Instructor & Tow Pilot Credits

[Mark Mallamo]

For over twenty years, SSI has been the club in the Chicago area that has done the majority of glider flight training and more than half of our annual flight income comes from training flights. Our tow pilots and instructors have kept costs low for our students while dedicating significant time each week of the flying season.  No one receives a paycheck.

On behalf of several of my colleagues, it is discouraging to hear that the board has recently decided to change the policy in how member CFIGs and Tow Pilots are credited for the volunteer work they do.  In the past, we were able to earn up to a full credit on our annual dues in exchange for performing a commensurate number of instructional flights and/or tows.  Going forward, we were informed that no more than 50% of our annual dues would be covered by credits while also forcing us to pay out-of-pocket for SSA and CLGC dues, which were previously covered by credits.  There was no input solicited from either the instructors or the tow pilots prior to this change in policy.

I am concerned that this decision will have a negative effect on the availability of instructors and tow pilots this coming season as some of us may be unwilling or unable to volunteer to the same extent we’ve done in the past. We may potentially lose some members.

I urge the board to pause this change in policy until our members can offer feedback as necessary.

Mark Mallamo
Tim Ponsot
John Scott, Chief Tow Pilot
Larry Kase

[John Baker]

Given that we have not had a regularly scheduled monthly Saturday meeting since this change (“Instructor & Tow Pilot Credits”) was announced, can we have this topic put on the agenda for discussion prior to the start of the Safety portion of the March Monthly meeting?
– Thanks, John

John Baker

[John Lincoln]

When I asked to join SSI I was told I would have to do three things for the club in order to be a member. I would have to pay my dues, and give of my time and expertise. I agreed to do all three. I thought every other member (regardless of financial ability) agreed to do the same. When I joined I didn’t know, or even suspect, there was a dues credit system. Obviously I was wrong.

If the tow pilots, instructors and pilots who give rides can have their dues reduced to zero then shouldn’t we not also reduce the dues for those who perform other valuable services? After all the tow pilots and instructors are useless if the runway isn’t mowed, gas isn’t purchased, planes aren’t maintained or insurance paid up. But there’s no talk of reducing those members dues.

The reduced dues credit is there to make sure that every member of this club has some financial “skin in the game” but still give some recognition of the special expertise that tow pilots, instructors and ride givers have by virtue of their advanced ratings.

My final observation is I believe there are a lot of members of this club who give their time, money and expertise but who don’t ask for or receive special recognition or consideration.

Sincerely, John Lincoln

[Rich Walenda]

<div dir=”ltr”>Hello:</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>I do not ask for a penny for anything, including instructing.  I am a FAA advanced ground instructor, CPR/AED Instructor,  Gracie Survival Tactics Jui Jitsu instructor*, legal instructor for misdemeanor prosecutions, instructor on how to do civil mental health commitments regarding critical incidents in Illinois and mentor for criminal investigators and a mentor to a digital forensics master’s program student.</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>My job pays me well and in return I am “barred” from outside employment.  I can volunteer some time to causes or clubs but can not ask for credit, discounts, or money.  I am willing to help SSI in ground instructing, wing running, lawn mowing, cleaning, assembly, etc.</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>As a sport pilot airplane pilot gaining experience in flying gliders I do not mind paying an instructor fee and it does not bother me if they get credits up to 100% of their membership.  The other way would be to pay the club for the launch and separately/privately pay the instructor for their time. I realize I am a charming guy and the instructors should pay me for my company but they also deserve some compensation for their job.  As an add on pilot I could not teach myself and also rely on either ground launch or tow pilots to get me into the air.  I agree that mowing the lawn, keeping the aircraft maintained and in compliance, cleaning, ordering supplies, etc. is also important.  Sky soaring allows me to fly a glider and relax.  I know that I am not the typical add on pilot who just wants a rating ASAP and then goes away.  I enjoy flying with the instructors and when I they have enough of me they send me up in the 1-26 for some peace.</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>I do not have the answers as to how to compensate the lawn mowing, cleaning, etc.  We are a club and together can come up with a solution that offers a balance to encouraging people to become instructors and instructing and tow pilots and keeping others engaged in the other vital duties of running the club.  In the future I can become an sport pilot glider flight instructor and teach for free but there are no sport pilot glider instructor DPEs in the area and SSA as a national organization is not supportive of sport pilots for some reason.  With that said, I appreciate the daily work of everyone in the club and hope we can come up with equitable compensation for all who go above and beyond.  Peace.</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>Regards,</div>
<div dir=”ltr”>Rich</div>
<div dir=”ltr”></div>
<div dir=”ltr”>*Gracie Survival Tactics (GST) is a revolutionary defensive tactics system based on Gracie Jiu-Jitsu that incorporates time-tested techniques into an easy-to-learn system designed to help officers humanely prevail against larger and stronger opponents. In sport jiu-jitsu practice, the tap-out matters; in a fight for your life against an aggressive subject, it doesn’t. For law enforcement professionals, we understand that victory isn’t achieved until you neutralize the threat and apprehended the suspect.</div>

