Page 15 - Volume 16 Number 12

The annual conclave of the Aircraft Owners near triple-digit temperatures that were present duringand Pilots Association headed west last fall, tothe popular Palm Springs, California site the organization used in 2006. PSP is always a good draw, because the small city is well served by airports and permits AOPA Summit to indulge in a Parade Of Planes, a spectacular string of aircraft moving from the airport on the edge of town through city streets to the Convention Center.This extra bit of hospitality allows Summit attendees to step outside the exhibit hall to view the static display, rather than having to board a shuttle bus for an often- lengthy ride to the airport. The local population and early show-goers get to witness an influx of aircraft going off-airport, a rare sight. Approximately 80 aircraft made the trip through town to the parking area.The morning keynote sessions, held in a large hall to accommodate as much of the crowd as possible, played to standing-room-only audiences. The exhibit hall was filled with trade-show vendors, occupying 400 booth spaces, and this year’s AOPA Summit also provided a venue for many educational seminars and presentations, totaling over 100 hours of informative training. Exhibitors were generally pleased with the results achieved, with the aisles packed at times.Arrival weather was a challenge, with an upper-level low spinning through the area, generating thunderstorms and even snow on the mountains that shield Palm Springs from the normal Southern California coastal conditions. The errant weather system did provide relief from thedesert afternoons before and after the show. For the most part, the sheltered valley lived up to its reputation as a clear-skies alternate to the Los Angeles Basin airports to the west.News was low-key, as the general aviation industry continued to struggle with a lethargic economy; O&N Aircraft showed its recently-STCed turbine conversion for the Cessna 340 twin, using dual Rolls-Royce turboprops, Daher Socata showed TBM 850s with the utility Elite and standard club-seating interiors, and Pilatus was on hand with its PC-12NG big-cabin turbine single. Cessna showed the 208B Caravan and Citation Mustang, and Eclipse was on hand with the Total Eclipse. Epic and Kestrel displayed their sleek turbine-powered cabin- class singles.DECEMBER 2012TWIN & TURBINE • 13