The 2018 MAA/CAA/BADA Pre-Season Flying Display Symposium will be held 14-15 February 2018 in the Tech School (previously the Defence Capability Centre) at the Defence Academy, Shrivenham.

Registration is now open for the 2018 Pre-Season Flying Display Symposium. For the event in February, the CAA will be responsible for registering all civilian delegates and will run on-line registration & payment from http://www.caa.co.uk/General-aviation/Displays,-events-and-activities/Display-symposia-events/

The aim of the symposium is to prepare those involved in the delivery of the 2018 display season.

The symposium will be workshop and clinic focused, allowing delegates to choose from a variety of subjects, depending on which are of most interest and use to them.

The workshops and clinics on offer will include the following (subject to change, depending on availability):

  • Pilots’ workshop
  • FDD workshop, including practical planning elements
  • EO workshop
  • Media and communications and the use of social media’ clinic
  • Local authority safety action groups (SAGs) 
  • CAA Clinic – what a good submission looks like
  • MAA clinic – military regulation and risk ownership 
  • Legal clinic 

The symposium will also have a number of briefs for all participants, including:

  • How Human Factors affect you
  • The effect of fatigue
  • Risk ownership and responsibility
  • CAA – regulation amendments for 2018
  • MAA – regulation changes for 2018 

The change in registration procedure is only a process change but it makes sustaining the BADA member discount difficult.  To ensure we continue to offer our members value for money for their subsription, on Saturday 21 April 2018 we will launch the first of a new annual BADA event.  This will focus specifically on Event Organisation, Safety and Security and include a showcase forum so display pilots, aircraft operators, organisers, emergency services, traders and all the other providers who are vital to a successful event can show off their wares.   Plans are already afoot to incorporate live FDD training/tier upgrades in 2019, as well as invites to external speakers … and all with no increase in membership fee (’til further notice).

The new event is not a direct replacement for the Pre-Season and Post-Season Symposia, where BADA will continue to support CAA and MAA.  However, it will address areas and activity that are not possible at Shrivenham but are vital for the long term success of the UK’s air display community such as nurturing new talent and new airshows.