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Who, and What are the W.A.S.P.S.

today?

   The capital letters W.A.S.P.S.  form an acronym for "Wellsville Area Small Plane Society."  This is the name of our model airplane club.  It was submitted by charter member Steve Sanders and was adopted by the club at an early meeting.

    The W.A.S.P.S. promote the design, construction, and flying of all types of model aviation.  Members practice an and all phases of model flying.  We have members engaged in hand launched gliders, free flight, both sport and scale aircraft, giant scale, pattern, etc....  Any and all branches of model aviation is encouraged here.

    Several members are qualified R/C instructors and will gladly assist you in learning to fly R/C airplanes.   Construction advice is always available from any member.  You need not be an experienced builder/flier to be a member.  Membership is open to anyone, regardless of age, ethnicity, or gender.  All we require is that you are genuinely interested in our hobby.  All "flying" members must also belong to the national organization of which we are chartered under, the Academy of Model Aeronautics.  The AMA is an American affiliate of the world governing body for sport aviation, the Federal Aeronautique Internationale. 

    The AMA provides us with insurance and represents the modeling community in such matters as radio frequency allocation.   It is the official American record keeper of model aircraft accomplishment.   Regional and national, as well as international contests are held periodically.   The AMA also publishes a monthly magazine, Model Aviation, free to all AMA members

    WASPS meetings are held monthly at the flying site in the FOS during the summer months, and currently at the Trinity Lutheran Church on North Main Street in Wellsville during the cold winter months.  Visitors as well as members are cordially invited to all meetings, currently held at 7:00PM every second Tuesday of each month.

    Able bodied members are required to do their part in keeping the flying field properly mowed.  This usually involves partaking part in a mowing team of several members  three to four times a year. (generally from May to October)

    Annual dues are structured in a fashion that a Junior and Additional Flying Members are less.  Associate membership is available to students in area colleges.  Associate members do however need to belong to AMA.  They are otherwise subject to most membership requirements and are encouraged to take an active part in club activities when possible.  We also have non-flying memberships for 'social members' that do not fly, but want to be affiliated with the WASPS.  A 'social member' does not require AMA membership, but it is understood he/she cannot partake in model flying at the field.  For details, obtain a copy of the constitution and by-laws from the club secretary.

Who are we today?

Current club elected officials are as follows:

Model Aviation - What does it cost?

    To be a flying member of the W.A.S.P.S., you must pay annual membership dues to the club (currently $40.00 per year) and to the AMA.  Junior and Additional family member dues are less

    The cost of the aircraft, supplies, and support equipment varies, depending on what you choose.  Balsa gliders begin at $1.00 and can be bought at any grocery store and most department stores.  A beginner's Radio Controlled airplane will cost approximately $350+.  Very large, complex radio controlled aircraft can easily exceed thousands of dollars.

    There are many other items that are "nice to have" such as a flight box, extra parts, tachometer, voltmeter, etc... but are not essential for the initial investment.  If you are new to the hobby, you'll have the opportunity for a qualified instructor to aid your learning, and he/she will have that kind of equipment on-hand anyway.

Want to start a new hobby?

We welcome all inquiries from any and all interested persons.  Join a civic minded group which holds an annual canned food drive at Christmas, provides a subscription of Model Aviation magazine to the local library, and has put otherwise unused village wasteland to good, wholesome use.

We enjoy having what we call "fun fly's" with neighboring clubs; visiting fields for the same purpose, having family and friends come up for cook-outs and contests, an annual awards banquet that's always a real treat, winter meetings with interesting programs, and the good camaraderie of fellow fliers at the 'WASPS Nest." 

Visitors are always welcome at our field during the flying season.  While you're there, ask questions, watch a few flights, check over the planes in the pits, and you may just get hooked like the rest of us!!