Please Vote

[Admin]

What's in a name? A little while ago I changed the name of the site from Recreational Flying to Aircraft Pilots in the hope of broadening the site's appeal to everyone in aviation. I acknowledge that there are more aviators in the Recreational arena of aviation than commercial however there are two segments of recreational, one being the Sports Aircraft/Ultralight/Microlight etc segment and second, the PPL level of General Aviation which is still recreational. However PPL arena of aviation have differentiated themselves away from the term Recreational and recreational aviators see themselves as pure recreational pilots as opposed to Aircraft pilots.

 

This is a big issue when defining a site name when it is trying to provide an overall resource for ALL aviators (other than airline) especially in the area of anything that comes up in Google listings to attract new users.

 

Using the name Recreational will be perceived as ONLY for the sport aircraft/ ultralight/microlight segment. Using the name Aircraft Pilot may be perceived as being for the PPL, and above, level of aviation.

 

After some 15 years of Recreational Flying the name has become widely known as an icon in the low level segment of aviation so I thought I would try Aircraft Pilots and ascertain through statistics whether this would increase the site's usage and content style of threads and posts. I know it hasn't been that long under Aircraft Pilots however I have not seen one positive outcome to date, not one statistic has any indication that the name has been a positive influence at all. In fact site usage has slightly dropped however I am attributing that to the software/platform changes over the last few months which I am presuming is only a temporary occurance until things settle in the area and all the site benefits become available to everyone. i.e. Clubs, Suppliers, Blogs, Articles, News, Pilot Tools etc.

 

So, Please, what do you think have I made the right move to Aircraft Pilots or should it be Recreational Flying...think of it logically and with business sense with what I have planned for the future i.e. the Virtual Flyin and Expo, and vote and comment on what you believe I should do...and thanks very much for your help.

 

 

[old man emu]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

"No" is always a valid result in any test of an idea. If the stats do not indicate that a change would be worthwhile, don't make the change.

 

 

[facthunter]

 Being where we are , Recreational Flying  is the best available title I can come up with giving full note to current attitudes and the SCENE at the moment.  It's a generic title but it does do the job. Nev

 

  PS. you might make more dough from "Baker's Dozen ".

 

 

[turboplanner]

Aircraft Pilots is not a regular term in the aviation industry, but the biggest issue was that it cuts out the people who build the aircraft, and these days almost provide all the aircraft the pilots fly, as well as the people who service the aircraft, the ATC people who provide valuable advice on this forum from time to time, and all the other people who are interested in aviation and join the discussion.

 

The GA training and flying system is a LOT more regimented with a lot less loose ends to discuss; In that category the people really do learn to fly and go on the hire or buy an aircraft that is a lot more highly developed and a lot more predictable for flying and service life (in general terms); the people don't get into the same detail as they do here, but most of GA is technically recreational flying, so I don't see anything wrong with the name.

 

 

[robinsm]

Agree, if it aint broken, dont fix it.   This site is known as Recreational Flying and covers that area nicely.   Aircraft pilots is a bland name that does not appeal to my sense of belonging etc at all.  

 

 

[SSCBD]

Sport Pilots

 

Or

 

Sport Aircraft Pilots

 

 

[Admin]

Sport Pilots

Or

 

Sport Aircraft Pilots

Would that limit the site to just RAA?

 

 

[tillmanr]

My option is to go back to Recreational Flying. You may consider adding               “& Aircraft”. This gives us Recreational Flying & Aircraft. It is a bit more inclusive if that is desired. Cheers all 

 

 

[Admin]

Looks like I may not have to keep this poll going for long...at the time of posting this 11 for Recreational Flying, 0 for Aircraft Pilots and 1 for Other

 

Good idea @tillmanr with the "& aircraft" which can easily be added to the text of the site name (not domain or logo) and meta data

 

 

[kgwilson]

Recreational Flying is my vote. I have a PPL & RPC and built my own aircraft. I have been a recreational pilot most of my adult life starting with Hang Gliding in 1975, PPL & Cessnas/Pipers 15 years later & RAA since 2009. There are plenty of site members who have similar stories. There are some PPL people who seem to look down on RAA people & recently there has been a bit of bad blood, eg the trademark fiasco & more recently AOPA whingeing about privileges. I share the sky with many GA aircraft, use the same radio frequencies & chat to them on the ground. Never had a problem.

 

 

[rgmwa]

Using the name Recreational will be perceived as ONLY for the sport aircraft/ ultralight/microlight segment. Using the name Aircraft Pilot may be perceived as being for the PPL, and above, level of aviation.

I don't think so, Ian.  I have a PPL, my plane is GA and I'm not in RAAus, but recreational flying is what I do, so the name works for me. There are also professional pilots on here who fly for fun in their spare time.

 

 

[crashley]

go back to the it was before every change puts me and a lot of others off   you just get used to one format and then it changes I havent got time to keep relearning how the site operates  I hate using computers and hate continual change  LEAVE IT ALONE

 

 

[Head in the clouds]

allaboutflying.net is available ...

 

 

[pmccarthy]

Rec flying definitely. Sport it ain’t. And it is a lot more than pilots.r

 

 

[billwoodmason]

Recreational Flying works for me. I liked the bias toward aircraft under 600 kg as that is where my interest lies, although I also enjoy the “antique” genre’.  Call the site what you like Ian but I do know my visits to it recently have waned since the rename to Aircraft Pilots as I don’t believe that the GA influence that has crept into RAA has bought anything of value to ultralighters, just financial pain and increased scrutiny.

 

I viewed this site as a voice for those with RAA interests and you clearly wish to expand your horizons which of course is your perogative. You would be aware PPrune has got GA covered.

 

 

[Hargraves]

Recreational Flying and aircraft. Covers exactly what I started flying for and isolates any confusion with comercial or career intent.  Its what we do. Thanks for your very good work  Ian  cheers  Hargraves

 

 

[Downunder]

The term "pilots" narrows the focus too much. Those browsing the net may skip it as the focus seems to be pilots only. ..

 

 

[NT5224]

Like others have commented above,  I was bemused by the revised site name ‘aircraft pilots’, and feel that the original name was perhaps a better description of what it is all about. 

 

But its great that Ian has sought to improve the site -and seeking our input on the best way forward. I’ll  be happy with the site regardless of what it’s called.

 

Alan

 

 

[Bernie]

Recreational Flying .

 

Bernie .

 

 

[Admin]

Ok, don't let it be said that I don't listen...we are back on Recreational Flying (.com)

 

So, this is the 2nd area of averall change completed:

 

1. Define best platform - IPS is here to stay

 

2. Define best site name - Recreational Flying is here to stay

 

3. Define best hosting - This is still to be done but will not be considered to some time later next year once the site is completely developed and constraints can be analysed

 

I am sure you will all sigh with relief now that we have gone through all the dramatic changes...thanks for your understanding

 

 

[tillmanr]

We need to again thank you and your team