Starting December 23, 2019 the BC General Aviation Facebook Group will be available to registered BCGA members only. The Facebook Group has proved to be a phenomenal resource for members to communicate with one another. Since the BCGA is an organization with no physical home the Facebook group acts as our clubhouse. This new policy was passed at the BCGA's 2019 AGM and will be revisited next year. 

BCGA Membership is FREE!!! we are a donation based organization and members are encouraged to make voluntary contributions to help the cause. Contributing is not mandatory. We feel that it is up to us, the BCGA leadership to prove value to you the member. If you feel that the BCGA enhances your aviation experience/lifestyle and want to contribute, we won't say no. 

The BCGA has a diverse membership including: Pilots, Non-Pilots, Aircraft Owners, Renters, Partners, Commercial Pilots, Air Traffic Controllers, BC Residents, Non-BC Residents, Canadians, Americans and citizens of close to a dozen other countries. The one thing that all our members have in common is a love for aviation with a particular interest in aviation in British Columbia, Canada. Most importantly our members have a desire to be a part of and contribute to a fantastic and supportive aviation COMMUNITY that is centred  around general aviation in BC.

If you dont believe us check out this map of where our members call home! CLICK HERE

Above all things, the BC General Aviation Association is a COMMUNITY. At the time of this article we are home to 1340 registered members and curate a Facebook group that has 3800 members. One of the benefits of being a registered member is having access to events, content, discounts and resources that are available to members only. 

Furthermore, we work hard to improve general aviation for our members. There is strength in numbers and telling officials that we are liaising with that we have 1400 members and a 3400 member Facebook Group doesn't quite have the impact of showing that we have 3000+ registered members with a common goal and desire. Also, we know that there are easily over 1000 Facebook group members that signed up just to join a group without any interest in our actual organization. Of the 3400 Facebook Group members only a few hundred are truly active contributors while many more have either turned off notifications or are unaware that they even joined the group. 

Beginning December 23, 2019 we will start going through the 3800 Facebook Group members and removing any that are not registered members. This will be a painstaking process that will take several days. If you wish to remain in the group and are not a registered BCGA member you will have until December 23, 2019 to sign up. 

If you wish to access the wealth of knowledge in the Facebook group then you shouldn't mind spending 5 minutes registering to be an association member. If you have some other compelling reason why you want to remain in the Facebook Group and not be a registered member then please email info@bcavaition.ca and make your case. 

If your Facebook Account name does not match your actual name that you registered under please email info@bcaviation.ca to inform us otherwise you will be removed from the group. 

We are taking this step as a way to re-focus our group so that we can strengthen our community and focus our efforst on those that have a genuine interest in the BCGA. Remember, Membership is FREE so there are still no barriers to being in the Facebook Group so long as you register as a BCGA member. There really is no down side. 

Email us with your Facebook name if you want to be removed

With the 2019 AGM behind us we thank our members for their continued support. We also thank Rick Church and Ben Peach; two of our founding directors for their service to the BC General Aviation community both in their roles as founding directors and in their personal lives. 

This year we had three members come forward and express interest in taking on a leadership role within our organization. In consultation with the 2018 board of directors, Rick and Ben offered their seats to make room for young, new ideas from motivated members as the BCGA continues to evolve to best serve and represent the BC General Aviation Community. This move was supported unanimously at the AGM and we welcome the following new directors.

Warwick is a fantastic addition, just look what he and his team have accomplished in Squamish over the past 4 years! 

BIO
Having grown up in and around airplanes, they have been a lifelong passion. I flew many hours with my father in my youth. Despite this, it took me until my mid-thirties to embark on my own flying journey. For some reason, it felt out of reach, and I’m sure many aviation enthusiasts feel the same way. The BCGA played a huge part in getting me back into aviation, and was a constant source of motivation during my training. And now, as an owner-pilot, it has continued to be a valuable resource.

I’m a big believer in the power of community, and taking action on good ideas. We are very fortunate to have such a vibrant general aviation community. I would like to play a hands-on role in BCGA’s community development efforts, including youth initiatives to inspire the next generation, and activities that engage the membership to get out flying and meeting each other in person.

I’m a 250-hour private pilot, owner of an early 172, and current President of the Squamish Flying Club. My company, Formula Photographic, creates TV and film productions for clients such as Subaru, Mazda, and TSN.

Ok, we promise that we’ll stop bringing up his age soon but Erik was one of our scholarship winners this year and also raced in the STOL drag qualifiers this year at High Sierra as the youngest racer ever. He just turned 18 last week and is as passionate about aviation as they come. I am really excited to have Erik join our team and give him an opportunity to make a difference himself but also inspire other young people to get involved when they see that they too have a place and a voice. 

BIO
It would be such an honour to have more involvement with such a great group of aviation enthusiasts.
I have had a passion for aviation for as long as I can remember and started to pursue my license at the age of 14. I have just turned 18 and have logged over 270 hours. I currently hold a Private Pilot License, night rating, float rating  and am on target for obtaining my commercial license by the time I graduate in June 2020. In the last few years I have discovered STOL which has fuelled my desire for more out of the way places to land. 

