Across the years

Royal Newcastle shows the way for aero clubs in the 21st century

I am curious how this aero club has survived for 80 years while so many other flight training bodies seem to have a shelf-life of about 10 minutes.

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The Royal Newcastle Aero Club took its first small steps in 1928, the same year Bert Hinkler made his daring solo flight from England. Eight decades later the club is still active and proud of its long history. Yet it is how the RNAC embraces the future that will steer it towards its centenary.

The setting at Maitland Airport tells the tale in part as you turn off the highway. Cast your eye past the club’s neat, modern brick office and there are hangars, weath-erboard buildings and even an old Nissen hut from days gone by. Inside the foyer, the furnishings are those of a well-appointed office with full-time staff on the desk and instructors in uniforms and ties.

Trophy cabinets and honour boards adorn the walls, highlighting a proud his-tory. The club’s noticeboard is up-to-date and the large glass windows offer a view of the fleet and flight operations outside. It’s a far cry from some of the untidy places I’ve entered in recent times. I’m impressed.

With the weather on the hills not far from the airfield I know I won’t be flying today, an observation immediately con-firmed as I shake the chief flying instruc-tor’s hand. Phil Unicomb is well-known in aviation circles, has a swag of aerobatic titles and an enormous amount of flight instructional time aloft.

As we sit down to chat club stalwart Ken Ladd-Hudson and the club’s newest flight instructor join us and I can’t help but feel the genuine, honest warmth and enthusi-asm of the club atmosphere. However, as the conversation begins, I also sense this is an organisation with savvy.

From the outset I am curious how this aero club has survived for 80 years while so many other flight training bodies seem to have a shelf-life of about 10 minutes. Even the mighty Royal Aero Club of NSW at Bankstown where I once worked has now been consigned to the history books.

As expected, there is no single answer but there is a chain of evidence to indicate why the club has beaten the odds.

Firstly, Phil points to the fleet, which has Cessna 152s, 172s and a 182 with a Piper Archer and Tiger Moth added to the mix. This means instruction follows the logi-cal progression from that very first flight through to carrying a load of passengers cross-country in single-engined aircraft.

And these are club aircraft, not the Noah’s Ark line-up of cross-hired aero-planes that you will so often find. The two older Cessnas are for sale but otherwise the fleet is very well-appointed and equipped with impressive flight panels and crisp leather upholstery.

The club shrewdly took advantage of the strong Australian dollar and global down-turn to update its fleet with these low-time aircraft. Phil also has his eye on another new airframe for the club and has sub-mitted a proposal to the board, a defined process that takes into account operational and business cases and speaks volumes for the organisation.

A newer direction has been the club’s foray into the recreational aviation market with a Gazelle and impressive new Cessna 162 Skycatcher. It recognises members want this avenue of training and ongoing hire but rather than changing the face of the club the board simply has sown the seed – and is geared up for growth should the concept take root.

Phil has observed that recreational flying is done mainly by established ‘VH’ pilots over 35 looking for a cheaper way to fly with simpler medical requirements and are changing over to flying these two light sport aircraft. Younger pilots continue to fly fully the fledged VH-registered aero-planes as the majority intend to pursue a commercial licence.

The club also seems to understand its customers and members. It has its veteran club pilots but the region also is home to a successful mining industry and to students with disposable income for flying training and aircraft hire.

Phil estimates 75 per cent of flying stems from training up to the General Flying Progress Test while the remaining quarter is predominantly private hire. The club can train up to commercial pilot level but its market does not reflect this and so the fleet is ideally suited to its marketplace.

That is not to say there is no diversity – the club’s vintage Tiger Moth is always busy with scenic flights. There are also flyouts to other airfields and club competitions, with spot landing challenges and the like.

These varied means of participation work on several levels as they boost utilisation of the aircraft, increase a sense of belong-ing and loyalty to the club and introduce people to aviation who may not otherwise have taken that first step.

There’s also a lot of fun to be had and this genuine sense of enjoyment emanates from all the staff. I suspect it’s a major factor in the high conversion rate of folks taking that first joy flight then signing up for flight training.

The club element extends beyond the cockpit as there are also social members who actively participate in club activities but do not necessarily fly. They are an as-set to the club, adding to the enthusiasm, enhancing the word-of-mouth marketing, organising social events and voluntarily looking after a number of tasks.

Their service is recognised by the club in a number of ways including a monthly draw for an hour’s free flight time.

One cannot over-estimate the positive effect of the human element within a club. On the day of my visit, RAAF fighter pilot Squadron Leader Paul Simmons is busy with his other great passion – his LIFT charity. In this role he helps troubled young people and takes them flying in club aircraft.

It’s an opportunity many of these young-sters probably never would have dreamt of and something you don’t generally see at a purely commercial flight school.

As Phil and I take a walk around the facilities he explains that there are plans for an extension but with the dollar so favour-able against the US currency the decision was made to renew the fleet first. A good decision but even so, there is work under-way on the viewing area and verandah.

The hangar is a sturdy old-timer and keeps a good deal of the valued aeroplanes out of the paint-fading weather. There are honour boards running the length of the hangar with the names of all the pilots who have trained at the club since the 1930s.

Despite its heritage, the club is not trad-ing on its past. Phil speaks enthusiastically of the new theory courses becoming avail-able and a total review and renewal of their training notes, complete with conversion to PowerPoint presentations.

There are proposals for additions to the fleet and the prospect of aerobatics train-ing in a Pitts. Yet for all the enthusiasm and ideas, these are not off-the-cuff whims but measured concepts supported by a business process.

The club may have been in existence for over 80 years but it’s a fact not taken for granted by the staff and members who con-tribute to its ongoing success. Undoubtedly, it values its history but pays great attention to the current marketplace and to tailoring its facilities and fleet to those in the region who want to fly.

The infrastructure and equipment is wonderfully complemented by a genuine sense of belonging that pervades the club and its people, while those behind the scenes continue to plan for the future.

It may have some advantages that come with being a club but I can’t help feeling that many aspects of its general philosophy could well be adopted by commercial flight schools.

The weather is still on the hills and so I decide it’s time to make my way home. But despite the inability to get into the air there are still a number of students, pilots and instructors seated around the lounge, chatting about flying.

The club seems to have found the right mix between its people, equipment and the bottom line and it’s this balance that ulti-mately will define its future success. For the moment, it’s easy to imagine the members still sitting around chatting about flying another 80 years from now.