WORTH THE READ: CHRIS NUGENT GUEST EDITORIAL

Our many RAF supporters have such vast and varied experience, and we’re capturing some of their words of wisdom to share with you. This guest editorial is by Chris Nugent,  Arizona Pilots Association President and RAF Supporter.

I hope some of you have had the opportunity to enjoy the winter flying season in Arizona. The weather is spectacular, which allows us to get out and enjoy some of the backcountry airstrips like Double Circle Ranch, Pleasant Valley, and Grapevine Airstrip. They truly are special places and are the product of a lot of volunteer sweat equity and the partnership between the RAF, Arizona Pilots Association, and the US Forest Service.

 
My home base is a municipal airport in the Phoenix suburbs with hard surface runways and a control tower. It’s certainly not one of the special places we love in the backcountry, but it has a strong general aviation community with a lot of history, and it provides everything I need to keep my airplane safe from the elements and in flying trim. So, you might say I have my feet in two camps – part-time hard surface aviator and part-time backcountry aviator.

 
Even if you are relatively new to flying, you know that general aviation and municipal airports are facing a broad set of challenges. We’ve seen a lot of these challenges before, like residential encroachment and the resulting complaints about aircraft noise and more recently, concerns about lead pollution from aviation fuel. Some are new, like the conflict with municipal airports using ADS-B to collect fees.

 
Unfortunately, all these issues have recently converged at my home airport, and the local municipality that operates the airport has chosen to implement significant operational changes, including charging landing fees for based aircraft. Decisions like these set a broad precedent for general aviation nationwide, and as you might expect, the interactions between the city and local aviation community have been difficult. I could write volumes about how this all unfolded, but they have been written before at other times at different airports in the US.

 
What I will offer is that strong advocacy by the general aviation community as a whole is paramount. This is why national organizations like The RAF and AOPA, and the local and state organizations, like the Arizona Pilots Association, are important in representing the shared interests of the general aviation community. The outcomes are not guaranteed, but as my dad always told me, just showing up is 90% of being successful.

If you’re wondering what “showing up” looks like in practical terms, here are a few thoughts:

• Join and stay current with a national advocacy group, like The RAF and AOPA, and your local pilot association. Membership numbers and engagement matter to airports and legislators.
• Make the effort to attend airport advisory board or city council meetings when airport items are on the agenda - calm, factual, and respectful voices make a difference.
• Volunteer at special events and with local aviation organizations – a little personal effort helps build credibility and community.
• Support good-neighbor flying: fly noise-abatement procedures and help newer pilots learn local best practices.
• Tell the airport’s story and what it does to contribute to the community - invite a neighbor to see what happens on the field and why it matters.
  

Advocacy is a team sport—leveraging these relationships and investing volunteer sweat equity are key to preserving access to the hard surface places we call municipal airports, and by extension, the backcountry.

Although Chris is a relatively new pilot, he has been involved in aviation and aerospace for the past 40 years and recently retired as Vice President of Engineering for an aerospace company that designs and manufactures safety systems for military aircraft and launch vehicles. He currently serves as President of the Arizona Pilots Association and bases his Carbon Cub at Mesa’s Falcon Field.

Submitted April 24, 2026

Posted in Guest Editorial, News