AOPA and Airline Pilots
 

If you are an airline pilot, are you an AOPA member? Why or why not? Just curious how the numbers look for fellow APC members.

I'll start off, yes, because the AOPA is about the only big machine trying to fight for general aviation and lobby against the government adding pain/expense (eg, user fees).

Yes, only for the legal services and enjoy browsing their magazine from time to time. Lots of rhetoric similar to vehement NRA stuff in their letters to editor section sometimes too, always a good chuckle. But like the articles on various classic aircraft the most (Stratofortress, Albatross, and others).

AOPA has been good to me since I was a student pilot. I still love GA and fly as much as my meager paycheck allows. AOPA does support GA in many different ways, and I'm glad they do. Not saying they are perfect, but at least they are trying to support and save GA. The legal protection plan is also something I still carry. Their magazine and particularly all the information on their website (which of course includes magazine archives) have been a great resource throughput my professional and personal flying life. I suspect I will use AOPA resources a bit when I am finally able to buy my own airplane.

I have been, off and on, for many years.

Off right now, probably will renew in the future. Too busy with other stuff right now, but as soon as I get rid of 4 kids, then I'll have more time to play with little airplanes.

Same with EAA. Great organization, just don't have enough time/money to play right now.

4 kids in college will do that to you...

My sailboat racing friends call me, "The poster child for birth control"!

Most of them have zero kids and go racing all the time. I'm lucky to make 3-4 regattas per year.

Such is life.

AOPA and Airline Pilots
 

Off. I got sick of the pricing going up and the bombardment of email and regular mail pieces. I fly some GA but not much.

Just a general FYI if anyone is on the fence about joining soon, if you do it before Aug 31 it's still $45/yr. But after that the regular annual membership goes to $59/yr.

I'm a member, but I can't quite forget that AOPA's lobbying interests are sometimes at odds with the airline industry's (ie user fees).

Also a member. I am also ambivalent regarding some of their lobbying policies and practices. I agree with Aviatorhi about the NRA-style rants that they have, especially about some of the policies that I somewhat disagree with.

Particularly, they seem obsessed with trying to remove the third class medical, which I think would be a bad idea. They try to frame this as though it is some big money-making endeavor for physicians, and I know of nobody who likes doing or gets "rich" off doing FAA medical consults or reviews. I occasionally will help the FAA in my specialty, and usually get paid either nothing (telephone) or a standard office visit rate. It is more out of interest and helping the airline / aviation community.

Anyway, some of AOPA's positions seem really odd, and the fact they increase rates while paying executives outlandish salaries turns me off a bit.

I'm still a member, as GA is where I started and where my heart is, and because their lobbying interests are not sometimes, but frequently, at odds with the airline industry--especially on user fees, which I personally don't believe we need and will decrease, not increase, safety.

That's not to say that they get it all right or that I agree with everything they say, but I am far more in their camp than out of it.

Does the airline industry want expansion of user fees? I doubt anybody will have their rates drop with the expansion. Besides, under the most recent 2014 $100 user fee proposal piston aircraft were still exempt. Thankfully even that was shot down.

Keep in mind that the "industry" lobby interests may not be aligned with those of an individiaul pilot, while essentially all pilots start out / end up as GA.