From Flying Season to AZM Season: Building MAAC’s Future Together

October 5, 2026

We are already halfway through our Annual Zone Meeting (AZM) season, and 10 of our 12 Zones are now online and ready for members to cast their votes.

For many of us, AZM season also means that another flying season is coming to an end. Well… maybe not for everyone!

For me, this summer was certainly one of the best flying seasons I have had in the last three years. I was fortunate enough to attend several MAAC events as a pilot, and YES, I did fly!

At the beginning of the summer, I also asked our Zone Directors to avoid formal Board meetings whenever possible and spend that time where it mattered most: with their Zones, clubs and members.

Go fly, whatever you fly, but also listen to our members. Hear their thoughts and ideas, but also their fears and concerns. That connection with our membership is extremely important as we continue moving MAAC forward.

That does not mean MAAC stopped working. Quite the opposite. A significant amount of work continued behind the scenes throughout the summer.

A Busy Summer Behind the Scenes

One of our biggest projects was MAAC’s response to Transport Canada’s NPA 2026-005, covering important subjects such as Community-Based Organizations (CBO), Remote/Digital ID and Designated Airspace.

This work is important because it may help define how organized aeromodelling operates in Canada in the years ahead.

We also continued improving the MAAC Event approval process. The required controls remain in place:

Zone Review → SOC Review → President Final Approval

What has changed is how much easier the information is to review and validate through MAAC.ca 2.0.

Now we are beginning to apply the same philosophy to another major area: our flying sites.

From “Airfields” to “Locations”

You may soon notice a change in terminology on MAAC.ca: Airfields are becoming Locations.

This is part of a much larger project that began in 2024, when we started transforming MAAC.ca from primarily a website and membership/financial system into a true MAAC web portal capable of managing Locations, Events, approvals and regulatory information.

Why change the terminology?

Quite simply, not every place where MAAC members gather is an airfield.

We have outdoor flying fields, indoor flying sites, Control Line circles, Free Flight sites, rocket sites, classrooms, meeting rooms, exhibition halls and many other places where sanctioned MAAC activities can occur.

Calling all of them “Airfields” simply does not make sense. It can also create confusion for our regulatory partners, including Transport Canada, when reviewing our database or lists of approved sites.

Our database structure is therefore evolving toward:

CLUB → LOCATION → FLYING / NON-FLYING LOCATION

For existing clubs, this does not mean your airfield suddenly becomes something different. Its history and approvals remain. Location is simply the broader term that allows MAAC.ca to properly represent all the places where our activities take place.

What Does This Mean for Members?

This is where it gets interesting.

The information we are adding today is not only for administration or regulatory purposes.

During the winter, we expect to begin making this information useful directly to members through search and filtering tools on MAAC.ca.

Imagine being able to search for a MAAC Location based on what you want to do: a site that permits jets, has a grass or hard-surface runway, supports Control Line or another activity, offers camping, or meets other criteria important to you.

The objective is to turn our Location database into a tool that helps members find places to enjoy aeromodelling, while also giving clubs better tools to manage their approved activities.

And Yes… More Acronyms!

SOC, SORA, SFOC, CBO, ASAG, DART…

We use many acronyms, and I recognize that they are not always easy for members to understand. We need to do a better job of explaining them as we use them.

Here are a few you will increasingly encounter:

SOC – Site Operating Certificate
A MAAC document identifying the operating conditions applicable to a Location.

SORA – Specific Operations Risk Assessment
A structured risk-assessment process used when an operation requires additional analysis beyond normal or predefined operating conditions, such as operations above MAAC’s standard altitude or weight limits.

SFOC / COAS – Special Flight Operations Certificate / Certificat d’opérations aériennes spécialisées
An authorization issued by Transport Canada for specific operations, subject to the conditions contained in the certificate.

ASAG – Aeromodelling Strategy Advisory Group
A MAAC advisory group established to help prepare for the future of aeromodelling in Canada. ASAG monitors regulatory developments, evaluates their potential impact on MAAC and provides strategic advice to the President and Board of Directors.

DART – Dispute Assessment and Resolution Team
MAAC’s process for reviewing and addressing certain complaints and disputes in accordance with our governance policies and procedures.

CBO – Community-Based Organization
A proposed framework under Transport Canada’s NPA 2026-005 that could recognize qualifying organizations such as MAAC and allow them to take on defined responsibilities for their members and operations under an approved framework.

For MAAC, becoming a CBO could provide a more appropriate regulatory path for traditional aeromodelling while allowing Transport Canada and MAAC to clearly define their respective responsibilities.

There is still a lot to be determined before the CBO framework becomes reality, and MAAC continues to participate actively in that process.

We will continue explaining these terms as they become relevant rather than expecting everyone to become a regulatory expert!

Cleaning Up Today, Preparing for Tomorrow

There is another benefit already happening.

As we work through our database, we are finding older “airfield” records that have remained in Pending Approval status, sometimes for years, and in some cases we are not even certain whether the site still exists.

Cleaning those records and improving the quality of our national Location database is important, particularly as MAAC prepares for the potential future CBO framework.

There is some housekeeping involved today, but it is preparing us for where we need to be tomorrow.

In the meantime, participate in your AZM, cast your vote, stay involved with your Zone, and if the weather still allows, go fly!

What’s Next?

At the end of the AZM season, we will know the composition of our Board of Directors for the coming year.

Before looking ahead, however, I want to sincerely thank every member of our current Board, our volunteers, and everyone who has contributed their time and energy to MAAC this year.

It has certainly been an interesting and, at times, challenging year. I don’t necessarily see that as a negative.

We have had some difficult discussions and some difficult moments, but we have also learned, adapted and grown together.

Most importantly, I believe the work accomplished this year has moved the Canadian aeromodelling community toward a stronger, more practical and more sustainable environment in which to enjoy our hobby.

There is still work to do, but we are moving forward. Several important initiatives are already underway for the year ahead, including one of our most important priorities: growing and strengthening MAAC’s membership.

Preparing the Board for the Year Ahead

In November, the new Board will meet in a closed working session to complete several important governance responsibilities and prepare MAAC for the coming year.

President – The Board elects the President every two years. Yes, this is one of those years.

Vice-President / DART Chair – The Vice-President is elected annually from among the elected Directors and also serves as Chair of DART. The Vice-President continues to serve as a Zone Director while also assuming this national role.

Executive Committee – Three additional Directors are selected to serve alongside the President and Vice-President, forming MAAC’s Executive Committee. The Executive helps oversee MAAC’s day-to-day operations between Board meetings.

The Board will also review and approve our Advisory Groups, including their mandates, Chairs and participants for the coming year.

Our Committees work somewhat differently. Committee members are appointed through their respective Zones, and the committee members select their own Chair.

All of this is part of the transition from one MAAC year to the next, bringing together the people elected by our members and preparing the organization for the work ahead.

The flying season may be winding down for many of us, but MAAC’s work certainly isn’t.

There is plenty happening, and plenty more to come.

Stay involved. Stay informed. And keep flying.

Alain Carpentier
President
Model Aeronautics Association of Canada (MAAC)