Using Model Gliders to Build SSA Membership

摘要

With the average age of their members increasing, the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA), the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), and the Soaring Society of America (SSA) have begun working together to encourage young people to get involved with aviation. Many of us who now fly full-size aircraft started out with models; control line (C/L), free flight (FF) or radio controlled (R/C) gliders. In the late 1950s, the development of the low-cost, easy to start Cox engines and crash resistant plastic models went a long way towards getting kids like me into modeling. As a middle-aged guy, my interest in R/C soaring was strong, and shared by many others. I met several glider pilots who flew full-size ships as well as models, and I was fascinated by the connection between models and full-size gliders.