THE 152 GROUP MEMBERSHIP RULES
REVISED SEPTEMBER 2022
Objective
The objective of The 152 Group (hereinafter referred to as the Group) is to provide economic recreational flying for the Members. While some Members may use the aircraft as personal transport in association with their professional activities, the Group’s aircraft are not equipped, certificated or insured for any commercial aviation activity and this forms no part of the objective of the Group.
Principal Assets
The Group operates two aircraft: a Cessna 152 II, GBRTD and a PA28-161 Warrior, GBJBW. Both aircraft are operated under an EASA Certificate of Airworthiness validated annually with an Airworthiness Review Certificate (ARC) in the Private Category. Members may hold a share in one or both aircraft. The maximum number of shareholders in each aircraft is limited, by law, to twenty.
Basis of Operation of the Group
The Group can operate successfully only with the mutual co-operation and shared attitudes of all the members. This means that all accept the views of the majority of the members concerned, even if individual preferences would be to order matters differently. If any individual member feels so strongly about a particular aspect of the way the Group is run that it may not be acceptable to him or her, then it is for the individual to decide to tolerate the perceived constraints or to resign his or her membership of the Group.
Members’ Responsibilities
All Members are Shareholders in the Group. They are joint owners of one or both aircraft, related spares, other equipment and the relevant cash in the Group’s account, together with Group assets not related to a specific aircraft. They are also jointly responsible for any debts or other liabilities incurred by the Group or by elected Committee Members acting on behalf of the Group. Where such debt or liability is specific to a particular aircraft then the joint responsibility falls only on the shareholders in that aircraft.
Committee
1. The day-to-day running of the Group is entrusted to an elected Committee of the Members, which meets every two months. There are five members of the Committee: Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Maintenance Member and Documentation Member In the event of tied votes in the Committee or Group meetings the Chairman has the right to cast a deciding vote or to refrain from casting a vote at his or her option.
2. The Committee is elected each year at the Annual General Meeting. Nominations for election are to be proposed and seconded by two Members of the Group. Serving members of the Committee may offer themselves for re-election without further nomination.
Membership
3. Potential new Members will be vetted by two or more members of the Committee. This vetting process will include a flight check by a suitably qualified Flight Instructor or Class Rating Instructor (FI/CRI) nominated by the committee. New members will be accepted only on the approval of the Committee members and the nominated FI/CRI.
4. A Member who wishes to leave the Group will remain responsible for the monthly subscription until a new Member has been accepted in his or her place. The Member leaving will be responsible for all the expenses incurred in finding a replacement Member. The proceeds of the sale of the Member’s share will be made to the Group and the vendor will receive the full sale price less any outstanding liabilities to the Group.
5. The Committee will declare each year the nominal asset value of shares in the Group. This will be based on the value of each aircraft and other assets owned by the Group. This value may be notified to potential new Members after any check flight, and only if they request it, but, apart from exceptional circumstances agreed by the Committee, it is for the vendor to negotiate the actual sale price with the purchaser.
6. Should any Member be in arrears of flying payments or monthly subscriptions and fail to make up the arrears within a reasonable time of being so notified, the Committee may suspend the individual’s membership and, after notifying other Members of the Group, take action to terminate the individual’s membership in accordance with Rule 9 below.
7. Where in the opinion of the Committee a Member commits a serious breach of airmanship to the extent that it causes an actual or potential hazard to the aircraft, passengers, persons on the ground or to property, the Committee may suspend the Member and, after considering any statements made by the Member in mitigation, may take action to terminate the individual’s membership in accordance with Rule 9 below. Should termination action not be taken the Committee may warn the Member of the consequences of any repetition.
8. Should a Member act in a way which the Committee believes is against the interests of the Group or if any Member finds the conduct or behaviour of another Member incompatible with the co-operative nature of the Group as set out in the Basis of Operation above, then a proposal to terminate that Member’s membership may be put to a meeting of all the Members of the Group. The Member concerned shall have the opportunity to reply to any allegations made concerning conduct or behaviour. Following this the proposal for termination of membership will be put to a vote of all Members. If the vote is passed by a simple majority of those present AND by at least 50% plus one of the Group’s membership, for which postal votes will be accepted, then the Committee will suspend the Member concerned, who will be required to resign from the Group and surrender his or her keys to the aircraft.
