Questions, thoughts, feedback?

The recent “blow-up” on WhatsApp regarding the EHN weather station reveals the need for a structured approach to airing any dissatisfaction members might have with the Association or the committee.

We, the committee, know that we don’t always get things right. We are all human. We are all volunteers. We all have other things we'd rather do than manage a sporting association, but we do it because we want to help people enjoy the sport.

Our website, since its inception, has stated “We are strong believers in building an inviting, supportive and friendly club culture”, but we now have the situation where people are leaving chat groups because of the direction discussions ended up taking. This is not the kind of community we want. It doesn’t do anyone any good to witness arguing, criticism or finger-pointing.

Much of what was brought up in that WhatsApp chat as criticisms – about the location of weather stations in this case - had already been decided and voted on, but the opponents in the discussion were unaware of this. A quick email or call to the committee could have clarified it and avoided the tension entirely.

I’m sure that won’t be the last time someone thinks we should do things differently or better. We are a diverse bunch of – growing in number all the time – which brings with it diversity of thinking and a growing number of opinions.

If you are dissatisfied or have a suggestion, we want to hear it. We are trying hard to avoid the mistakes of the past.

If you feel you’d like to raise an issue the first step is to approach the committee through info@thpa.org.au , or even call a committee member to discuss it to see if something can be done about it. We are completely open to taking suggestions, feedback and criticisms, and even encourage it. Our names and numbers are on the website once you log in https://www.thpa.org.au/tas-pilot-list/

If you feel the issue hasn’t been adequately dealt with, you can ask for a general meeting to be held to discuss it with all members. This allows everyone with an interest to be present at the same time and have an open discussion, which isn’t always the case with using messaging like WhatsApp, as many members do not follow the chats at all, or some people might be away, have chats muted, or be unaware discussion is happening.

Face to face discussion is more civil and streamlined, which makes a sticky topic more pleasant and ultimately results in more success in reaching an outcome.

The committee are always keen to improve things for members. We are doing the best we can manage, within the limits of our time available. Being publicly criticised “was not in the brochure” when we put our hands up for the role. We are more than happy to listen and act when requests are delivered in a courteous manner.

And hopefully the end result is that flying becomes even better for all of us.