[Rich Walenda]

Hello:

I do not ask for a penny for anything, including instructing. I am a FAA advanced ground instructor, CPR/AED Instructor, Gracie Survival Tactics Jui Jitsu instructor*, legal instructor for misdemeanor prosecutions, instructor on how to do civil mental health commitments regarding critical incidents in Illinois and mentor for criminal investigators and a mentor to a digital forensics master’s program student.

My job pays me well and in return I am “barred” from outside employment. I can volunteer some time to causes or clubs but can not ask for credit, discounts, or money. I am willing to help SSI in ground instructing, wing running, lawn mowing, cleaning, assembly, etc.

As a sport pilot airplane pilot gaining experience in flying gliders I do not mind paying an instructor fee and it does not bother me if they get credits up to 100% of their membership. The other way would be to pay the club for the launch and separately/privately pay the instructor for their time. I realize I am a charming guy and the instructors should pay me for my company but they also deserve some compensation for their job. As an add on pilot I could not teach myself and also rely on either ground launch or tow pilots to get me into the air. I agree that mowing the lawn, keeping the aircraft maintained and in compliance, cleaning, ordering supplies, etc. is also important. Sky soaring allows me to fly a glider and relax. I know that I am not the typical add on pilot who just wants a rating ASAP and then goes away. I enjoy flying with the instructors and when I they have enough of me they send me up in the 1-26 for some peace.

I do not have the answers as to how to compensate the lawn mowing, cleaning, etc. We are a club and together can come up with a solution that offers a balance to encouraging people to become instructors and instructing and tow pilots and keeping others engaged in the other vital duties of running the club. In the future I can become an sport pilot glider flight instructor and teach for free but there are no sport pilot glider instructor DPEs in the area and SSA as a national organization is not supportive of sport pilots for some reason. With that said, I appreciate the daily work of everyone in the club and hope we can come up with equitable compensation for all who go above and beyond. Peace.

Regards,
Rich

*Gracie Survival Tactics (GST) is a revolutionary defensive tactics system based on Gracie Jiu-Jitsu that incorporates time-tested techniques into an easy-to-learn system designed to help officers humanely prevail against larger and stronger opponents. In sport jiu-jitsu practice, the tap-out matters; in a fight for your life against an aggressive subject, it doesn’t. For law enforcement professionals, we understand that victory isn’t achieved until you neutralize the threat and apprehended the suspect.

[Don Grillo]

Hello John Baker,

We did have a lengthy, highly spirited discussion, during the clubs January monthly meeting on zoom.

The Safety Meeting will be held to the topics that the clubs CFI-G’s will be discussing as we are scheduled over 3 hours as it stands now.

Perhaps a later meeting in the year.

Best Regards,

Don

[John DeRosa]

Mark,

Thank you for your comments.  Let’s talk more on this subject at the membership meeting tonight.

John H DeRosa

President, Sky Soaring Glider Club

On Tuesday, February 23, 2021, 10:31:17 PM CST, Sky Soaring <webmaster@skysoaring.com> wrote:

[Mark Reich]

[John Phelan]

Ever since I joined the Club, it has been run as a ‘Sweat Equity’ operation.  Members put in work to help the Club operate and that, in turn, keeps cost reasonable for everyone.  There are a lot of talented members who donate their services to the overall Club operation.

 

To the best of my knowledge, only the Tow Pilots and CFI-Gs are compensated in any way, with a dues credit for the towing and training they provide.  It’s been that way since at least the early 1980’s.  Others who donate their services and talents are not compensated.  The runways get smoothed and mowed, the hangar gets painted, the fleet is maintained, the winch was built from the ground up, the Hustler mower was rebuilt, the golf carts are maintained, the Wi-Fi network is maintained and monitored, the web site is actively managed and updated, plumbing issues are addressed.  All without any compensation to the individuals who perform these services.  Board and Committee members all serve without compensation.  Only tow pilots and CFI-Gs are compensated.

