AUVSI, The song remains the same

By in large, the BOD is a veritable rogues gallery of folks that have been instrumental in destroying the domestic drone industry for their personal gain. As a byproduct, they also helped to facilitate a Chinese hardware monopoly using your money, kind of like the FAA did with taxpayer dollars.

I would suggest you ask FAA managers what they will do to make amends for the folly, but they won’t be at the big Expo. Golly, why? Well, it appears that the FAA was
mandated not to appear in Atlanta due to Covid.

AUVSI hid this information. Are they continue to perpetuate mistruths as part of their business practices in an effort to mislead people into attending a conference promising access to those contacts?

(No refunds) Fulton County Covid numbers are alarming, and Mr. Wynne continues
to downplay this fact so he can afford the salary you see here, plus the more than
51K in “other benefits” (not salary) for “Health or social club dues or initiation fees.”
Schedule O is laughable at best.

Industry-leading trade show?! More like industry-leading Shitshow with sponsored
thought leaders and yes-people. You’d need hip wader’s just to wade through the
weapons-grade BS those hucksters are peddling. Who thinks the FAA UAS education
symposium is worth $150 a day?

Advocacy –

That one is a howler! The AUVSI credibility is shot through the grease, and that is
not just my opinion. The only folks buying that crap are the dues-paying Rube’s and
maybe some state-level hacks and the local yokels. The forecast made them the
laughing stock of the world, and the one-dollar last-mile delivery estimate was the
obtuse cherry on top. The sad part, the members paid for it! Are you enjoying the
repeal of Sec. 336?

Membership –

That took a significant hit (-1500), and this was while touting the $82 billion
forecast and all of the excellent paying drone jobs that everyone would have besides
just those on the BOD. I guess they changed the accounting, so the numbers are up?

Knowledge resources –

KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES: COLLECTED, SYNTHESIZED AND DISSEMINATED
INFORMATION ABOUT UNMANNED SYSTEMS PRODUCTS, MARKETS, AND
UTILIZATION.

AKA coalescing the vapors –

https://youtu.be/GoZ3bu23BMA

Certification:

I hate even to go here, but you know me, I like to operate outside of the safe
perimeter ;-) As I have explained to folks associated with the TOP program, I don’t
think it is a bad idea and even suggested something like it to executive leadership
years ago. However, it should have been put together and marketed as a member
benefit. The membership benefits are thin, and this could have been a real feather in
AUVSI’s cap if it wasn’t a halfhearted effort to just fleece the membership out of
honest money. I guess the members have to pay the Big Wynne’s $500K a year
salary somehow?

Anyone interested in how associations waste the membership’s money can take a
gander at the 2018 IRS Form 990. There is an adage that puts it this way; a good
parasite doesn’t kill the host!

@TheDroneDealer on Twitter