ama dues
 

I want to renew my AMA but its 58 bucks and they said they dont offer the membership without the magazine--shouldn't I have the choice--how much of the 58 bucks goes towards the magazine--I mean its a good magazine but I prefer RCM--At least I should be able to pick my magazine...I think the fee is total BS but I quess I need it to fly---AMA membership should come with the planes--or engine--or radio--or building equipment---or etc...

ama dues
 

Geez, your going to open that can of worms again. Ouch. Its been argued a million times on here. Your going to get the guys who don't like it, the ones who don't want to support the field, and the ones who tell you to just shut up and pay it and fly or that you don't need it to fly (unless you want to fly at a sanctioned field or contests). When it comes right down to it, there is no choice. You either have to support it and pay it, or not fly on an ama field or in sanctioned contests. I had to laugh when they raised the dues $10 and said it was due to the cost of insurance. Only about $12 of the $58 goes to insurance, so was it only $2 last year?

ama dues
 

The AMA is a membership based non-profit organization. Like most such organizations, they send newsletters to their membership. The magazine serves as the newsletter. This is why the magazine is an integral part of membership. What you are asking is that the AMA not send their newsletter (magazine) and instead substitute a for-profit magazine subscription of your choosing? Gee, maybe I'll see if instead of the Magazine they will send me a gallon of 30% glow fuel.

As for costs, it isn't easy to exactly say what the magazine costs per member. The AMA has various profit centers that offset costs. That said, we can take a blunt approach to this. From the 2001 financial statement (goto www.modelaircraft.org in the members section), the magazine cost about $1.85 million. The revenue form advertising and subscriptions runs about $0.82 million. That leaves a cost of about $1 million that is passed on to members or needs to be offset by other revenue sources. Lets assume that member must bear the full weight of this cost, even if this isn't really how this works. Then with about 170,000 members, the cost per member is about $6.

What for-profit magazine can you get a years subscription too for $6? As for a newsletter cost, $6 per member is pretty low if you ask me.

I never had understood this... IF YOU THINK THE FEE IS TOTAL BS, DON"T JOIN THE AMA! You don't need the AMA to fly. You can find your own place to fly and get it insured. Locally, we have a large (200 member) club that is NOT a AMA club. At this club, all you need to do is show proof of some sort of personal liability insurance. However, many if not most still join the AMA. Why? if you want national representation of our hobby, competition regulations for those that choose to compete, uniform safety code, the ability to easily travel and fly at neighboring clubs without having your insurance agent fax proof of insurance to the club you are visiting, etc, etc, etc, I think you fill find the $58 fee a good bargain.


As for insurance, I don't know what it ran last year, but I just got an email today from the AMA that the 2003 insurace rates went up 70%. If you look in past MA issues, they expressed the need to raise dues becasue they knew rates would be higher this year.

Cheers

ama dues
 

Blah Blah Blah Blah

Re: ama dues
 

You do have a choice, to join or not.
Also, being a member of AMA doesn't mean you can't read other magazines, so, you can also pick all the magazines you want!

ama dues
 

No, you dont have that much of a choice, P51B, If I want to fly safely at an airfield , you do have to join. I Also think the magazine should be a choice. It is a waste of paper to me. I like other magazines alot. I can handle paying the full price, but either way, the magazine is a waste for me and alot of my club members. .

P51B wrote "You do have a choice, to join or not.
Also, being a member of AMA doesn't mean you can't read other magazines, so, you can also pick all the magazines you want! better."

ama dues
 

Many pilots can fly safely regardless of affiliation, while some aren't all that safe even if they join! If you are only interested in the insurance, then go get a policy outside of AMA.

I also like other magazines in addition to MA.

All of these issues have been hashed out over and over and over and over in many many many many threads. It is getting tiresome.

ama dues
 

If its that tiresome, then dont post. My club offeres all RC pilots a safe place to fly heli's fixed wing, jets or whatever, but if you want to fly, you HAVE to join AMA.
P51B, Its a good thing you and I dont fly in the same airspace, huh?? lol

ama dues
 

He, he, he I have wrecked alot of planes in my day (I killed one last weekend :cry: , but never had a midair or even come close to being unsafe.

