Chula Vista Model & Radio Control Club

Last Saturday's Float Fly was well attended and I'd say a big success. Hope everyone had a great time. Maybe next year we'll be able to go back to doing things as normal. Most photos sent in by Mr. David Ascencio (Thanks!) and a few by me.

We've negotiated as far as we could with the letter of agreement with Ream Field, so it is now in the hands of the Navy for their final review. Once their command gives them the OK, they'll send it to me for electronic signature, and it will be done! Note, this is not finalized yet, so there is still NO FLYING MONDAY THRU FRIDAY until the LOA is approved. There will be training involved for all of us, as we were unable to remove the weather restrictions the Navy wants. ...So be prepared that if you want to fly when Ream Field is open (Generally Monday thru Friday) you have to call them for 3 pieces of information: 1) Notify them you'll be flying. 2) They'll let you know if the weather is above their minimums. (VFR at Ream & CVMRCC) 3) Give them your number to call if weather conditions fall below VFR or any other reason we need to stop flying. We really only need to call when flying begins and ends, so it's first guy in calls to tell them we're starting, last guy out calls to tell them we're done. They always need a contact number of someone at the field while we're flying, so if the person who left them a contact number leaves, we must call and give them the number of someone else who is staying. Our altitude limit is now 400 feet. It won't be like before when you could call Ream Field and get approval to fly higher. If you've been following what's going on now that we've fallen under the FAA, they want to keep all recreational SUAS below 400 feet. There have been very few exceptions so far, which involved clubs submitting a risk management assessment. I think only three of them have been approved so far. Something for us to look for in the future, although there is still also the Remote ID thing looming on the horizon, so there are more changes ahead. Our hobby is evolving. Be prepared. That's the basic run-down of it. There'll be more details and some official training paperwork when we get the final LOA. How long will the Navy take with their review? I have no idea. Hopefully it's very quick. In other news, I've seen they have opened the reservoirs to the public for certain activities again. I don't know yet if we are included, but we're trying to find out. The next Float Fly is scheduled for June 24th. Hopefully it can happen!

Good news, everyone! Phase one of the field cleanup is complete! The field officially re-opens this coming Saturday, May 9th for WEEKEND FLYING ONLY. NO FLYING MONDAY THRU FRIDAY YET UNTIL THE LOA IS COMPLETED. We had a good showing of members to help clean. (Just under the 10 person gathering limit!) And they were like Energizer Bunnies, just kept going and going, even when I was spent and could hardly go on, these guys kept at it. I'll get their names in the next newsletter.... There's still a hitch in the LOA we're trying to get settled. And there will be some training we will all need regarding requirements for calling Ream Field, always providing them with a contact number of someone flying, and possibly weather requirements. (The weather is what we're working on, as we feel it is unnecessarily restrictive.) Of course, when you come to the field, remember the city's social distancing and mask requirements. But at least we can go fly again! See you there Saturday. I'm bringing my Apprentice so I can learn how to fly again! See more

The Float Fly scheduled for Wednesday, April 22nd has been canceled. Due to the pandemic and social distancing requirements, as well as all San Diego parks have been closed. The next Float Fly is scheduled for June 24th. Hopefully things will be normal enough again for it to be held as scheduled. Hope you are all staying safe.

Club member Terry Morgan sent me this photo from the field yesterday (Saturday Apr 11) after the recent rains. I'm surprised it wasn't worse. The access road is under water.

Just a quick update: We have sent our reply to Ream Field with requests for changes in the LOA draft they sent us. I don't want to go into details now, while I was very pleased they gave us a 400 foot ceiling, but other items would have been unrealistic or impossible for us to comply with, and very burdensome to them and us. Awaiting a response. I still want to see the LOA going in a good direction before we start the cleanup. Even then, now we have to see how long the pandemic will go on. I wouldn't want us getting fined for gathering or being out for something not considered essential. I hope you all are doing well and staying healthy in these trying times.

Only 2 weeks until the end of commenting on the FAA Remote ID NPRM! Have you sent your comments yet? I have, and sent emails to my senators and congressman. https://youtu.be/OrdcY5izUtE

An overdue update on our LOA situation. About a week ago I received an email from the FAA's air traffic representative to the DOD. He informed me they are working on our LOA with Ream Field, and I should be expecting to hear from them again in about two weeks for comments and to set a date for implementation. So there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel! Now we have to start looking at a major cleanup effort.

Nice to see some full-scale support for traditional RC modelers in response to the FAA remote ID NPRM. https://eaa.org//01-16-2020-Proposed-Remote-ID-Rule-Contai

Field closure: The field has been closed by Ream Field since Monday afternoon due to new FAA regulations regarding our LOA (Letter of Agreement) with Ream Field. I am currently working towards resolving the issue ASAP. I was slow getting this message up on Facebook, but I will promptly post when this issue is resolved. I've had some positive news today, hopefully this will be fixed before we even get a chance to clean up after the rains. Meanwhile the CVMRCC flying field is closed to any RC flying. You will be risking action from the FAA if you fly there now. The LAANC system cannot be used to obtain flying clearance as we are in a 0 foot altitude area on the FAA UAS Data Delivery Service map, and the Navy (Ream Field) does not recognize the LAANC system.

Some news from the FAA on the upcoming tests. https://www.faa.gov/news/updates/?newsId=94805