As a Director I would strive to enrol more airstrips in the PAAP program and continue to add to the Members Airstrip Map. There are many airstrips throughout BC that are either decommissioned or need maintenance. I believe that it would be be beneficial to provide assistance in organizing maintenance on  airstrips that would otherwise be closed. My goal is to expand the list of airstrips for member use and help to continue the growth of BCGA.

Todd has been a BCGA members since the beginning and has been furthering his licenses over the past few years. He is now CPL MIFR and has founded the East Kootenays chapter of Angel Flight. He is involved in his local aviation community and was involved in providing close air support for the mother daughter team that skied from southern BC to Alaska a few years back. Todd is responsible for the epic mountain flying photos in the BCGA Facebook group.

BIO
Living in Fernie B.C for the last 2 decades and flying in the mountains as much as possible since 2017, General aviation has become a passion and major part of life for me. The experiences aviation has allowed me to enjoy while pursuing a career in aviation has been amazing. From flying next to glaciated peaks, to Island hopping around Hawaii in a 172, to flying from Cranbrook B.C to Phoenix Arizona and back. Recently I have reached some personal milestones becoming a freshly minted commercial, multi engine, IFR pilot. All while co-founding a much needed local non profit charity – Angel Flight East Kootenay. A community funded service providing residents with free flights to get to hard to reach medical appointments.

As for the goals I would like to see achieved with the BCGA, the affordability, awareness and continued access to maintained and usable aerodromes in BC. Without this, those living in rural B.C will have a very hard time either attending a local flight school, freelance instruction, time building, or simply flying. This would also encourage more provincial cross country flying and the local stimulus that coincides. Potentially inducing a rebound in rural aviation culture growth. The costs associated with owning or renting aircraft is also a contributing factor hindering aviation, but this is an economic well outside the BCGA

One of the benefits of being part of the BCGA community is our ability to learn from one another. This can only occur if we are willing to share our learning moments. Recently BCGA Member Jeff Godfrey shared an experience that he had landing at One Hundred Mile House airport in challenging conditions. Below is his write up and some of the fantastic comments that group members shared after reading about his experience. 

By: Jeff Godfrey

On Sunday I went with 3 passengers to 100 Mile House for a nice day trip. I fly a 172 with an 0-360 and wing extensions that give me a 2700 lb gross weight. We were at under 2400 lbs for the landing. It was a clear day and cold but there was a stiff north/northwest wind. The 2200' paved runway at 100 Mile is 08/26 and 08 slopes upward 2.5%. I had done performance calculations for this location, the conditions and my airplane. 


The CFS says "Recommend downhill tkof Rwy 26 & uphill ldg Rwy 08 when wind cond permit. CAUTION Severe downdrafts may be encountered when taking off to the E. P-line 40´ high adj E of A/D. Hill 3940 ASL 0.5NM E. Watch for bird activity from adj sanctuary."


Joining the pattern, the windsocks were straight down - no wind - so far so good. The wind from the north though blows over a 300 to 500 foot ridge that parallels the runway. On final, everything looked good until very short. Just over the numbers, in the flair at about 10' I ballooned in some shear to about 20'. I was going to land long on a short runway, so I immediately hit full power for a go around. In the go-around, it seemed like I encountered more shear, this time from the rear and my climb was sluggish. I pulled up some flaps but the climb still seemed slower than I thought it should be. You bring flaps from 30 to 10 and it feels like your sinking even though I was probably just not climbing as fast. Now i'm heading over town, towards obstructions and the 700' hill just to the east of town. My track from ForeFlight opened in Google Earth indicated that I was 60' up at 70 mph about 400' before I crossed Hwy 97. That's certainly better than it felt in the moment. By the time I'm over the middle of town 8 seconds later, I'm at 130' AGL, at 75 mph and turning left, away from the hill and back to the airport. It all worked out, the second attempt was successful and my passengers didn't seem flussed at all. I was though and here are my takeaways...


1) I was not as prepared as I thought I was. I read the CFS and thought I had it all figured out. But a go-around is never planned and a go-around is a type of takeoff. With a little tail gust from the rolling winds coming over the ridge, it turns into a sketchy takeoff on a runway where takeoffs are not recommended. Next time I go to an unfamiliar airport, i'm going to think hard about what a go-around will put me up against.


2) If there had been fog or smoke east of the runway obscuring my go around, or higher obstructions or a bigger tail gust on climb out, I could have been in trouble. If I was heavier and it was mid July, I could have been in trouble.


3) We were only staying for lunch. At a one way in, one way out strip, a steady breeze is a big problem. It will be the wrong way for landing or for taking off unless it does a 180 for you.