9. Where termination of membership is decided under Rules 6, 7 or 8 above the Member concerned will surrender his or her aircraft keys to the Committee and the Committee will put the share(s) up for sale at the value(s) declared under Rule 5 above and on completion of the sale(s), which may be at less than the offer price, pass the proceeds to the ex Member in exchange for their share certificate(s), having deducted costs of advertising and outstanding monthly subscriptions and any other outstanding liabilities depending on the time taken to effect a sale.
10. Where a Member resigns under Rule 8 above, the Member concerned may, if he or she wishes, continue to pay monthly subscriptions and market the share(s) for a period of three months following which, if no sale is imminent the Committee will take action under Rule 9.
11. Where a Member has been suspended in accordance with Rules 6, 7 and 8 above, that Member will not be entitled to fly the Group aircraft during the period of suspension nor attend Group meetings except as provided in Rule 8.
Communications and Meetings
12.
The Groups method of communication is by email or telephone, email being the default.
All members are expected to check their email regularly and respond in a timely manner where appropriate. This ensures that they stay abreast of Group matters, especially in respect to maintenance, cleaning, airfield, and other issues of general interest.
Email communications shall not replace the requirement for defects to be noted in the relevant section of the aircraft Journey Log as they arise. The defects section of the Journey Log must be checked as part of the pre-flight inspection.
13. The Group meets generally quarterly to receive reports on the operation of the aircraft, the financial situation and any other matters of Group wide interest. The Annual General Meeting will be held in October each year at which the Financial Report and Accounts for the Financial Year ending the previous 30 June will be presented. The Committee will be elected for the year commencing 1 November at the Annual General Meeting.
14. A Special General Meeting may be called at any time by the Committee or by a proposal supported by at least four Members to discuss any matter of immediate importance, which requires the participation of all Members.
14.1. All Members are also to make every effort to attend the scheduled Group Meetings to ensure a majority are present to represent each aircraft thus enabling proposals to be agreed and to maintain a general consensus on Group issues as they arise.
Bookings
15. Bookings are to be made utilising the group online system, details of which shall be provided on joining.
Bookings for GBRTD shareholders
16. Except as provided in Rule 18 below, no Member shall have more than TWO prebookings at any time, including evenings and weekends. Each booking may be for part of a day or for a whole day.
17. In addition to the two bookings referred to above, this aircraft is also available to GBRTD Members on an ad-hoc ‘same day’ basis provided another Member has not already made a booking on the group on-line diary.
18. Members may plan, book and undertake one longer trip of up to five days in any calendar year. Such a booking may be made in addition to the normal two bookings enabling trips to be booked well in advance and currency maintained in the meantime
19. To remain within planned budget and maintenance programmes individual Members are not to fly more than 75 Hobbs hours per year (1 July to 30 June) in GBRTD without prior approval from the Committee.
Bookings for GBJBW shareholders
20. Except as provided in Rule 21 below, no Member shall have more than TWO prebookings at any time, including evenings and weekends. Each booking may cover a period of up to three days. The two bookings for any one member may not run consecutively.
21. Members may plan, book and undertake one longer trip of up to seven days in any calendar year. Such a booking may be made in addition to the normal two bookings enabling trips to be booked well in advance and currency maintained in the meantime.
21a. In addition to the bookings referred to in Rules 20 and 21, G-BJBW is also available to Members on an ad-hoc ‘same day’ basis provided another Member has not already made a booking on the group on-line diary.
22. Under Rules 20 and 21, where two or more members fly together, not more than two periods of three or seven days may be booked consecutively
Bookings General
23. Members undertaking extended trips are to liaise with the Maintenance Member well in advance of the departure date to ensure that any outstanding maintenance is carried out and sufficient hours are available before the next check for the planned trip to be completed.
24. As the booking system is very flexible it is possible for bookings to be made to follow a flight that has already started. The on line system may be accessed by for example a portable device to check the booking position before a flight is continued past the time for which it is booked. Where flights are unavoidably delayed, the holder of any subsequent booking affected should be informed without delay.
25. Where a booking already made is no longer required Members are requested to adjust or cancel the booking as early as possible so that it becomes available to others.
Aircraft Documentation
26. Members must complete the Journey Log for each flight. The Hobbs column should show the reading at the end of the flight (including taxiing for fuel). The previous Hobbs reading should be the start reading. Any discrepancy at the beginning of a flight should be discussed with the last P1, if the problem remains unresolved it should be reported to a member of the Committee.