 

Art Silverman brought up an interesting point last night that should be further investigated.  If these tow and training payments are actually cash-flow positive, then that has some impact on how it should be managed.  At the same time, we should look at how we handle any compensation that falls short of meeting the dues requirement.  There are real costs to having members on a program that pays their dues over a season of activity.  The dues for the CLGC and SSA are two of those real costs.  That’s money the Club pays out on their behalf, expecting the tally to at least break even by the end of the season.  Do we have a ‘True Up’ plan for the end of the season that makes sure the dues have been covered?

 

And if the tow and training activities are cash-flow positive, should other donated services be viewed in the same light?  Do we compare the cost of having a landscape company come in and roll and mow the runway to ‘free’ labor we get from members who spend a few hours on the tractor or mowers to accomplish the job?  Should those members be getting a dues credit for their work?  I think you see the point.

 

So, more scenarios to think about.  Just my view/opinion.

 

Best Regards,

 

John F. Phelan

 

From: Sky Soaring <webmaster@skysoaring.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 23, 2021 22:31
To: phelanjf@gmail.com
Subject: [Sky Soaring] New topic: General Discussion, Instructor & Tow Pilot Credits

 

[John DeRosa]

John,

We did have a lengthy discussion on this particular topic during the February membership virtual meeting.  Unfortunately, the schedule for the March 20th Spring Safety meeting is very busy and the business meeting portion will be limited to a few short status updates.  Because this change will not have any impact until 2022 I believe that we can safely postpone more discussion until our April membership meeting. 

Thanks, John DeRosa

President, Sky Soaring Glider Club

=========================

On Saturday, March 6, 2021, 12:38:25 PM CST, Sky Soaring <webmaster@skysoaring.com> wrote:

[Rich Walenda]

Hello:I do not ask for a penny for anything, including instructing.  I am a FAA advanced ground instructor, CPR/AED Instructor,  Gracie Survival Tactics Jui Jitsu instructor*, legal instructor for misdemeanor prosecutions, instructor on how to do civil mental health commitments regarding critical incidents in Illinois and mentor for criminal investigators and a mentor to a digital forensics master’s program student. My job pays me well and in return I am “barred” from outside employment.  I can volunteer some time to causes or clubs but can not ask for credit, discounts, or money.  I am willing to help SSI in ground instructing, wing running, lawn mowing, cleaning, assembly, etc.As a sport pilot airplane pilot gaining experience in flying gliders I do not mind paying an instructor fee and it does not bother me if they get credits up to 100% of their membership.  The other way would be to pay the club for the launch and separately/privately pay the instructor for their time. I realize I am a charming guy and the instructors should pay me for my company but they also deserve some compensation for their job.  As an add on pilot I could not teach myself and also rely on either ground launch or tow pilots to get me into the air.  I agree that mowing the lawn, keeping the aircraft maintained and in compliance, cleaning, ordering supplies, etc. is also important.  Sky soaring allows me to fly a glider and relax.  I know that I am not the typical add on pilot who just wants a rating ASAP and then goes away.  I enjoy flying with the instructors and when I they have enough of me they send me up in the 1-26 for some peace.I do not have the answers as to how to compensate the lawn mowing, cleaning, etc.  We are a club and together can come up with a solution that offers a balance to encouraging people to become instructors and instructing and tow pilots and keeping others engaged in the other vital duties of running the club.  In the future I can become an sport pilot glider flight instructor and teach for free but there are no sport pilot glider instructor DPEs in the area and SSA as a national organization is not supportive of sport pilots for some reason.  With that said, I appreciate the daily work of everyone in the club and hope we can come up with equitable compensation for all who go above and beyond.  Peace.Regards,Rich

*Gracie Survival Tactics (GST) is a revolutionary defensive tactics system based on Gracie Jiu-Jitsu that incorporates time-tested techniques into an easy-to-learn system designed to help officers humanely prevail against larger and stronger opponents. In sport jiu-jitsu practice, the tap-out matters; in a fight for your life against an aggressive subject, it doesn’t. For law enforcement professionals, we understand that victory isn’t achieved until you neutralize the threat and apprehended the suspect. 

[Anonymous]

It all works out fair John dont you think? We put skin in the game when we are actively using the membership for the love of the sport and the value of helping others succeed. The club should never have to run / can’t run on credit to members who aren’t paid up for services rendered up to date.

Kind Regards Compadre
Frank

[Anonymous]

Those are cool accomplishments and credentials Rich! You’re a valuable contributor and member.

[Author]

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