Guernsey Friends of Air Search 

President's Report 2003

The last year has seen a slight fall in the number of calls the service has responded to but nevertheless these have again been spread out over the whole year again with sporadic periods of peak activity.  It should be perhaps remembered that on occasions more than one flight can be made during a search and whilst the number of calls may have dropped, the number of hours flown may not be reduced proportionately with a recent search involving over twelve hours flying which put a considerable drain on all resources on the day and a higher than usual financial outlay to cover the operating costs.

As the reports show, the operations have been widespread encompassing all the islands both over land and the surrounding sea as well as further afield.  These searches also covered many different requirements for the agencies requesting them, highlighting the versatility of the service in meeting these assignments. 

The need to maintain support for Air Search at all levels remains paramount as costs continue to rise and flight sponsorship is still extremely important in helping towards covering individual search costs.  These search costs though only represent a part of the overall price of maintaining the service and as we all know nothing in aviation ever seems to go down in price! 

Late November 2003 saw the launch of the Channel Islands Air Search own website (www.ci-airsearch.com) which caused considerable interest and gives a very comprehensive picture of both operations and the involvement of the Friends on all of the islands.  We were also involved in the making of a documentary by France 3 which was subsequently shown on national television in France giving comprehensive coverage of many aspects of Air Search.  Not surprisingly this was all in French, limiting its potential use here but nevertheless was extremely well produced and makes good viewing. 

The Friends have again had a busy year trying to raise funds against an increasing background of corporate tightening of the purse strings.  We were fortunate in being able to hold in conjunction with Floral Guernsey another Open Garden at Saint's Farm, the lovely home of Tim and Eleanor Henderson who made us, and nearly a thousand others, extremely welcome to their property.  We were also privileged to have as guests our patron, His Excellency the Lieutenant Governor and Lady Foley, both keen gardeners, who toured the garden and took tea afterwards.  We took over £3000 at this event and managed to achieve the highest profit from any of our Open Gardens - quite an effort to follow next year!   We also attended last year's Christmas Charities Fair and held a Quiz in March which proved to be most successful.  We were present at the Harbour Carnival and spent two days attending the West Show with our caravan in August as well as being the featured charity one Saturday at Les Petites Magasins.

Throughout the year we have on a fairly regular basis held Hangar Visits for local organisations and groups and have been supported by crew-members for which we appreciate their time and assistance.  At this point I should like to thank all those people, both committee members, their families and all our Friends with a capital "F" and those without it who have helped us at various functions and events throughout the year.  Our success is largely governed on many occasions by the support and help we get from these people. 

This year has also seen the opening of the new Administration office block at the hangar for which we are indebted greatly to the Lloyds TSB Foundation.  This was attended by officials from both the Jersey and Guernsey Trustees and Friends.  Still on a local level we held a very useful evening meeting with the Trustees looking at the way forward for the future.  Some Committee members were also able to meet their Jersey counterparts when some of their Committee visited Guernsey for the day in August and were shown around the Hangar and the St. Peter Port Emergency Control Centre.  In turn some of our Committee were warmly welcomed by the Jersey Friends and attended their excellent charity luncheon at the Potteries in October. 

Much hard work and thought has gone into the production of a new coloured flyer which has recently been published for promoting interest and support in CIAS detailing the various ways in which the public can assist.  

During the course of the year, Guernsey Friends have paid over £25,000 to the Trustees which considering the current economic climate reflects well on their efforts and maintains the same level of contribution as last year.  In addition the balance held after this showed a good start to the current year's fund-raising.  This year £10,000 was spent replacing the radio homing receiver which badly needed updating.  We are faced within the next eighteen months with the requirement of replacing both engines on the aircraft which will prove to be a very costly but necessary exercise.  The cost of this is estimated to be in the range of £50,000-£60,000. 

As can be seen, this is not the time for complacency and the Friends will need to maintain their efforts to meet these new challenges.  As I think I have probably said in my report every year to date, we do need more supporters and helpers and everyone is asked to do what they can to assist in this area.  We are a small but very dedicated and loyal team and I for one, as I am sure many of you here tonight, would be delighted if our numbers could be increased thereby reducing the burden on the existing team. 

In this vein I would like to offer my sincere thanks for all the support and help the Committee have given both to the organisation , and to me on a personal level, throughout the past year.  What we have achieved is due to everyone's efforts and I am sure we will continue to meet the challenges and opportunities in 2004 to continue the successes of the past and so ensure the continuity of a vital service. 

Thank you all for your support.

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