Members of Ponderosa Aero Club:
I just watched live as the Governor Little ordered everyone in Idaho to “stay-at-home” for 21 days, effective immediately. This applies to all non-essential workers. Despite our belief that a club member being close to a checkride means that we are essential, this is not how the governor sees it. I understand how frustrating this can be for many of you. Please understand that we have been doing as much as we could to keep you flying safely, and we will continue to do this in the future.
All reservations on MyFBO will be canceled with a maintenance block. Please do not dispatch aircraft nor meet at the Club. Staff and CFI’s will need to be at home and not at the Club. Please do not disregard this executive order by the governor.
On the more positive side, we should all be researching the available economic stimulus that was just passed by Congress. My understanding is that unemployment benefits are available and increased for “gig workers,” which I believe would include CFI’s.
Absent physically flying during this period, this can be a great opportunity to brush up on ground materials at home, stream commercial flight instruction videos online, or watch Top Gun (even if it is for the tenth time for some of us). We plan to have our Redbird TD2 flight simulator delivered to the Club as soon as the stay-at-home order is lifted. Prior to today, Emily has been spending time cleaning and polishing airplanes and SP has been at work making sure routine maintenance and upgrades are complete. Ponderosa will come out of this down time ready to fly again!
While much of this news might feel especially alarming, as it certainly affects people’s livelihood, a shutdown of the Club for three weeks is not unlike other temporary shutdowns of the past. We’ve had major challenges to our ability to dispatch during wildfire seasons, temporary flight restrictions, and we will never forget 911. We have had times with very limited or no flying for weeks at a time in the past, just as we are having it now. Together, we will weather this storm.
I will continue to email periodically to keep you apprised of any other major developments. Thank for for being patient and thank you for being a part of Ponderosa Aero Club!
Sincerely,
David Keil
GM, Ponderosa Aero Club