Tailhook Update

As this issue is in production, preparations for the Tailhook Symposium are consuming a great deal of time. However, we are optimistic that this year's symposium will be popular with attendees. We are pleased to have several important industrial displays among the many scheduled, including Raytheon, Lockheed/Martin, Symvionics and Northrop Grumman. Additionally, the symposium program will include industry Joint Strike Fighter briefs by Boeing and Lockheed/Martin as well as a JDAM/SLAM ER briefing by Boeing. A complete report of Tailhook '98 may be found on Page 57 of the Fall issue of The Hook, or by clicking here.

Many things are happening that are encouraging. We have begun or expanded programs to provide wider services to our members. Our Board of Directors is continually working to improve Tailhook's position in the defense industry and within the uniformed Navy. Our financial position is improving steadily, and we are seeing a modest but encouraging growth in our membership.

Our growth, encouraging as it is, has followed years of struggle, but with the active support of Tailhookers everywhere, the Association is beginning to turn the corner in our effectiveness in supporting carrier Naval Aviation.

Tailhook Logo Stock

The variety of sales stock continues to grow, and this month we have added three new colors to the shirt inventory. The first is a wine-colored golf shirt with a navy-blue collar. The second is a long sleeved navy blue shirt with a denim collar, and lastly we have a new "patriotic" red, white and blue vertically striped shirt. The shirts and a close-up of the logos are pictured in the current Tailhook advertisement.

Mail and E-mail Solicitations

Many of our members have complained about mail or e-mail solicitation received from Gerald Atkinson. He is advertising his book, "From Trust to Terror." Atkinson is not a current member of the Tailhook Association and we did not give him our membership list. He was a member during the time that we were preparing our directory and purchased a copy of the Tailhook Directory. Both the Chairman of the Board and I have asked him to stop using the directory to contact Tailhook members, but he continues to send advertising. As a result, we have asked him to include a disclaimer stating that he is not associated with or supported by the Tailhook Association. We are not trying limit discussion or the flow of information, but we want members to have control of their personal addresses.

The Tailhook Message Board

Our first attempt to set up a Tailhook message board with AOL was unsuccessful because our "Cyber Ready Room" was restricted to AOL users only. We are going to try again, but this time all Tailhookers will have access to the message board. If you wish to receive e-mail from the Tailhook Message Board, send us a simple e-mail with the following subject line: "your e-mail address, add" To have your name removed from the message board send the following subject line: "your e-mail address, delete." HookMsgBrd@aol.com is the new message board e-mail address.

The Crusader Association has an e-mail network that passes along many interesting stories and keeps information flowing among its members. To aid in the smooth flow of information, please do not send jokes. If you wish to send pictures, send them as file attachments. This allows members to decide whether or not to open them. We are also looking for "true stories" for possible publication, so if you have an interesting story, please send it to the new Hook Message Board.

Membership Survey Returns Complete

Thanks to our many loyal supporters, our recent readership survey is complete and we consider the project a success in every respect. An average response on such surveys is in the 5-7 percent range -- our response rate was double that, with 1,090 of the 10,123 forms filled out and returned for a 10.77 response rate! More than that, those responding were liberal with their comments concerning the organization and, most specifically, The Hook magazine.

There were some surprises in the responses. For instance, 65.8 percent of those responding reported their age at 55 or over. We found that more than half (52 percent) of our readers had incomes of $75,000 or more, and 85.9 percent of the responses came from officers.

Enlisted membership amounts to 21 percent. Not surprisingly, 84.4 percent of our readership has a USN/USNR background, with the Marine Corps coming in at an even 9 percent. Army and Air Force membership amounts to a total of 6.3 percent.

Most pleasing to us is the level of support of our advertisers. Those who save their magazines for more than six months amount to 80.8 percent, and 82.8 percent of our readers spend 45 minutes or more reading The Hook.

The most popular sections of the magazine (in descending order) are Catwalk, Launch, Photo Essays, Waveoffs & Bolters, At Marshal, Brief, Recovery, Respot, Patch Page, In Review and Manning the Spare.

Those reading the advertisements each issue amounted to 86.1 percent, and 49.4 percent of those have purchased a product advertised. Those thinking that The Hook is a good source of current events and trends in Naval Aviation were 83.6 percent.

We received many favorable comments in response to questions about the quality of the magazine, and suggestions for improvement include: more squadron/unit information, more pages, more history, more issues per year and more color pages. Comments on the magazine's strengths include: good historical coverage, good coverage of fleet operations and status, good photography, well-rounded coverage and appeal, well-designed cover and contents, and good work in following the carrier aviation theme.

We sincerely appreciate the time taken to help us in this valuable project. Complete copies of the survey are available for those writing for a copy.