27. The times recorded should be actual flight times (take off to landing) with totals in hours and minutes rounded to the nearest 5 minutes. These are important as they determine the point at which maintenance is required.
Fuel
28. Reimbursement for fuel expense is covered under Rule 42.
29. The following amounts of fuel are, whenever possible, to be left on board on final shutdown at Popham or on handover to another member. (The only exception is when fuel quantities may need to be run down for maintenance purposes, as advised by the maintenance-member.)
TD Total fuel is to be between 8 and 12 U.S. gallons (30-45 litres)
BW Total fuel remaining is to be left at tabs or just below. Tabs equates to a total of 34 U.S. gallons (128 litres)
Both aircraft: Higher amounts than those above may present a problem for the next flight in terms of aircraft-weight. Lower amounts can also cause difficulties. The next member to fly may need to load more fuel than is required for their anticipated flight-time. This could lead to their being in credit when paying for the flight, thus complicating the group’s accounts. Also, there’s always the chance that fuel might become unavailable at Popham before the next flight. So, it’s important that the aircraft should be left with sufficient fuel for safe flight to a nearby airfield where fuel is available. NB: If unusually high or low contents are left on board then the relevant members should be alerted by email, this being the group’s preferred communication-method.
Flying
30. The Group’s aircraft must be operated in accordance with the relevant aircraft Flight Manual a copy of which is kept in the relevant aircraft and with the appropriate 152 Group Operating Guide provided to all Members.
31. Except for the case of potential new Members being checked out by a nominated FI/CRI, non-members are not to be allowed to sit in the left hand seat of either of the Group’s aircraft during flight. Except for a FI/CRI engaged by a Group Member, non members, whatever their qualifications, are not to be allowed to handle the controls of either of the Group’s aircraft during take-off, landing or any other critical phase of the flight.
32. The aircraft each carry a “Journey log” to record the ‘take off’ to touch down’ times and Hobbs hours. The Pilot in Command is to log the time as P1 in the aircraft Journey Log. Where flying under the supervision of a FI/CRI the time is to be designated as PU/T.
33. Where two or more Group members fly together it is permissible, by agreement, to divide the duration of a flight such that each Member may log P1 time. The sum of the time recorded in their personal flying logbooks will then equal the total time for the flight. No other concept of sharing P1 duties is acceptable to the Group; neither is logging time as P2. Only Group Members are insured to act as P1, and non-members, even if qualified pilots can record only passenger hours.
Recency and Qualifications
34. New Members are to hold a valid CAA/JAR or EASA Licence, and have at least one hundred hours total and ten hours on the aircraft type before acting as pilot in command. If a prospective or existing member is unable to comply with the license or hours requirement, membership will be considered though subject to committee proposal and conditions as agreed by the aircraft insurance and other members.
35. Members are required to supply to the Documentation Member copies of their medical certificates, certificates of experience, rating renewals and when appropriate, log book entries, to enable the Group’s records to be maintained and for insurance purposes. It is the member’s responsibility to ensure this information is kept up to date. Failure to do so may result in the right to fly the Group’s aircraft being withdrawn until satisfactory documentation has been provided.
36.To maintain currency a group member must complete at least three take offs and landings as the handling pilot in the previous 90 days on a Single Engine Piston (Land) aircraft (Or any aircraft signed off by the committee). One of the take offs and landings in the previous 90 days must have been on the group aircraft type to be flown.
Group FI/CRIs are able to maintain recency on any SEP (Land) aircraft.
Note: the number of days may be extended to 120 days for a short period at the discretion of the committee due to aircraft downtime or weather limitations.
Where currency relies on flights outside of the group, these should be entered via the online flight log.
37. If a group member has not maintained currency, a check flight to ensure compliance with rule 36 on the group type/s to be flown must be undertaken with an FI/CRI. The FI/CRI is to confirm satisfactory completion of the check flight by signing the group aircraft journey log.
Maintenance
38. Should either of the Group aircraft become unserviceable at any time, the approval of a member of the Committee, preferably the Maintenance Member, must be obtained before repair work is authorised. This applies particularly when away from Popham. A list of all Committee Members and other Group members is in the document folder in each aircraft.
39. Mandatory maintenance takes place every 50 flying hours. The number of available hours is recorded in the Journey Log. It is imperative that flying is not extended beyond the time for the next check unless the Maintenance Member has obtained an extension. This is the responsibility of the Pilot in Command.
