ON THE FLY

March 2022

ON THE FLY — A monthly NGPA newsletter published by members, for members

Happy March, and welcome to the newest edition of the NGPA's ON THE FLY! As you may have noticed already, some things have changed this month. On top of this month's new content, the ON THE FLY newsletter got a new livery, avionics package, seating configuration, and much more—now easily accessible to all of our members at ngpa.org.

This newsletter is meant to be a representation of and a resource for our NGPA membership, please take a second and provide our team any feedback you might have.

ON THE FLY FEEDBACK FORM >>

03.30

CASCADE FLYERS DINNER | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Join the NGPA Cascade Flyers at the DeLuxe Bar & Grill for dinner and drinks!

04.17

BUNNIES ON THE BAYOU | ADD TO CALENDAR +

NGPA-ers in Houston, TX are getting together at the Sesquicentennial Park in Houston for an annual fundraiser and cocktail party.

04.23

METROPLEX FLYERS BOWLING NIGHT | ADD TO CALENDAR +

The NGPA Metroplex Flyers in Dallas/Ft. Worth are getting together for their monthly get-together at Bowlounge in Dallas, TX for food, drinks, bowling and fun! Meet up with new and old friends with the Metroplex Flyers.

04.23

WEST END SOCIAL | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Join the NGPA EUROPE chapter at the Criterion Theatre in London, England for the laugh-a-minute murder mystery, Death Drop.

05.20

METROPLEX FLYERS GLAMPING TRIP | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Rainbow Ranch is THE Gay and Lesbian campground in Central Texas located in Groesbeck on Lake Limestone, so come and join the NGPA Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex Flyers for a fun and relaxing weekend.

05.20

NGPA TRANSGENDER SOCIAL | ADD TO CALENDAR +

The NGPA Transgender / Nonbinary Committee is pleased to invite our Trans and Nonbinary members, their partners, and families to a weekend retreat in the mountains of Colorado. May 20th – 22nd join us in Denver for an intimate weekend together as trans folk.

05.23

EBACE 2022 | ADD TO CALENDAR +

NGPA EUROPE will be attending and hosting a booth at EBACE, the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition, a premier Business Aviation Event at the Geneva Airport (GVA).

05.30

NGPA EUROPE "WINE AND DINE" KAROKE NIGHT | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Taking to centre stage on a Monday night could be you! Clear out those pipes for a night of karaoke and fun. It doesn't matter if you only know the words to Wonderwall or you know all of Whitney's greatest hits, its only you and a few of your closest NGPA friends in our very own karaoke booth!

06.03

WINGS OVER IOWA - THE NGPA'S NEWEST FLAGSHIP EVENT | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Our Wings Over Iowa event will be a first of its kind NGPA Member “Fly-In” event! We encourage our members to fly in their personal aircraft and share their passions for aviation with the local Cedar Rapids community. We will be hosting NGPA social events throughout the weekend to further the camaraderie of our members and to help build new connections.

06.17

STONEWALL COLUMBUS PRIDE MARCH | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Join the NGPA Ohio chapter for Central Ohio's Annual Festival and March for the LGBTQIA+ Community. Hosted & sponsored by Stonewall Columbus since 1981.

06.24

SOUTH COAST FLY-IN | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Welcome to all, whether you own a plane or would like to rent a plane, for a fun day at Lee on Solent (EGHF).

06.25

HOUSTON PRIDE PARADE | ADD TO CALENDAR +

Join the Gulf Coast Flyers for Houston's annual pride parade, along with a pride party beforehand! Mark your calendars and help represent the LGBTQAI+ community in Houston.

07.25

NGPA AT AIRVENTURE | ADD TO CALENDAR +

NGPA will again be hosting a BBQ event on Friday July 29th for members. Registration and location details coming soon.

VIEW THE FULL NGPA CALENDAR >>

NGPA CONTACT | EMAIL | LINKEDIN

Another month down means another month closer to Spring and Summer! For me, and others who live in the Midwest, we have had 2 run-ins with what we call “fake spring!” The temperatures shoot to the mid to upper 60’s and the sun shows itself. Everyone makes a mad dash to their favorite outdoor eatery in hopes that they raced to bring out some patio furniture. We revel in the gift mother nature has provided and we savor in every last ounce of sunshine and warmth. Shortly thereafter we get slapped right back to reality with bone chilling cold and a fresh round of snow to shovel or clean off our cars. It is the vicious cycle which we call March, but nonetheless it is a welcome sign of what is to come!

As we do make the shift to warmer weather, NGPA has so much to look forward to in the coming months. Our Transgender Social Gathering is coming up this May 20-22 in Denver. We will welcome all transgender and non-binary members to come to a safe space and join in the camaraderie, support and encouragement within our community. NGPA Europe will be representing at EBACE the very next week in Geneva, Switzerland. On The heels of that will be the kickoff to PRIDE month with our NEW Flagship Event- Wings Over Iowa landing in Cedar Rapids June 3-5. Multiple PRIDE events continue through the month as well with NGPA having a presence and growing our visibility.

