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Aircraft judging
If you’re interested in entering your aircraft for judging then you might find the judging manual interesting. All the information you need, including entry forms, is available inside the manual.
Ivor Link has written an interesting article just why you should enter your aircraft. It first appeared in EAA’s Crosswind Chronicle. It’s now included below.
Why enter my Pride and Joy?
Well – ? Your aircraft is just that –your pride and joy. Our passion for aircraft and flight is akin to nothing else on this earth. We tend our machines with all the doting of a new father and his newborn daughter. Eager to make this dream of flight in our very own machine, crafted with countless hours of commitment spent in solitude welding, riveting or working with smelly gooey chemicals – it all becomes worth it when finally the wheels first depart terra firma. But as you know, the caring never really ends – it just takes on a new dimension - when someone admires your "child" you rightfully feel proud! Judging is a way of presenting your pride and joy to the fraternity as a whole, but it goes much deeper than that!
The term “judging” has implications of metering out some form of punishment and our being under the critical eye of some officious individuals who are just looking to make your life "difficult"! – Nothing could be further from the truth in this case!
The whole idea of having your aircraft "judged" is to put an emphasis on safety and encourage improvements within the non-professional aircraft builders and restorers. The judging teams are made up of individuals who share your passion, but have a level of experience and training to assist you in seeing that your pride and joy is primarily safe and secondly to give you the deserved praise on your accomplishment.
The judging method is systemized so that fair and unbiased evaluation of all types of aircraft is based on measurable technical standards. We make sure that we follow world standards by following the example set out by the International Judging Standards Manual. Should you want it, the scoring is available to you after the awards presentation, but normally we require your presence at the aircraft when the judging takes place to remove cowlings etc. and potential issues are often pointed out at that time. The Judges are there to be of assistance to you and a fresh set of eyes may well provide that extra margin of confidence and pride in your creation. It has been our experience that the workmanship in this country is as high as any International Standard and therefore the past winners can be justifiably proud of their creations. Our job as judges is to encourage that standard to remain.
We would like to encourage you to bring your “Pride and Joy” along, enter it for judging and prove that building or restoring and flying your creation is an achievement beyond comparison.
article posted on 05 May 06 by Glen Wilson