4) The next time I go to CAV3 (100 Mile) for a bite to eat, it better be calm on the runway, and and no cross winds 300' up on a windward ridge. Those rolling, buffeting winds can cause unpredictable conditions. I should have been able to predict that unpredictable could happen. Think about what happens behind a boulder on a fast moving river.


5) I occasionally practice go-arounds. I'm going to practice them a lot more than occasionally. 


6) It's been hammered into me that if you are at all thinking about a go-around, IT'S TIME TO GO AROUND! At least I did that right. Landing long would have really sucked there.


I learned a lot from this. I'm going to think long and hard about Plan B's and C's and worse case scenarios. We get "free" lessons occasionally...those with few consequences but big warnings. I consider this one of my biggest learning moments so far in my short flying career. Any thoughts out there?

- Great post. I was there recently and the fellow who has been on that strip forever and has seen quite a few crashes there told me that no matter what, he never takes off towards town, even when the wind favors it. One guy there piled up into the restaurant after hitting the power line and flipping over, thankfully no one was killed. That hill there is the killer he said, it can really slam you down and that bit of knowledge can really only be driven home by someone with local knowledge. I was aware of what the CFS stated and it's pretty difficult to emphasize something like that in the notes. Glad to hear that you made it out ok and added another few litres to your bucket of experience.

- I had a similar experience in a lightly loaded Cherokee 140. I took off towards town due to a strong wind down the runway but like you it just wouldn’t climb. Just when I was starting to really “pucker” the speed and vertical speed very slowly started to go up. I love visiting there but it’s not a runway for the faint of heart (or horsepower)!

- In my world, they want us to treat going around as "Plan A", landing as "Plan B". It helps us ensure we are very familiar and comfortable with the missed approach plan. That's being said, humans are humans and we normalize landings 100% of the time because we rarely go-around. You're here telling the story, so good on ya. Learning from it is half the fun of flying. Good work.

- REFLECTION BY JEFF / Something else creeps into this too - the trap of having to complete the mission. What I didn't say in my story was that two planes flew to CAV3 that day. The first one, with our friends on board was already on the ground. After the go around, maybe I should have diverted. But the mission was to all go for lunch. That pulls and it's something we all have to be honest about with ourselves. In all the potential pitfalls we face, this mission-complex scares me the most. Even 20,000 hour pilots are lured into completing flights that they shouldn't, for many reasons that are tempting and real. But that's a big topic for another day...

- Thank you for sharing this. Gives me something to consider and practice more!

- One of the things i do on first landings at strips like 100 and Rowenas is to do a low and over. I usually do it at 15 flaps and about 10mph above landing speed and 5 to 10' above the runway. It gives me the speed to pull up and go around(plan A) and also the chance to feel any wierd winds etc and just double check the runway.This has worked well for me when playing off airport. But as alway the OOPS is always hiding just around the corner.

- An excellent report and summary, thanks. Brings back a few very hairy moments in similar situations. Always good and healthy to read and absorb these types of stories to avoid complacency.

- You are to be commended for sharing your experience with the group. 100 Mile House is a favourite breakfast/lunch destination about an hour away for the Vernon group - a nice Sunday morning flight. Due to the runway characteristics and possible adverse wind conditions, landing at 100 Mile can be challenging even with our lightly loaded (in comparison) RVs. However, the 2.5% runway slope does have a positive effect on landing and take-off. I have a copy of a POH for a 1978 Skyhawk; under Normal Procedures/Balked Landing it indicates “In the event of a balked landing (go-around), reduce the flap setting to 20 degrees immediately after full power is applied.” Given that the runway slope is in your favour, I’m thinking that an approach using 20 degree of flap might be useful? The uphill landing would compensate for the lower flap setting and, even maybe more important, you’d be at the optimum flap setting in the event of a go-around.  Thanks again for sharing.

- Great and technically sound flight review! ....I guess one other thing a pilot could do would be a very lightly loaded trial run, in each direction, to really experience the 'what if' with the largest margins possible?...then you have some info to manage operations with passengers and winds that shave down those margins. Well done!

- Great write up, and kudos for an above average level of planning and situational awareness. Visualizing the air flow over terrain and predicting the degree that it can impact aircraft performance is not a skill that can be quickly learned in a two hour "mountain checkout." Without detracting for your story, there are two other points worth mentioning. The performance numbers are derived with a brand new aircraft/engine by test pilots and it doesn't take much on either the piloting or mechanical part of that equation to fall significantly short of those numbers. The second point is that you alluded to having a pre-determined go around point in the approach or landing. Absolutely essential for this kind of flying but I would also suggest an additional pre-determined "no go around" point. Many accidents have been caused by late go arounds. And the injuries and aircraft damage caused by hitting something on climbout or stalling are always far worse than going off the end of the runway. On some of the strips with challenging terrain or when flying very marginally performing airplanes, this commit to land point could even be prior to touchdown on approach. The old Hastings strip on Pender Island was an example of this.

- Great Article. Complacency is a pilots worst enemy. Here a good 100 Mile photo that gives substance to the challenges you experienced.
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