Rule 1. The Association shall be democratic, non-sectarian and non-party; it shall not be affiliated, either directly or indirectly, to any sectarian organisation or to any political party or like body. In no circumstances shall the Association or any of its Committees or Sub-Committees publicly express any views on behalf of the Association in connection with any political or industrial dispute, or engage in activities in connection therewith.

Rule 2. Full Membership. An officer shall be eligible for Full Membership of the Association when;

Rule 2B. Student Membership.

Rule 3. Associate Membership. Associate Members do not have voting rights at an Annual General Meeting or Special Meeting.

Rule 4. Honorary Membership. Certain persons, not meeting the criteria of Rule 2, Rule 2A or Rule 3, whose membership would be beneficial to the Association, shall be offered Honorary Membership of the Association subject to a recommendation by the Committee and endorsement by an Annual General Meeting or Special Meeting. Honorary members do not have voting rights at an Annual General or Special Meeting.

Rule 4A. Veteran (Dowding) Membership. Certain persons who served as RAF or WAAF personnel, manning and operating the Dowding System or its equivalent overseas, between 1 September 1939 and 2 September 1945. Veteran (Dowding) members do not have voting rights at an Annual General or Special Meeting and pay no annual subscription.

Rule 5. Application for Full, Student and Associate Membership of the Association shall be made, on the form authorised by the Committee, to the Secretary. The Committee shall call upon the candidate to furnish further evidence, when deemed necessary, to show that he or she is eligible under Rule 2, Rule 2A or Rule 3.

Rule 6. If the Committee decides to reject an application for membership, the notification by the Secretary to the applicant shall state the fact and specify the ground(s) on which the rejection was made.

Rule 7. Application Procedure.

Rule 8. The Secretary shall maintain a register of all members of the Association. The register shall contain the following particulars of each member of the Association:

Rule 9.  The membership of a Full or Associate Member shall be restricted or ceased in the following circumstances (at the discretion of the Committee):

Rule 9A.  Notwithstanding Rule 9 and at the discretion of the Committee, a former Full/Associate Member may be reinstated under the provisions of Rules 2 or 3, such reinstatement to depend on the immediate payment of an amount representing the subscription(s) missed in the intervening period, such amount to be the initial joining fee (provided for by Rule 11) plus the amount of the applicable (current) annual subscription (provided for by Rule 12), and any amount outstanding from membership benefits or services thereof enjoyed during any previous membership period.

Rule 10. A person who has resigned or otherwise ceased membership of the Association shall not be entitled to the refund of any subscription or part thereof.

Rule 11. There shall be provision for all members to pay an initial joining fee as determined by the Association at an Annual General Meeting. (The current fee with effect from 1 April 1993 is £0 (Nil Pounds))

Rule 12. The Annual subscription shall be £15 or such other amount determined by the Association at an Annual General Meeting. The first subscription is to be paid on the date of his/her registration as a Member and then paid annually. Payment may be made by Standing Order or through the PayPal system. In addition, a Member who resides permanently outside the United Kingdom and is unable to take full advantage of the benefits of membership shall be excused payment of the Annual subscription. Serving officers who are posted overseas are also excused payment, at their discretion, for the whole period of their posting.

Rule 13. Only Full members of the Association shall become Officers.

Rule 14. The following qualifications/terms of office shall apply:

Rule 15. The President of the Association may, by a directive in writing, delegate to the Chairman of the Committee any of his/her functions when he/she is unable to perform the function(s).

Rule 16.  

Rule 17. The Committee shall comprise:

Rule 17A. The President shall be invited to attend Committee meetings in a non-voting, advisory capacity.

Rule 18. Every member of the Committee shall be a member of the Association and, with the exception of the Officers of the Association and the Representatives, shall be elected by the Association at an Annual General Meeting; they shall hold office for such term and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed in these Rules. Serving representatives shall be voting members of the Committee. No member of the Committee shall have more than one vote irrespective of the number of posts the member fills.

Rule 19. The Quorum for the transaction of Association business by the Committee (in a prearranged meeting of some or all Committee members) shall be four, of whom two must be Officers of the Association, or such numbers as may from time-to-time be approved by the Association at an Annual General Meeting. When transacting the Association’s business on-line, whether by email or using the dedicated (Committee) area of the web site’s Message Board, there shall be no quorum and all Committee members shall be involved in both the discussion and majority decision surrounding each item of business.

Rule 20. Should a vacancy among the Officers of the Association or among the members of the Committee arise unexpectedly and more than four months before the next scheduled Annual General Meeting, it shall be filled by the Committee forthwith; the Officer/Committee member shall hold office to complete the full term of his/her predecessor.

Rule 21. The Committee shall have the power to co-opt additional members, who must be members of the Association, for specific purposes. Such an appointment shall continue only as long as the special purpose exists or requires. Additional Members shall have voting powers whilst serving on the Committee.

