As you may recall, we complete the yearly election for the APA Board of Directors at our Annual Meeting in the May timeframe. All BOD positions are filled by volunteers for three-year terms which are staggered to ensure board continuity. We’re extremely fortunate to have a great team of dedicated volunteers and I know that each of them works hard to ensure that APA remains the voice of general aviation in Arizona.
Here’s a summary of the APA elected officers, directors, and committee members for 2026 – 2027.
Officers
President Chris Nugent
Vice President Mark Spencer
Vice President Tommy Thomason
Secretary Diana Andresen
Treasurer Stefanie Spencer
Directors
Executive Director Jim Timm
Advocacy Mike McCann
Sponsorship, Backcountry Rick Bosshardt
FlyAZ Passport Program Trent Heidtke
Grapevine Maintenance Coordinator Mike Andresen
Director at Large Brian Schober
Committees
Grapevine Host Coordinator Leanne Tawoda
Scholarship Program Andrew Vogoney
Day Trip Coordinator Mike McCann
Weekend Getaways Coordinator Open
As we reported at the Annual Meeting, we are still looking for a Weekend Getaway Coordinator. We can’t thank Rod Kunkel enough for the great job he did planning and coordinating the Getaways. If you or someone you know is interested, please reach out to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
If you have been keeping up with the aviation news you will have undoubtedly seen a number of articles related to the proposed landing fees at Falcon Field. Although the city has indicated that they have chosen to delay the implementation of the fees until 30 July to allow installation of a third-party landing tracking system, they have also acknowledged that the FAA asked that the city not implement the fees until the agency can complete an investigation of the fee program. You can find the FAA’s first letter to the city here.
As this edition of the newsletter goes to print, the fee program is the subject of a federal lawsuit filed two of the major flight schools based at Falcon, CAE Academy and Thrust Flight, and at least two FAA Part 13 Complaints from airport tenants. As part of the investigation into these complaints, the FAA has asked for extensive documentation covering airport governance, revenues, and financials. In addition to details of the Airport Pavement Maintenance Plan (PMP) including actual and projected costs and details related to aircraft operations.
We will be sure to keep you posted on any new information on the status of the FAA investigation(s). However, it appears that implementation of the overall fee program for Falcon Field may be delayed further or may ultimately not survive in its current form.
I also must report that Arizona House Bill HB2210 aimed at prohibiting the collection of fees from aircraft owners and operators using ADS-B, did not gain enough support this legislative session to go to the full Senate for a final vote. We had strong support from GA advocates including Senators David Farnsworth and Wendy Rogers; however, the Arizona Airports Association (AzAA) and the League of Arizona Cities and Towns lobbied the legislators very heavily to oppose HB2210 arguing that airports need to retain the right to use ADS-B as a tool to collect fees. This of course ignores the intent of the original ADS-B mandate to improve safety and efficiency in the National Airspace System (NAS).
APA, the Aviation Safety Advisory Group of Arizona (ASAG), and AOPA are already working to get this bill reintroduced in the 2027 legislature and we will continue to support similar national legislation making its way through Congress. We’ll keep you posted.
In closing for this month, I wanted to pass on the news that the 2026 cycle of the APA Scholarship program is open with applications due 31 October 2026. The Scholarship program is an important part of APA’s mission in helping to build the next generation of Arizona aviation professionals. If you or anyone you know is interested, please go to our website for details and on-line application link.
Thank you for supporting APA’s mission through your membership, and please feel free to reach out to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you have any comments, questions or concerns.
Fly Safe,
Chris