Cleaning
40. Except for elected members of the Committee and nominated members who assist with regular maintenance, all members are expected to participate in cleaning the aircraft. At regular intervals a cleaning roster is distributed to all members showing the names of those in each cleaning team together with the nominated leader and the dates on which cleaning should take place. Team leaders have discretion to vary these dates in consultation with their team members but every effort should be taken to ensure that cleaning takes place on a regular basis.
Finance
41. The Group is funded by regular monthly subscriptions and by payments per Hobbs hour. The rates for each of these payments are agreed at the Group meeting in June of each year when the budget for the financial year commencing in July is agreed. Rates may be modified during the financial year by prior majority agreement of the Group Members. Separate accounts are produced for each aircraft. Rates appropriate to GBRTD and GBJBW will be the subject of agreement of their respective shareholders. Financial questions relating to the Group as a whole will be submitted to the entire membership.
Flight logging and payments
42. The Online Flight Payment process is to be used for all logged activities, even though they may not incur a cost to the member, this includes:
- a) Standard flying (including Honorarium flights)
- b) Maintenance activities
- c) Cleaning activities
- d) Any other activity where an increase in aircraft Hobbs is recorded
- e) To log take off and landings in non-group aircraft that count towards group currency
One online form submission can cover a single flight, many flights in the same day by one member or many flights over multiple days by the same member, however they must be consecutive. Where two or more members fly multiple legs of a flight, then each member must submit a form for their relevant legs.
Fuel uplifted at Popham is paid for by the individual Member at the fuel pump. A receipt is to be obtained and submitted as detailed below. Fuel up-lifted away may be priced at higher or lower rates than Popham, however will be reimbursed at the Popham fuel rate on the day of flight or on return to Popham if multiple days away were incurred
The only exception to this will be when fuel is unavailable at Popham and the member up lifts remotely to ensure that sufficient fuel is on board for the next member to fly, in this instance the actual cost paid should be used to claim.
Actual payment is to be via BACS to the group account with a reference of “First name Surname” before the end of the month in which the activity occurred, understanding that end of month activities may be a challenge.
A receipt for any expense (fuel / oil / other) must be photographed / scanned and attached to the online claim form
Full instructions on using the Online Flight Recording are to be found on the relevant web page.
43. Monthly subscriptions are paid by Standing Order direct to the Group’s bank account.
44. Expenditure will be authorised by the Treasurer in accordance with the approved budget. Where a change to the aircraft specification is proposed, either at the time of approval of the budget or during the year, the views of all shareholders in that aircraft will be sought. The agreement of 75% of the relevant group of Members will be required for any significant expenditure to be implemented. Expenditure related to the Group as a whole will be submitted to the entire membership. Payments to suppliers will normally be by cheque requiring two authorised signatories. With discretion and the agreement of the other committee members the Treasurer may pay specified suppliers by bank transfer in lieu of cheque.
Insurance
45. There is an excess on the Group’s insurance of £500 for any damage to either of the aircraft. The insurance company may impose an additional excess for pilots gaining experience on type. The Pilot in Command at the time of the damage is required to meet the cost of the excess unless in the opinion of the Committee the accident arose from an Act of God, mechanical failure outside the control of the pilot, or other extenuating circumstances. The Committee’s decision is final.
46. Only those members of the Group approved by the insurers are insured to fly as Pilot in Command in either of the Group’s aircraft. This is important when booking-in and out and completing the Journey Log.
Major Change or Winding Up
47. If a major change is proposed to the Group operation, then this will be submitted to the entire membership. The proposal will not be implemented unless at least 75% of the Members support it.
48. If a proposal, supported by at least four Members, is made that the Group be wound up, the Secretary will notify all Members of the proposal and the Committee will convene a meeting of the Group to discuss the proposal. Members will be balloted on the proposal. If at least 75% of the Members support the proposal with written votes, then the Group will be wound up.
49. In that event the assets of the Group will be liquidated and, after settling all of the Group’s liabilities, distributed to Members in shares appropriate to their shareholding.
Acceptance of the Rules
50. All Members are deemed to accept the Rules set out above as a condition of owning a share in the Group, and to comply with the Rules and any amendments to them as agreed by the Group. The rules may be amended at a Group Meeting by a simple majority of all Members and will be notified by the minutes of the Group meeting. If a rule change only applies to one aircraft, only the shareholders in that aircraft are entitled to vote. Where possible a proposed change to the Rules will be circulated in advance to allow email or postal votes to be recorded.