Ok, I guess we need some education for new members.
Migration 1-7 Were in Duluth, MN Always Jun-Jul
M8 = Dayton, OH Jun
M9 = Colorado, Springs Jun
M10 = Duluth, MN Jun
M11 = Mobile, AL Jun
M12 = Las Vegas, NV Oct
M13 = Addison, TX Sept
The criteria for a location as Craig has defined them:
Airport able to park 300+ Cirrus
Hotel(s) able to house 400+
Convention Center to handle 400+
Instrument approaches
Cirrus Service Center in the area
My idea several years ago for a DC Migration is here. I don’t think DCA landing is a good idea. FBO is not ready to handle Cirrus. I do think that we could work with the FAA and security agencies to have a conga line flight from IAD through the SFRA and FRZ like was done for the Freedom Flight last year. There would be many security requirements. All would have to be cleared. Aircraft would have to be inspected and sealed the night before. An air Marshall or FAA employee would have to be in each aircraft. AF and CG would have to be in the area to handle any wayward aircraft. Emergency contingencies like we had for freedom flight would have to be developed. What to do if you have a maintenance problem, communications problem, etc. Altitude would have to be 1500 ft. etc. The way to sell this is to get FAA and NTSB support as a safety and training event. Use it to educate the FAA and NTSB workforce on light GA and Cirrus aircraft. I would open the idea with the Deputy FAA Administrator who just got his Private Pilot License. Would use Inhofe and Graves and other Pilot Congressman/Senators to put pressure to do the event. Invite all of them on the flight and to banquet dinner.
I agree, that while it has appeal and cache - DCA is not going to happen in the near term. Now, with that said, things can and do change over time, but, the current security posture, is such that ANY activity that is outside the current profile is IMMEDIATELY marked as NO GO…by the security teams. As you said, we could work WITH the various alphabet agencies to facilitate some level of special fly over - but, again, that would be a tough undertaking, with only a probable outcome. I am willing to help if/when we are ready to move forward.
Many of us do not have the useful load to put another passenger on board. Probably taking off over gross would not be a great idea with an FAA employee on board. [:)]
What’s your useful load? Even the fattest of Turbos should have enough payload to fill the seats for a 30 minute flight, right? Do we need to ask the air marshals to go on a diet in preparation?
Piggy back on OSH. Many of us will be in the region…
There’s a special airport next to OSH that is very symbolic to Cirrus… I’ve been there, just forgot the name … 1st home airport for Cirrus .
I’ll bet he’s worried that Sanjay would say that Savannah would also tempt & “induce” him and thereby kill the notion. A whole Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil thing.
It needs to be in Nashville. That’s the best location, and plus all of us Nashvillians got screwed when the last one inexplicably moved from Nashville.
It looks like you have similar requirements to what CJP uses. We need all of our room nights in one hotel, and won’t use multiple hotels. We also look at the amount of convention square footage in the hotel, and have a minimum value that we require.
Because of that, Santa Fe, Monterey, and other nice venues simply won’t work.
Vegas is great too… but with NBAA there every other year, a lot of members already get their fill of Vegas, and would prefer elsewhere.
My belief is that you need focus on two things for a convention:
Content for the owners/pilots. If the schedule is loaded with great educational topics, speakers, etc… the owner/pilots will get what they came for. And frankly, all they will see between 8am and 5pm is the inside of a conference room. When I went to the Greenbrier in 2014, I didn’t have time to do a single “activity” at the resort. There was too much airplane stuff happening. It could have been in Allentown, PA and I would not have cared. My opinion only: If there is a bunch of golf, tennis, and other non-flying stuff for the pilots, you move away from the core mission of the convention. I’m there to learn to be better, and meet other kindred spirits that feel the same way about aviation.
Location for the spouses, and some content. Since many do not fly, and may not really care about a course in Single Pilot Resource Management, what are you planning that will get them excited? CJP’s keynote speaker in 2015 was Anousheh Ansari: she was as popular and well received by the non-flying spouses as she was by the pilots. We also had Miracle on the Hudson flight attendant Doreen Welsh speak. It was a packed crowd with most non-flying spouses in attendance. We also had a celebrity chef experience for just the spouses, hosted by Guy Fieri and Textron Aviation. Talk about a popular event with the ladies!! The hardest part is raising the bar for the next year.
to the best of my recollection, it was not “inexplicably moved” when we contacted the hotels, there was as they say “no room at the Inn” - there simply was no availability at a time that was acceptable. As it was, Migration was in Sept because that was when we could get the venue - NOT the first choice.
Believe me - the intention was to have it in Nashville - and we scrambled to find a location when it was recognized that there simply was no “room at the inn” in Nashville. As you are aware, it had already been announced that Nashville was the location. The migration committee, started putting our feelers, and John Y and I did some checking in the DC area - and as you are aware, the Dallas location turned out the winner.
I KNOW we intend to come to Nashville - all a matter of logistics - I am sure that Tim V will have it on the short list.
Recommend you look at the M13 web site. It shows in detail how a COPA migration is organized. https://www.regonline.com/COPAM13 It is jammed pack with content. There are pre and sometimes post events that are optional. Like at M12 in Las Vegas, we went to the Red Bull Air Race.
FYI, Craig Albright I am told is leading M14 in Duluth. I am sure that M14 will have significant info on the SF50 if it is certified. I am sure Cirrus has some great plans for us.
Just for others, AEA (Aircraft Electronics Association) like to go to Gaylor Resorts around the country. They have done DC, Dallas, Nashville. This year Orlando.
“Capital” idea, John! The Gaylord is just a stone’s throw from two of the DC3: Potomac & Hyde Fields. Neither (nor together) able to “accommodate 300 Cirri,” but the FRZ Security Clearance will keep out the riff-raff and the unwashed can park at Dulles. I’ll bet that with a little advanced notice, the wily David Wartofsky could park about 30-40 interlopers on the grass.
Situated on the Harbor with good access to all the DC happenings, the Gaylord would be a happy choice.
Personally, I would like to do it in Northern Virginia so we are close to the NTSB Training Center and Udvar Hazy for Migration Banquet. NTSB Traning Director said he would do a special event for us and include the TWA 800 tour. They have a 200 seat auditorium so it could be a great Pre-Migration event.
I think the Landsdowne Resort or the Westfields Marriott Resort would be better and more convenient. Also with the silver line, getting to downtown from the area is much easier.
Of course I am bias as I live on that side of the Puzzle Palace.
Would be cool if we could do the DC3 process as part of migration at the migration site. Then everyone that wanted to go to the DC3 could do so. Not as cool as flying through the FRZ, but a nice alternative. Of course that would require much work or a customer service organization. [:D]
They do a fascinating presentation on Flight 800 at Warren, which can last up to 4 hours. That was their biggest investigation, by far. But the reconstructed remains are absolutely haunting.
They also have a shorter talk on the elements of a GA investigation given by their field staff. Both are sobering.
That was his idea with the TWA 800 tour after. I am sure Member Weener would participate schedule permitting. They just did a really cool one on ATC.
The real challenge in planning these events is trying to Gage/guess at how many are going to come. I would not even recommend a DC event unless 500+ attendees would be interested. We have been hovering around 400 including vendors so about 300 attendees.
