19 August 2006

Dear IANRP Members:

Enclosed with this letter you should have received the 2006 membership list for the International Association of Natural Resource Pilots.  Thanks to Fred Kruger for putting together this list, and distributing it to our membership.  Thanks also to Fred for offering me the opportunity to enclose this note with the membership directory.

First, I would like to offer my sincerest thanks to Paul Anderson for putting together a great program for our 2006 annual workshop.   Originally, the workshop was to be held in Fairbanks, with Tony Payne facilitating the program.  As you all know, Tony was killed in a terrible accident. 

Paul Anderson stepped up to the plate, and did a great job of facilitating the workshop, with many good speakers, excellent opportunities to interact with other agency pilots, and timed to immediately precede the Alaska Airmen’s Trade Show, which is really the premiere Alaska aviation event.  Many thanks to the Department of Interior, Aviation Management (formerly known as OAS) for use of their conference room for our meeting space.  Harry Kieling, the new Regional Director for AM greeted us on the opening day of the workshop, and ensured that we had access to the Lake Hood facility and aircraft there.  Bart Stone, Training and Standardization Manager for AM did a great job facilitating assistance for presenters. 

For those of you who have never attended an Alaska Airmen’s Trade Show, you don’t know what you’re missing.  The event is well attended by many Alaskan vendors, as well as a number of national vendors as well.  It is a great place to meet old friends, make new friends, and just generally ogle all the new stuff for your ultimate off road airplane.

On to the next order of business-- finding a venue (and facilitator) for next year’s IANRP Annual Workshop.  I feel strongly that holding this event in conjunction with some other aviation event really helps our members to justify attendance to their agency, and leverages tight travel dollars.  The combination with the Airmen’s show this spring worked well, and I’d like to think we had at least a few attendees who wouldn’t have been able to make it had it not been for the combination of events.

I proposed that we hold the workshop in conjunction with the annual Minnesota Seaplane Pilot’s Association Safety Seminar, which is held at Cragun’s Resort on East Gull Lake.  Unfortunately, Minnesota DNR is hosting another major event next year, so they wouldn’t be able to assist in preparing for an event in Minnesota.  It may be possible for me to facilitate the event if we hold it there, but first, I’d like to “cast about” the membership and see if we can find a likely candidate to host the event in another state.  The date is flexible, so if you really, really want to host this event, please get in touch with me ASAP, and we’ll see if we can’t set the hook.  Any volunteers out there?

It has occurred to me for many years as a member of this organization that there are a lot of natural resource pilots out there who aren’t members of IANRP.  In fact, several folks who attended the Anchorage workshop said they’d never heard of the organization, and these were experienced folks who’ve been around a while.  One of the things I believe we really need to focus on is building our membership as well as improving our service to our members.  If you work for an agency (and if there’s more than one of you on the payroll), please consider visiting with your co-workers about IANRP.  Also, if any of you have ideas on how we can improve the organization and its service to the membership, please get in touch with me or any of the officers.  Any ideas that we can implement to increase benefits to our members and increase our membership rolls will strengthen the organization.

Outgoing President Jeff Faught and I have for some time been working on the issue of approvals for installation of radio telemetry antennas on aircraft.  As with many issues involving the FAA, our ability to get approval for even the simplest telemetry antennas on aircraft varies greatly from FAA office to office.  Alaska has a regional policy that specifically states that such installations are a minor alteration by definition.  Unfortunately, many other FAA offices will not accept that as guidance, and vary from requiring field approvals, to field approvals and putting the aircraft in the restricted category (kiss your insurance goodbye) to just saying NO.  We desperately need national consistent and intelligent guidance on this issue.  Last fall, it appeared the FAA was going to do just that, but unfortunately not all the divisions of the FAA were on that train when it left the station.  At this point, the process is stalled, but it is my intent to attempt to move this issue forward during the upcoming year.  Frankly, we should not need to put a brand new aircraft into the restricted category or into the public use category just because it’s wearing a few antennas.  Stay tuned.  That one isn’t over yet.

Also, for those of you who are retired members, please get in touch with Fred Kruger.  Our policy is that retired members are eligible for lifetime memberships.  Names of eligible life members will be gathered, forwarded to the membership at the next annual workshop, and voted on there.  So, if you are one of those “mature” types, and have retired, let us know, and we’ll forward your name for nomination as a life member.

Finally, for those of you who don’t know me, a quick note on my background.  I recently retired  from 34 years with the US Fish & Wildlife Service, the last 27 years of which was as a Pilot/Biologist.  I spent the last 30 years of my FWS career in Alaska, working on three National Wildlife Refuges.  I am now working at the University of Minnesota, Crookston, in northwest Minnesota’s Red River Valley.  My role here is to facilitate and coordinate some exciting aviation degree programs.  UMC offers bachelor of science degrees in Natural Resource Aviation, Law Enforcement Aviation, Agricultural Aviation, and Business Aviation.  Unlike most schools that offer aviation degrees, our students graduate with a full curriculum in their chosen field, PLUS commercial pilot’s certificates, with instrument rating.  I’m excited about this program and I think many of you will be as well.  Hopefully, we will be training the pilots, biologists and law enforcement officers who will fill in behind many of us when we hang up our wings.

If any of you have suggestions, comments, or offers of assistance, please feel free to get in touch with me.  I can be reached at any of the following addresses:

Home e-mail:  mvivion@gra.midco.net

Work e-mail:  mvivion@umn.edu

Home phone:  218 289 4798

Work phone:  218 281 8114

NOTE:

Finally, if there are any of you who did not receive your free IANRP pin and bumper stickers from our Treasurer,  e-mail Fred Kruger and he will supply you with these.

frkruger@juno.com

Thanks for listening, and don’t hesitate to get in touch.