Membership of the The General Aviation Safety Council is open to all organisations that represent those who participate in any way in any branch of General Aviation.

The AGM and 302nd Council Meeting will be held at The AAIB, Farnborough, Hampshire on Wednesday 3rd July 2024.  Note: this will be a hybrid meeting as the conference room capacity is limited.

The Council meets three times a year, a fixed item on the agenda is always a Safety Information Exchange during which recent accidents and occurrences are reported and discussed amongst the members in order to try to decide on the action to be taken to reduce the possibility of a recurrence. The effect of proposed legislation, airspace changes and the like are also discussed. The philosophy underlying all these activities is that a real and lasting improvement in general aviation flight safety can only be brought about through education and understanding, i.e. "Safety Through Knowledge".  Discussions take place under the Chatham House Rule.  The full minutes of Council meetings are therefore not published but the key safety points arising can be found on the Safety Information Exchange page.

The Council's finances are from contributions by member organisations represented on the Council and from subscriptions and donations made by readers of Flight Safety. As the Council is a registered charity, it also benefits from Gift Aid forms signed by those making contributions out of taxed income.

The Council seeks to ensure that the needs of general aviation in respect of safety are fully considered in relation to the other aspects of the aviation community. The Council is represented at regular meetings of the General Aviation Partnership (GAP), the the National Air Traffic Management Advisory Committee (NATMAC), the airlines' UK Flight Safety Committee (UKFSC), the Electronic Conspicuity Working Group (ECWG), the Mid-Air Collision Challenge Group (MACCG) and the Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programme (CHIRP).  The Chief Executive represents GASCo on at meetings of EASA's General Aviation Collaborative Analysis Group and the European Safety Promotion Network - Rotorcraft.

The Council is able to represent the many diverse factions within General Aviation on safety matters when the Authorities consult on new legislation. The Council meets three times a year and elects a discrete board of management.  Members of which fulfil dual roles as directors of the charitable company and trustees of the charity.  A Board of management, members of which act as directors and trustees of the charitable company  is appointed by the Council at an Annual General Meeting normally held in July. The Board oversees the administration of the financial income derived from member organisations contributions, from charitable donations and other sources. In addition to its quarterly publication, Flight Safety, safety seminars and webinars are organised and at major general aviation events competitions are run. GASCo has one employee, a full-time Office Manager based at Rochester City Airport in Kent. In addition, it contracts with a part-time Editor for the production of GASCo Flight Safety magazine and an aviation consultant who performs the duties of Chief Executive and Company Secretary.

Membership of the Council and representatives:

Full Members

Corporate Members

Affiliated Member

Honorary Members

  • John Thorpe
  • Roger Dunn       
  • Gerald Hackemer
  • Air Commodore Rick Peacock-Edwards CBE AFC RAF (Retired)
                

Representatives from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch and the Confidential Human Factors Reporting Programme (CHIRP) also attend Council meetings as non-voting observers.