AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2024 - 16

ON COURSE
Great value
Your membership can pay for itself-
here's how
BY KOLLIN STAGNITO / Editor in Chief
AOPA Foundation Legacy Society member
THANK YOU FOR being an AOPA member. You make AOPA possible,
and the work we do to keep general aviation thriving and safe is
done with you in mind. We value your membership, and every
month the publications team creates content for AOPA Pilot
magazine highlighting the ways we're working to bring value to
your membership.
For example, the " Action " section features AOPA's federal and
state advocacy on general aviation and airport issues. We spotlight
both concerns and successes, so you know AOPA's team in
Washington, D.C., and across the country, are working every day
on your behalf with one goal-to protect your freedom to fly.
" Tips from PIC " provides a brief insight from AOPA's Pilot
Information Center, a team of pilots, CFIs, A&Ps, and medical staff
who can answer just about any GA question you can think of. They
answer thousands of member calls each month and are right here
in AOPA's Frederick, Maryland, headquarters.
The " Fly with AOPA " section reviews the many member
benefits, products, and services exclusively for AOPA members and
provides safety tips from the AOPA Air Safety Institute whose sole
mission is to continually improve the GA safety record through
effective tools and education. ASI's videos and online content are
viewed more than 10 million times per year.
Advocacy, safety, information, the stories you are reading now,
and so much more are all part of the value proposition of being
an AOPA member. For many-particularly active pilots-that is
a solid value for the annual dues they pay. But others, perhaps
those who are not currently flying (and that included me for more
than 10 years a while back), want a better return on their annual
investment with AOPA-and we hear you.
In September we announced deals and offers from a new group
of Benefit Sponsors (see " Exclusively for You, " November 2024
AOPA Pilot). These companies, along with AOPA Partners, have
stepped up to offer discounts and benefits available only to AOPA
members. And if you take advantage of just a few of them during
the course of the year, you could easily recoup the cost of your
annual AOPA membership. Here are a few examples.
Looking for high-quality, pilot-specific gear and apparel?
Flight Outfitters, a pilot-owned gear company exclusively for
aviators, is offering members free shipping on all orders. Let's say
shipping would have cost $10.
16
AOPA PILOT / December 2024
If you travel a lot, and many pilots do, Wyndham hotels,
the world's largest hotel franchiser with brands ranging from
La Quinta to the Wyndham Grand, is offering members discounted
rates at its 9,100 hotels worldwide. One hotel night might save
you $10.
Like to watch cool airplane videos? I know I do. You can save
$20 off an annual subscription to Aeroverse, an innovative aviation
streaming media service, which not only features everything from
warbirds and biplanes to helicopters and seaplanes, but offers the
videos commercial-free.
Have some packages to ship around the holiday? FedEx
is offering AOPA members a 45-percent discount on express
shipments and a 25-percent discount on ground. Shipping is
expensive these days, and this discount could easily save you $20
in the next few months.
Perhaps you're moving something large. Members can save
20-percent on a Budget Truck Rental. Let's call that $20 saved
over a weekend move. Both FedEx and Budget are iconic brands
that deliver quality services.
If you need to get current and get flying, Sporty's Flight Review
Course is available to members for 25-percent off-a $12.50 value.
Sporty's is another pilot-owned company we have always been
proud to partner with, and you know you can count on their
products and services.
I could continue to add up the savings because we have 22
Partners and Benefit Sponsors, and more Benefit Sponsors are
joining each month, but I hope you get the point. My calculations
add up to $92.50 in potential savings on purchases you could make
in a month or year. I think you can see how easy it would be to
take advantage of enough of these offers to " pay for " your annual
AOPA membership.
We want you to feel that renewing your membership is an
easy decision because-beyond the media, advocacy, safety,
training, information, and members
services-membership in AOPA can
pay for itself and is a great value.
You can find AOPA member
benefits, discounts, and offers at
aopa.org/lifestyles.
kollin.stagnito@aopa.org
KOLLIN STAGNITO,
AOPA senior vice
president of media,
is a commercial pilot,
ground instructor, and
owner of a Cessna 170B.
http://www.aopa.org/lifestyles
AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - December 2024