By the way, you CHOSE to join AMA so you could also have access to an AMA chartered club. You could have CHOSEN to buy some land, get independent insurance, fly alone etc. I also prefer a club (mine also allows everything)!

Even though we often butt heads on the AMA dues thing, I'd still fly with ya! :)

ama dues
 

AMA Dues
MA pages 18 19 20 21!!!!!!!!!!

Do Something Positive with that Magazine
 

Dont like the Mag ??!! Dont whine, donate it to a School, a Kid, a Friend, a Doctors Office, the list is endless. Supports the Hobby dont ya know. We are ambasadors of our hobby.

Vince

ama dues
 

2 cents on the table..

I agree with vpresley on donating it to places where it may interest people and get them into the hobby.. They no doubt have several people who it might catch their eye..

As for the choice of getting it or not, I do not see much choice.. Every club run field that you go to requires that you have AMA insurance.. I don't recall any saying that you would be allowed to fly without AMA insurance as a whole.. Most don't go for the third party insurance coverage idea..

At any rate, $58 bucks for a year isn't any huge price IMO considering the coverage you do get. If you think you'll be in the hobby for a life time, get the life time coverage for what, $1,500? That's 25 years of $58 payments, for what, depending on how old you are, you may end up flying till you're 70.. For me, that would be like 42 years.. It's a big savings.. But that's another story..

Now, I don't doubt that at least $20 of the dues goes to the mag.. Though that seems high for all it is.. But at any rate, it would be nice to get an email version instead for a slight reduction in dues.. Least then we'd save a tree too.. ;)

For more advanced flyers I can imagine that the mag would be a waste of time, or for those who think they've advanced far enough in the hobby to even think the information within is below them. But it does make interesting reading, and if not, go back to the donate it idea and get more people into the hobby.. I know as a kid I would have LOVED to flip through the pages while waiting at the dentist.. Maybe then I'd have gotten into this all a whole lot sooner than I had..

ama dues
 

To Beavertail et. al: You do NOT have to join AMA to fly. You do NOT have to charter your club with the AMA. You can fly at a non-AMA club without AMA. You can fly safely without the AMA, you just need to be sure you have liability insurance for the field and pilots.

One of the largest (about 200 members) clubs in Omaha, NE is not an AMA chartered club. You do NOT need AMA to fly there. You do however need proof of some sort of liability insurance. Their web site is http://www.omahawks.org

They have a good safety record and even host AMA sanctioned events. It is possible to belong to a club and fly safely without the AMA, many do it now. You do NOT need AMA to fly.

So, to all who don't like paying $58 to the AMA so they can fly at their local AMA field, START YOUR OWN NON AMA CLUB!

Of course there is a down side to an NON-AMA club. The main problem is checking guest pilots for insurance and insurance for the club. AMA club charters are real cheap, like $30 or something. It would be hard to find liability insurance for what the AMA club charter runs. The second problem is that if you are not an AMA member, you will have a difficulty when you travel to other events or fields. Of course, if you don't allow guest pilots to fly at your field and you never travel, this isn't a problem.

ama dues
 

I continue to hear that there is no other choice but AMA. While surfing the Internet, I stumbled on to another modeling organization called the UMA. I realize that it's up to the club if an UMA member can fly on a AMA field, but bottom line, there is another choice.

Also, I found something that allows members to get free membership as long as the program runs, i.e., http://modelaircraft.org/templates/a...B784E8913B2190

Sign 3 and Fly Free Membership Ambassador program. I don't understand why it seems more people aren't taking advantage of this program, especially if one has a problem with paying $58 every year. I was informed that only 151 members received free membership in the 3 years this program has existed.

nascarjoe

ama dues
 

Not so. A UMA member can not fly at an AMA field. That is the whole point. If you don't have AMA, you can not fly at an ama field or at an ama event. Your choices are either pay AMA, or don't fly in competition or at ama fields. This limits you to flying by yourself, at non ama fields and not competing. This isn't a choice.

