Aviation Organizations

There are many aviation organizations out there. Many of these organizations are well known for taking a strong stance on their beliefs of what aviation should be. They cover the industry from general aviation all of the way to the airline pilots and beyond. Aviation organizations focus on informing there members of current events and protecting them in the advent of needing protection.

One organization I plan on joining is AOPA (Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association). They focus on growing and supporting general aviation in all ways they can. They believe that the right to fly should belong to everyone and AOPA fights to give everyone an opportunity to access it (Mission and History, 2016).  AOPA was incorporated on May 15, 1939 and have been promoting and improving general aviation for pilots and the industry ever since. Since general aviation brought me to where I am at today, I would prefer to give back what I can and help others find their way in the field.

Another leader in the aviation industry would be the Air Line Pilots Association. ALPA focuses on leading in safety and protecting airline pilots (What We Do, 2016). Their focus is to promote the health and welfare of all members before any governmental body.  They have negotiated hundreds of contracts with federal agencies and will continued that for a long time into the future. ALPA has a large member community coming in at over 52,000 pilots and 30+ airlines (What We Do, 2016).

These organizations want to improve the industry they are a part of. Not only safety, but organizational structures and knowledge of the industry. There are roughly 600,000 certified pilots in the U.S. and AOPA's U.S. member count in 2012 was around 375,000. Certainly, not all of those members are certified pilots, but that goes to show that there are a lot of people who care about the general aviation community and believe AOPA can help make a difference. Both ALPA and AOPA will continue to change and move to change the industry as how the people working and living in it need. I want to be a part of an organization that will help protect me by driving for the highest in safety and development of piloting skill and decision making.

References

AOPA, . (2012, April). IAOPA Statistical Report. Retrieved from http://www.iaopa.org/what-is-general-aviation/statistics/2012-iaopa-stats.pdf

Mission and History of AOPA (n.d.). In AOPA. Retrieved from http://www.aopa.org/About-AOPA/Governance/Mission-and-History-of-AOPA

What We Do (n.d.). In Air Line Pilots Association, International. Retrieved April 2, 2016, from http://www.alpa.org/about-alpa/what-we-do