SAFA Skysailor Magazine

14 SKY SAILOR January | February 2021 Female Pilot Participation Increasing the female pilots participation in our flying sport (~5.6% in 2019/20) is a key deliverable in the NSWHPA’s strategic business plan. This aligns with the NSW Gov- ernment vision to increase female participation in all sports. The NSWHPA secured grants from the NSW Department of Sport to support the running of further female pilot events and to introduce more females to our sport. Unfor- tunately, due to the Covid-19 situation, all planned events had to be cancelled and as such are in the process of being rescheduled in the new financial year. The NSW Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Dear pilots, Next time you see a CoM member on the hill, please thank them for their volunteer work. Some are doing 10 or more hours every week to support their fellow NSW pilots and have done so for many years, so please say ‘Hi’ if you can. Even better, come and join the CoM to give back to the sport that gives us all so much pleasure. Weather Stations The NSWHPA has continued their program to provide live weather stations to NSW Clubs. Access to the live weather stations is via holfuy.com or the mobile app available for iOS/Android. More accurate weather information available at our NSW flying sites has been proven to increase pilot participation and safety in our sport. The NSWHPA is currently supporting 10 stations in NSW: Stanwell Park, Crackneck Lookout, Dixons Park, Lake St. Clair, Middle Brother, Monties and Long Reef. Stations at Forrester’s Beach, Mt. Blackheath and Possums are under maintenance and the NSWHPA is assisting the local clubs to return these station to service. Additional stations for the Central Coast, Mid North Coast and the new flying sites at Heaton State Forrest are currently under consideration. The NSWHPA encourages all associated clubs to approach the committee with proposals for suitable weather station locations at approved flying sites. Further, the NSWHPA financially supports a Windtalker located at Mt Elliot, Corryong, VIC , in a cooperative effort with the ACT and Victorian Association. The Mt Elliot flying site is frequently used by NSW free flying pilots as well as for HG and PG competitions. SAFA The NSWHPA has a good relationship and level of commu- nication with SAFA. SAFA provides transparent information on current members and the relevant funding (sport development levy paid by NSW pilots) collected on behalf of the NSWHPA. Communication through our official NSW State Represen- tative on the SAFA Committee (Phillip de la Hunty) enables strong cooperation and provides the NSWHPA with more insight on current activities within SAFA, and in turn gives SAFA visibility of the initiatives being driven by the NSWHPA. The NSWHPA continues to support SAFA with common goals to further develop the sport and to actively promote pilot development and safety. Moving Forward Based on recent membership analysis carried out by the NSWHPA (status June 2020), pilot numbers again slightly decreased over the last 12 months. With SAFA having a wealth of member data available, the NSWHPA is seeking their support in providing in-depth membership analysis with regards to membership develop- ment over recent years. Such information can help SAFA and all state organisations to identify trends and challenges in our sport. Better understanding pilot motivation and needs can assist in developing suitable action plans to tackle pilot retention and to increase participation in our sport in the long run. The NSWHPA is committed to continue their successful pilot and club support programs which further evolved over recent years. Sponsorship of pilot skills development and safety clinics, competitions encouragement (pilots and organisers), site maintenance and new site development continue to play an important part. The NSW Government’s plan to increase female partici- pation in sport aligns with the NSWHPA strategic goals and presents an opportunity to launch additional initiatives in the coming years.