For those of us who like to compete, we have to pay AMA, which is not a big deal, but we are forced to support the Muncie flying site just because we have to be AMA members to do the things we like to do, which is partially the competition. Don't even give me this "you can start a non AMA competition." Doesn't work in the real world. I don't dislike the AMA, I just would rather not "Be FORCED" to support the Muncie site because I don't believe in it.

Stumble here!
 

Have you not stumbled on the thread, "Help Reduce AMA's Potential Liability." right here in this AMA forum?
UMA discussion there.

HC

ama dues
 

Monkeyboy says that there is a club that only wants the flier to show insurance coverage. If one wants to fly anywhere and not buy AMA coverage, there other choice is UMA. Also, it's more than likely up to the land owner to accept UMA or not. Other than that, is there anyone out there who is up to speed on what is what with AMA and UMA? I haven't heard any legal eagles offering their expertise on the subject.

nascarjoe

ama dues
 

It is up to the land owner. I would say that a major portion of the fields (more than 90%) are AMA fields. They don't offer a choice. If a non AMA pilot flys there and has an accident, your field is not covered. AMA does't play well with others.

ama dues
 

Blah, Blah Blah, here we go again.

ama dues
 

Oops, appears that I inadvertently opened an very old and smelly can of worms here. I'm new to the hobby, business and RCU. Guess I got a lot to learn. Still nothing was said about the Sign 3 and Fly Free program. :)

nascarjoe

ama dues
 

Well, that club is not here, so if I want to fly at the awesome feild here, I DO have to join AMA.

ama dues
 

You can sign 3 and fly free , as long as they are registerd with AMA with you being the one refering them.
As far as buying more insurance to releave AMA of some so the pressure, Sorry there is no pressure , they are only secondary carrier and only pay when all other Ins. Is Exausted!

ama dues
 

The following is a sermon, I am sorry for it but it is Sunday after all. Some things are worth saying. Maybe this is one of them, maybe not.


The dues are finally up to $58 a year, whow! I may have to mortage the house to pay for them. It cost that much to fill up the motor home just one time that I use to carry the big airplanes to the flying field. But whow, the dues are $58, my gosh what are they wasting money on this time?

Some people enjoy bickering. That is the nature of being human. I enjoy a good discussion about things that matter but for this topic - I keep having the vision of old farts sitting around a pot bellied stove and griping. How pathetic.

Whenever I see something like the AMA/magizine complaining going on I tend to wonder what the real reason causing the complaining is. Who stepped on whose toes at one time or another? Personality conflicts maybe? Didn't get their way on a precieved important issue?

Having insurance coverage at most any flying field I go to is worth $58 to me. Yes I could hustle up an alternate carrier but I am just too lazy. Why bother? For $58 a year I am fairly well covered at most any flying field. Not perfectly but adequately. What else can you expect for only $58?

Take a deep breath and get a grip guys, it is just $58, not death or taxes. It is not worth the ulcers you are getting. Find something worth fighting for ( world hunger, homelessness, etc.) and put that energy and intelligence to doing some useful work.


Well actually that was a pathetic sermon and I am not much of a preacher (and who the heck am I to be preaching anyway, I think the dues should be free for everyone) but maybe it fit the pathetic nature of the complaining that brought it on.

Sorry for taking up your time,
Ben

AMA dues
 

Like every other organization I feel that the dues should be for the insurance only hence non-profit--I do find it to be a great expense-healthcare, auto, house and multiple other insurance stretch my checkbook to its max--I have 2 kids that love the hobby and the people who are involved--it should be within everyones reach--that brings families together--my son said the other day why dont we fly with the other folks and I had to say because we dont have the extra money--I have been I previous member for 8 years--I quess the real reason is political--inflation??But we still love the hobby--you must pay to play??

ama dues
 

And when all is said and done, most have missed the entire point most have brought up. Some don't like the magazine, I personally don't mind it. They don't want to pay for that. Fine.

It is not the price of the insurance people are *****ing about. $58 for a years insurance is not a big deal at all to most. But you are actually paying less than $20 for insurance. The rest goes to pay for stuff many don't want to pay for and shouldn't have to in the name of insurance.

Why is that so hard for some people to understand? Probably because they just want you to send your money so they can keep flying on your $9,000,000 flying field that you didn't want to pay for.