Christchurch and District Model Flying Club
Sloping Off - our newsletter

Chairman’s chatter by Terry Antell

Hello Happy Members,

I presume you’re happy? Okay, perhaps not so excited with the Winter blues weather, me neither.

Your committee are having a busy time, acting out of view. Brian Brockway has been busy with all the membership renewals. Alan has also been involved keeping excellent bank account records, another busy time for accounts.

We have now varied our club bank account. It is now an online business account allowing the treasurer to look daily, if required, at our financial affairs. We still need two people to sign off any payments, hence no changes required to the Club Constitution. (all at zero charges).

Nothing has changed, just the treasurer doesn’t have to visit a bank branch to transact business items.

Now Alex Bush is back from Australia the Bits Box will come back into play at our Club Meetings. If you have ANY modelling items you really don’t use, could be hinges, screws, servos, even tools, then bring them along. Have a look through what’s there and take anything on offer. Small charges may be made and this all goes into club funds.

Our lock at Strawberry Field has been playing up on occasions. Sometimes not opening easily but mainly not closing shut properly. I have replaced it with a new one. The code number is the same. We’ll dip the old lock and see if we can get it operational again as a spare.

Terry White & I met Mr Brunt today, 24th February, at Corfe Mullen, time 2.30pm.

It was an excellent meeting and all went very well for slope soaring. Dorset Wildlife Trust were appreciative of the BMFA insurance. Particularly as it takes any liability from them in the unlikely event of an incident.

We may park off the BOAT, car nose into the bank. This agreed at the top end of the slope (where we normally park). This area isn’t within an SSSI (special site of scientific interest). Further along the slope Terry White paid £800 to have a gate installed two years ago. This area is within an SSSI. They, DWT, agree in principal to us parking the same as higher up but subject to Mr Brunt visiting site and reviewing.

We discussed flying on or over a site of SSSI and advised a BMFA outcome a few years ago where it was agreed model flying does not affect nesting birds. Their concern about flora & fauna would not be affected as the actual flying site we use isn’t on their land. We don’t land on the North side as this is the other side of the BOAT (Byway Open to All Traffic). We don’t actually fly from that side either. We fly Northerlies further along (new site started a couple of years ago). This isn’t on DWT land or an SSSI.

We were shown a copy of a Land Registry drawing dated 2009 where it shows DWT owning land both sides of the BOAT. This would have been sent to surrounding land owners at the time for their comments. No comments were forthcoming!

So, good news. 

We have agreed to ask flyers to put a piece of paper on their dashboard to identify their club or their BMFA Country Membership on their dashboard. This means the local warden shouldn’t bother us.

The area manager will have a quiet word with him (the warden) as we reported him as being ‘unfriendly’ and not likely to attract membership of the trust. 

May I remind ALL those who go slope soaring that Combat Flying is NOT allowed on the Picnic Site (Southerly slope). The Army have reported seeing combat flying at the picnic site. In fact ALL combat flying is frowned upon on any slopes we use. Your BMFA insurance would be null & void should an incident arise where a claim is made. It may well loose us all the use of any particular slope

Happy landings.

Terry