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EMPOA Annual General Meeting 2023 in Mannheim and Heidelberg

This year's Annual General Meeting of our honorable association took place in Mannheim. Planes with correct tail design from all over Europe arrived in the course of Friday afternoon. Once again weather cooperated to the outmost and allowed for flights under both VFR and IFR without any restriction.

First participants have secured their planes

More and more Mooneys landed and were parked in front of the hosts' hangar. In the meantime, crews who had already arrived could recover from the exertions of the flight with beer and canapés in the shade of the hangar.

Crews relaxing in the hangar
Two respected members apparently engaged in some serious tech talk

Unfortunately a French plane suffered a minor technical issue, however the pilot took the train and arrived in time. Finally 13 Mooneys plus the three resident to Mannheim were gathered. Besides the pilot from France a few more members based close-by arrived by train or car.

Flight Line

At 17:00 sharp the Annual General Meeting formally commenced. A demanding agenda had to be worked through. Presentations and minutes are accessible to members in the protected area.

The AGM commences

Most notably a change in leadership of the association took place, as David Kromka passed the baton of presidency to Markus Wagner. Moreover, Peter de Grove was elected vice president, succeeding Jérôme Faul. The other board members were reelected.

The outgoing and the new president have an appropriate drink

The strenuous meeting left all participants hungry and so the traditional dinner sponsored by EMPOA was most welcome.

EMPOA dinner

After a relaxing meal and a couple of drinks a bus took all members and their significant others to their hotels.

The Mooneys enjoy a quiet evening

As it has become the norm for EMPOA AGMs, Saturday was devoted to tourism and sightseeing, this time in nearby Heidelberg.

A guided tour took the Mooniacs through the city and its history during the morning of this sunny day.

The tour guide helps the pilots to get their bearings
The group during the city tour

After lunch, which participants could have at their leisure, a second guided tour began, this time of the famous Heidelberg Castle.

Heidelberg Castle and the River Neckar
Heidelberg as seen from the Castle

The day came to a close with dinner at a Heidelberg brew pub. Of course a couple of drinks were in order after the meal.

All is prepared for the members to arrive
Food wasn't for the faint of heart

On Sunday morning a bus collected the crews at their hotels and took them back to Mannheim City Airport. Soon after, the Mooneys dispersed again all over Europe.

The new president delivering his first address

 

Click through the gallery for some more impressions from the weekend:

 

 

 

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