitz.
This year’s board election will be held during the ICAS Convention in Las Vegas.
EXCITEMENT BUILDS FOR 2009 ICAS CONVENTION
As summer draws to a close and air show professionals turn their attention to the off-season and 2010, the ICAS Convention is becoming a more common topic of discussion. At a recent air show, a few ICAS veterans shared their opinions and perspectives on why the ICAS Convention has become such a critical event for the industry and the people working in it. Take a look at this video.
FOUNDATION NAMES HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
The ICAS Foundation recently announced that it will welcome three new inductees into the Air Show Hall of Fame during an induction ceremony during the ICAS Convention on Wednesday, December 9 at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.
This year’s inductees -- Charlie “The Flying Farmer” Kulp, EAA Chairman and President Tom Poberezny, and the late Bobby Younkin – will join a prestigious group of air show professionals that includes Leo Loudenslager, Bob Hoover, Lincoln Beachey, Duane Cole, Harold Krier, Art Scholl, Bill Sweet, Butch Voris, Charlie Hillard, and 31 other air show legends.
Kulp performed in more than 800 air shows during a 35-year air show career before retiring at the age of 82 in October of 2007. As a founding member of the Bealeton Flying Circus in Bealeton, Virginia, Kulp was the quintessential Flying Farmer. After a convincing ground show featuring Kulp in a long gray beard and overalls, he would take control of his J-3 Cub, demonstrating his talent as one of the finest low-speed, low performance aerobatic pilots in the world.
Poberezny could qualify for the Air Show Hall of Fame as either a performer or an event organizer. For 25 years, he flew as part of the three-ship Eagle Aerobatic Team, widely recognized as the most successful civilian aerobatic team in air show history. And as president and chairman of EAA, Poberezny has nurtured and managed North America’s pre-eminent civilian air show during the last three decades.
Younkin was recognized as an outstanding pilot and talented innovator during a 30-year career that began in the mid 1970s. Flying everything from a Decathlon to a T-6 Texan to his own custom-designed, high-performance aerobatic biplane, Younkin performed for tens of millions of air show fans throughout the United States and Canada.
FAT ALBERT JATO SHOTS TO END THIS SEASON
The dramatic jet-assisted take-offs (JATO) of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels “Fat Albert” C-130 Hercules will end at the conclusion of the 2009 air show season, according to team officials. A popular element of the Blue Angels performances since 1975, the JATO take-offs will end due to a lack of JATO bottles, which have not been produced for the military in more than 30 years.
In fact, there are so few JATO bottles left for the team to use that there will be only a handful of JATO take-offs during the remainder of the season: the Sunday demonstration on September 19 at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada; the Friday night show on October 2 and the Saturday demonstration on October 3 at the MCAS Miramar Air Show in San Diego, California; the Saturday demonstration on October 17 at the NAS Oceana Air Show in Virginia Beach, Virginia; the Saturday show on October 24 at the Ft. Worth Alliance Air Show in Ft. Worth, Texas; the Saturday performance on October 31 at the Wings over Houston Air Show in Houston, Texas; and during the Friday night show on November 13 and the Saturday afternoon performance on November 14 during the Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show at NAS Pensacola in Florida.
Although the JATO launches will become a part of air show history, Fat Albert will remain an essential part of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, celebrating its 40th anniversary with the team during the 2010 air show season.
TEMPORARY HOTEL RATE REDUCTION OFFERS MEASURE OF FINANCIAL RELIEF
ICAS members interested in minimizing expenses associated with attending the annual ICAS Convention are urged to make room reservations this month. Management at the Paris Hotel has agreed to an $18 per night rate reduction for most of the convention nights. The new rate is $99 and will be automatically changed for those ICAS members who have already made their convention hotel reservations. The original rate of $117 will still apply on the weekend nights of Friday, December 4 and Saturday, December 5.
But hotel representatives recently called to remind us that the new rate will only be available to ICAS members until October 9. Thereafter, the rate will go back up to the original $117 rate on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
“We’re doing everything we can to minimize the costs associated with attending this year’s Convention,” said ICAS President John Cudahy. “We’ve kept the prices for registration and display booths at the same place they were last year, and now we’ve worked this significant sleeping room discount with the Paris Hotel management. We recognize that this will be a tough year for many of our members and, frankly, we want to do everything we can to make the decision to attend this year’s convention a little easier.”
Cudahy reminded members that everyone reserving a room at the Paris Hotel this year will automatically be included in a drawing for a free high-definition, flat screen television.
To reserve your room at the discounted rate of $117 for Friday and Saturday, and $99 for Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, click here.
PILON GETS PROMINENT ROLE IN DOCUMENTARY AND FEATURE LENGTH FILM
Carol Pilon of Third Strike Wingwalking will be featured in a Canadian Broadcasting Company documentary airing throughout Canada this fall. “Above and Beyond” will appear on successive Thursday nights at 8:00 p.m. beginning on October 1st (French version, Pour l’amour du ciel, will be shown in September). The episode featuring both Pilon and the Canadian Forces Snowbirds will be shown on Thursday, October 22. The episode is titled, “Dancing with Danger.”
Pilon and ICAS member Bryan Regan will also make a prominent appearance in the feature-length film, Amelia, due to be released in theaters throughout North America on Friday, October 23. The film, starring Hilary Swank, Ewan McGregor and Richard Gere, recounts the life of Amelia Earhart. Carol was a stunt actress playing the part of “Debbie the Wingwalker.” Regan served as a stunt double for actress Mia Wasikowska who was playing the part of pioneering aviatrix Elinor Smith, also known as the Flying Flapper of Freeport. (For those of you keeping score, even without the beard and moustache, Bryan Regan doesn’t look anything like movie actress Wasikowska. Or Elinor Smith, for that matter. But we’re told that jokes about Bryan the Flying Flapper of Freeport are fair game for the remainder of the air show season.)
