The minutes of the 51st FISA Congress (Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Aérophilatéliques), held in Versailles (France) on May 29, 2024, have recently been published. The meeting was also attended by the secretary, Flavio Riccitelli, representing AIDA, by delegation from President Fiorenzo Longhi.
This congress was particularly significant as it provided an opportunity for the newly elected FISA president, Johannes E. Palmer, to present FISA’s outlook and action plan for the coming years, along with initiatives to promote aerophilately and astrophilately.
In this regard, the most important points are highlighted here, referring to the minutes (attached here) for a detailed description of all topics discussed:
1 – Representation within FIP.
FISA will take the necessary steps to be involved in the discussions of the aero and astro commissions of FIP (Fédération Internationale de Philatélie) and present proposals. Specifically, FISA aims to act as a proactive force in developing the “Guidelines for the Evaluation of Aerophilatelic Exhibits,” which determine the exhibition rules applied by national federations. Concretely, FISA will approach FIP to propose changes to the current “Guidelines” to allow exhibitors to once again present philatelic documents issued during air events prior to 1914 (a particularly important period in aviation history) in competitions, including philatelic documents that were not transported by air.
2 – IDM (International Digital Membership) Project.
FISA aims to facilitate the development of international connections between aerophilatelic and astrophilatelic societies affiliated with FISA. To this end, it supports the IDM project, which could provide members of Association A with the opportunity to easily join, for a modest additional fee, Association B and thus gain access to the digital services offered by Association B. The objectives are to enhance communication among aerophilatelists and simplify membership with a single payment. All associations affiliated with FISA will be invited to participate in this initiative. The CAF (Cercle Aérophilatélique Français) has already given its consent; details will be specified during the 2025 subscription call. The FISA Board of Directors will oversee the implementation of the IDM.
3 – MULLER CATALOGUE.
FISA has made a fundamental work on aerophilately available online: the famous Muller catalogue. You can download it for free from the FISA website:
https://www.fisa-web.com/documents/books/muller-catalogue/.