In July we will join our friends at PAPA (Professional Asian Pilots Association) for their first ever Aviation Expo in Las Vegas. Right around the corner will be NGPA’s FULL return to OshKosh for the 2022 AirVenture Event. NGPA will be back to our campsite with festivities and gatherings planned for our members throughout the week. As if we weren’t busy enough- we head to Scottsdale, Arizona in August for the OBAP Conference and before we know it we are right back in our beloved Provincetown for the 2022 Cape Cod Classic Event! All the while, local chapter events continue to take shape across our network ensuring there is something for everyone across our now 28 Chapters worldwide!

As you can tell our organization is non-stop busy through September of this year and we won’t stop there! Be sure to stay in the know of where NGPA will have a presence over the next few months so you can connect with your NGPA Family at events across the globe! I am so thankful for everyone’s continued support and trust in NGPA. We strive to continue to better our offerings for our members and we hope you will forever be a part of our journey. Until next time, thanks for reading and continue to think those warm thoughts!

EMAIL | LINKEDIN

I prepared myself physically and mentally. I visualized the 545 mile route from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and memorized the terrain. I finely tuned my cool road bike and packed my gear carefully. What I didn’t expect, or prepare for, was the emotional aspect of riding in the AIDS/LifeCycle for the first time. Our NGPA team met in San Francisco for the first time in June of 2019. A motley crew of amazing athletes from all over. I had no idea we’d be so close and attached in such a short time. As we bonded over dinner and a quick breakfast the next day-something was nagging at me. Something I missed. As our bikes got reassembled and our gear laid out, I watched the other 2800 riders milling about. What was it?

The morning of the first day of our ride out of San Francisco for our 82 mile ride, I was nervous, anxious, excited. We all filed into the great hall of the Cow Palace Arena for a kick-off ceremony. The lights dimmed. We lit candles. We held hands. The giant video screen came to life and the goosebumps hit me as I finally realized-why we ride. It’s for those that are living with HIV/AIDS, and those that lost the battle. It’s for all of us together to breathe life into their stories and those that they touch along the way. I finally understood.

That year we raised $16.8 million for critical HIV/AIDS services provided by San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Our NGPA cycling team rose over $34,000 in 2019 and plan to exceed that this year. We each have a goal of raising $3000 minimum each in 2022. This is very important because we did not ride in 2020/2021 due to covid. These AIDS foundations depend heavily on the Ride for funds, and our proud team will ride our hearts out to contribute as much as we possibly can.

Here’s how you can help your fabulous NGPA team- go to aidslifecycle.org and click donate. Type NGPA in the search for a team box. You can donate to an individual member or the team. Or, another team donation site is, teamngpa.square.site . Please visit aidslifecycle.org to learn more about our experience, and sfaf.org/lalgbtcenter.org to learn about the organizations we are peddling for.

Thank you-we will be giving you updates on our journey, with tales to tell. And thank you for your donations.

NGPA CONTACT | EMAIL | LINKEDIN

I remember when I joined the NGPA four years ago, a first generation college attendee and pilot. When I started flight training shortly after graduating high school I had no idea of the vastness and the complexities involving the aviation industry—in layman's terms, I was flying in the blind (figuratively speaking). I hadn't a clue what I needed to do, or what to expect from the rest of my flight training, or how to plan towards a career in aviation. I was lucky enough to find myself a family, an NGPA family. So many of our members, my friends, have helped inspire and motivate me, and assisted me in becoming a more knowledgable and involved member of the aviation community. Our organizations welcoming membership and inclusive environment is my favorite thing about the NGPA.

Thanks to many of you I'm now able and proud to spread my wings, and for that I'll be forever grateful to this organization. The thing is, however, that I was lucky. Not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to simply follow their dreams, or stumble into a loving community where they can be their true selves and do what they love. I'm proud, and excited, for the NGPA's newest flagship event Wings Over Iowa to take place this June. This new event will bring aviation and LGBTQ+ pride to Cedar Rapids, helping to inspire young communities of potential aviators, bring together some of the NGPA's current General Aviation family, and celebrate Cedar Rapids first-ever pride parade! The introduction of this event will help us fulfill our organizations mission: to build, support, and unite the LGBTQ+ aviation community worldwide. The NGPA helped me spread my wings, and now we continue to do that same thing for more of our worldwide family.

What do you say? Are you going to spread your wings over Iowa? I hope to see many of you there!

MORE INFORMATION ON WINGS OVER IOWA >>

As with every one of these newsletters since April of last year, we've made some changes to help create a platform of easily-accessibly information and content for you, our membership. I hope you've enjoyed the changes we've implemented this month. Please feel free to provide any and all feedback on our newsletter to me directly, or via the ON THE FLY feedback form.

ACCESS THE ON THE FLY FEEDBACK FORM >>

Thanks for all your support NGPA family! Until next month—

Clear skies!