CONVENTION SCHEDULING ALERT: TUESDAY IS THE BEST NIGHT TO MAKE DINNER, SHOW PLANS
To help you in your pre-convention social planning, ICAS wants to alert you to a schedule issue that may be useful for you to know now. The traditional welcome reception will be held on the evening of Sunday, December 6. A new feature – a 90-minute private concert featuring country music recording artist Aaron Tippin – will be held on the evening of Monday, December 7. And the annual Chairman’s Banquet will be held on the evening of Wednesday, December 9. So, for those of you hoping to schedule your own social functions with clients, friends or colleagues, we urge you to plan on either Saturday, December 5 or Tuesday, December 8. The Paris Hotel has an abundance of outstanding restaurants and, this year, the famed Las Vegas Strip will be right outside the hotel’s front door.
ICAS AIR BOSS ACADEMY: LIMITED SPACE STILL AVAILABLE
ICAS has scheduled its first-ever ICAS Air Boss Academy for October 1, 2 and 3 in conjunction with the MCAS Miramar Air Show in San Diego, California.
And enthusiasm for the session is exceeding our expectations. A full month out, there are just a few spots left.
Like the traditional ICAS Academy, the new ICAS Air Boss Academy will use an actual air show to provide a small number of ICAS members with a unique opportunity to get a hands-on, practical air show education. The Air Boss Academy will focus very specifically on the processes, customs, lingo, procedures, mannerisms and habits of safe, effective air show air bosses.
To reserve your spot, contact the ICAS headquarters office at 703-779-8510 or by e-mail at icas@airshows.aero.
GOLDEN KNIGHTS REMINDER
Remember that you must fill out a DD Form 2535 to request the participation of the U.S. Army Golden Knights at your air show. To have the Knights consider your show, submit a copy of your DD Form 2535 to the following address as soon as possible and not later than Tuesday, September 8: Office of the Chief of Public Affairs, United States Army, Attn: Community Relations Team, 1500 Army Pentagon, Room 1D445, Washington, DC 20310-1500, phone: (703) 697-0050 Voice, fax: (703) 695-6253. Please send just the first page of the DD Form 2535 by fax or e-mail to: fax: 910-396-9307; e-mail: paul.sachs@usaac.army.mil.
FAA MAGAZINE FOCUSES ON EXHIBITION FLYING SAFETY
FAA Aviation News is the magazine that provides the FAA with a safety policy for non-commercial general aviation pilots and mechanics. Their September/October issue just hit the streets and it focuses on exhibition flying safety, including stories on the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nevada; the challenges of competition and formation flying; and the special challenges of maintaining and flying vintage aircraft. It’s an issue of particular interest to air show professionals and we encourage you to take a look at a full pdf version of the issue by clicking here.
CRUSE KILLED IN WORLD COMPETITION QUALIFYING FLIGHT
International Aerobatic Club President, U.S. Unlimited Aerobatic Team member and Reno race pilot Vicki Cruse was killed on Saturday, August 22 in Buckingham, England, when the Edge 540 airplane she was flying appeared to suffer a mechanical problem in flight. Although she was not active in the air show community, Cruse was well known and highly respected among aerobatic competitors. The exact cause of her accident has not yet been determined.
DZIUBANEK PASSES
ICAS recently learned that Jim Dziubanek of Stepping Stones to Aviation passed away last weekend while working at an air show. For more than a decade, Stepping Stones has been introducing young children to aviation using pedal-powered, small scale replica aircraft. A superior craftsman and passionate general aviation advocate, Jim built all of the replica aircraft himself and used them at air shows to teach children the basics of flight planning, pre-flight inspections, airport traffic patterns and other introductory concepts in aviation.
TWO BELARUSIAN MILITARY PILOTS KILLED IN SU-27 ACCIDENT
Two colonels in the Belarusian air force, Alexander Morfitsky and Alexander Zhuravlevich, were killed on Sunday, August 30 when their Su-27 Flanker jet fighter failed to recover from an aerobatic maneuver during an air show in the city of Radom in Poland. This video shows the last few seconds of the flight, but investigators have not yet determined the cause of the accident.
Two weeks ago, two Russian Su-27 aircraft collided during an air show in Moscow, killing one of the pilots. Two years ago, at this same air show in Poland, two pilots from Team Zelazny, the Polish military aerobatic demonstration team, were killed in a mid-air collision.
THANK YOU TO 2009 CONVENTION SPONSORS
Many thanks to our 2009 ICAS Convention sponsors: AirShowBuzz, The Horsemen, Air Boss & Consulting, Inc., Julie Clark’s Chevron Mentor T-34, Aerostars, Air Boss, Inc., John Klatt & Air National Guard, Team Chaos, Insurance Technologies & Programs, Eddie Andreini Airshows, CAF/Tora Tora Tora, AirSupport, LLC, Shannon & Luchs Insurance Agency, Jim Peitz Aerosports, Nalls Aviation, Goulian Aerosports, Jacquie ‘B’ Airshows, Mohr Barnstorming, Team Rocket, Gordon Bowman-Jones, ValleyWide Communications, Rob Reider and OnBoard Images.
For information on how your organization might become a sponsor of the 2009 ICAS Convention, contact ICAS headquarters by phone at 703-779-8510 or by e-mail at icas@airshows.aero.
© International Council of Air Shows, Inc.
750 Miller Drive, Suite F-3
Leesburg, Virginia 20175
Phone: 703-779-8510
Website: www.airshows.aero
E-mail: icas@airshows.aero
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