By CJP Chairman Mark Aloe

As the calendar counts down to the start of a New Year, we’re also marking something of a new beginning for CJP. I want to share some thoughts about what I intend to bring to our association as your new chairman.

First, I want to thank our outgoing chairman, Ed Turley, who so adeptly led CJP as it grew from an informal gathering of Citation pilots into one of the most highly regarded and well-respected owner/pilot associations worldwide. I also want to acknowledge the significant contributions made by our Treasurer, Tracy Forrest; be it through his charitable work or his behind-the-scenes efforts in evolving our organization, CJP simply could not have become what it is today without him.

As you know, our significant growth as an association over the past five years created an enterprise that was increasingly difficult to maintain on an all-volunteer basis. That is why we named our first Executive Director, Lt. Col. Jon “Huggy” Huggins, to assist us in growing our association over the next five years.

Above all, it is my goal as CJP chairman to assist Col. Huggins with our transition from a chairman/president-led organization, to a new model in which the executive director is involved in every aspect of the association.

Without question, Col. Huggins’ experience with leadership and airmanship will bring new ideas and professionalism to our association. However, I also want CJP Members involved in helping chart this course and I invite all of you to get in touch with Col. Huggins and share your ideas.

Another goal of mine is to establish more direct and concise routes of communication to the membership. To this end, in addition to our bimonthly newsletter we will also be sending out more email blasts, as well as printed materials including helpful operational and safety tips, and information directly from manufacturers and providers.

Sharing additional resources that CJP Members may utilize in strengthening their emphasis on safety is also a key focus. This includes not only maintaining safe operations while inflight, but also utilizing safe and efficient procedures while on the ground.

It is imperative that we not forego scheduled maintenance and inspections, or defer vital maintenance to the next cycle. When we had 105 Citations on the ramp at Lewisburg during our 2014 Convention last September, I was heartened that Cessna representatives stated that we kept their two mobile service units busy performing scheduled maintenance and on-field repairs.

This focus on safety also includes addressing immediate safety issues, and lessons that we may draw from recent incidents. One example of this was the session at the Greenbrier devoted to hypoxia education and awareness following two highly publicized mishaps attributed to its effects.

Facilitating additional member involvement in CJP’s charitable activities is also important. As you will read in this issue of Flight Levels, CJP collaborated with the Bob Hoover Legacy Foundation in awarding four Bob Hoover Presidential Scholarships to students attending Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). The CJP Charitable Committee is now finalizing their budget for 2015, and I look forward to sharing their recommendations shortly.

My tenure as your chairman will also oversee the launch of the Russ Meyer Citation Library, a vital online reference tool for our Members. In conjunction with improvements already underway to our association’s website, I expect CJP will soon be known not only within the Citation community as the leading resource for Citation pilots, but as an example for other aviation groups to follow, as well.

This really is an exciting time to be involved with CJP. I look forward to meeting with our Members, and speaking more about these and other initiatives at our first CJP regional event of 2015, to be held on January 15-18, 2015 in breathtaking Park City, UT.

If you have not yet attended a CJP regional event, I can’t think of a better and more exhilarating venue to be introduced to this valuable educational and recreational gathering than Park City! I look forward to seeing you there, where we may join friends new and old, from all over the world, to celebrate in the fresh mountain air how far we have come over the past five years.