AOPA, UAE To Hold First Meeting With International Associations During The Show

Following the launch of the United Arab Emirates branch of the Airline Owners and Pilots’ Association (AOPA) at last year's Abu Dhabi Air Expo, the President of AOPA UAE, Yousif Al Hammadi (pictured), has invited representatives from international AOPA branches to attend a workshop dedicated to discussing and debating General Aviation issues in the region. The meeting, the first of its kind, will run parallel to this year’s Abu Dhabi Air Expo and will take place at the Gulf Center for Aviation Studies, Al Bateen Executive Airport on March 6.

It is anticipated up to thirty representatives from AOPA USA, IAOPS, AOPA United Kingdom, AOPA Germany and AOPA France will meet with their colleagues from the United Arab Emirates during the one day event, to share knowledge and debate a variety of topics including air space regulations, aerial non-commercial operations, certification and maintenance issues and pilot licensing.  AOPA members will also be able to maximise their time by attending the Air Expo exhibition, the Middle East’s only dedicated General Aviation event,  to meet pilots from the region and learn about the latest trends.

“As a young AOPA, we wish to benefit from the experience accumulated by other AOPA’s,” says Hammadi of the event. “The UAE skies are opening and we want to improve our understanding about how AOPAs from other regions have helped to change the regulatory environment in their countries. More and more people are embracing General Aviation in the UAE resulting in the need to find creative solutions that enable pilots of aircraft ranging from LSA up to business jets and helicopters to exercise the privileges of their licenses. We need to progress quickly, to keep pace with the increased number of pilots engaged in non-commercial operations and hope to be able to adapt some of their best practice for the UAE region," continued Hammadi about the networking opportunity.

Since inauguration of the 70th branch of the IAOPA just one year ago AOPA UAE  has grown to more the 100 members and has gone some way to achieving its goal of uniting pilots, owners and operators based in the Emirates through information provision and regular meetings. As President, Hamadi is also continuing to encourage young enthusiasts to become pilots and with this years meeting aims to continue to ease access to airspace, airports and international travel.

FMI: www.aopa.org