Rule 22. The Committee shall have the power to appoint Sub-Committees from amongst their members, including Additional Members co-opted under the provisions of these Rules.

Rule 23. Members of the Committee, other than the Officers of the Association and the Representatives, shall hold office for a period of 2 years commencing from the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting at which they are elected to the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting in the year in which their term of office expires. Such elected members shall be eligible for re-election for further periods of office.

Rule 24. The accounts of the funds of the Association shall be subject to an independent check annually, as soon as possible after the end of the financial year of the Association (31 March), by 2 members of the Committee of the Association other than the Treasurer and Deputy Treasurer.

Rule 25. All property of the Association, both real and personal, shall be held in the name of such other person(s) as the Committee may from time-to-time determine.

Rule 26. The cash and bank accounts of the Association shall be under the control of the Treasurer who shall be responsible therefore, but who shall administer them in accordance with the decisions of the Committee. The Treasurer shall maintain double-entry records of the accounts and shall submit statements of accounts to the Committee for examination and subsequent approval by the Association at the Annual General Meeting. In the event of the incapacitation of the Treasurer, the Powers, Responsibilities and Duties of the Treasurer shall devolve automatically to the Deputy Treasurer for the period of the Treasurer's incapacity.

Rule 27. Withdrawals from the Bank account shall be authorised by the signature of either the Treasurer, Deputy Treasurer or the Secretary with the implicit authority of the other.

Rule 28. Financial propriety shall be maintained in all aspects and operations of the Association.

Rule 29. Any funds not immediately required for the day-to-day running of the Association shall be invested as may from time-to-time be determined and authorised by the Committee.

Rule 30. Members of the Association may, at the Committee's discretion, be paid amounts by way of expenses incurred in the pursuance of the Association's business; this may include an allowance for expenses incurred for attendance at Committee meetings. The Chairman's approval for such expenses must be obtained prior to the event, and shall be submitted to, and ratified by, the Association at an Annual General Meeting.

Rule 31. The Annual General Meeting shall be held at such time and place decided by the Committee; all members shall be notified of the place, date and time of the meeting, by the Secretary, at minimum of 2 months prior to the date of the meeting. Proposals for agenda items to be discussed under 'Any Other Business' shall be forwarded to the Secretary at least 28 days prior to the date of the meeting. The Secretary shall make arrangements for Full Members unable to attend an Annual General Meeting to vote by proxy.

Rule 32. A Special Meeting may be convened at any time by the Committee with a minimum of 28 days notice. A Special Meeting may also be convened at the request of a minimum of 50 members of the Association. The convening notice for a Special Meeting shall state the business to be transacted; no business other than that notified on the convening notice shall be transacted at such Special Meetings.

Rule 33. In the Chairman's unavoidable absence, the Vice-Chairman shall take the chair. If the Vice-Chairman is not available, then another Officer of the Association shall chair the Meeting.

Rule 34. The business to be transacted at an Annual General Meeting shall comprise:

Rule 35. Copies of the President's Annual Report, the annual accounts of the Association and the Agenda shall be available to all members attending the Meeting.

Rule 36. Nominations for the election of Officers of the Association and Committee members shall be in writing and sent to the Secretary at least 28 days prior to the date of the Annual General Meeting at which the election shall take place. Each nomination paper shall be signed by the proposer, the seconder and by the nominee signifying acceptance of his/her name being put forward. Use by the Proposer, Seconder and Nominee of separate multi-purpose nomination, acceptance and proxy forms shall be deemed a satisfactory alternative to the single nomination form signed by all parties. Where appropriate the nomination shall be accompanied by a brief statement of qualification. In the absence of any nomination for a vacant post or for a post that will become vacant after the AGM, every effort shall be made at the AGM to find a suitable volunteer, who shall then be elected in the normal manner.

Rule 37. The Agenda of an Annual General Meeting shall include a list of all candidates who have been validly nominated for election as an Officer of the Association or as a member of the Committee; the inclusion of a candidate's name in such a list shall be conclusive evidence that the prescribed conditions of nomination have been met.

Rule 38. A member of the Association wishing to move a resolution(s) at an Annual General Meeting shall give notice of the proposal(s) in writing and duly seconded, to the Secretary at least 28 days prior to the date of the meeting.

Rule 39. Resolutions, subjects or matters not included in the Agenda shall not be moved, raised or discussed at an Annual General Meeting except when a matter of urgency has arisen after the Agenda has been printed. In this event the Agenda may be altered by the Committee, the President or the Chairman so that the topic may be discussed.

Rule 40. A quorum at an Annual General or Special Meeting shall be ten percent of the Full membership of the Association. Proxy votes from Full Members, given to any Full Member attending the AGM, shall count towards the quorum.

Rule 41. Voting at an Annual General or Special Meeting shall be by a show of hands unless otherwise directed by the Chair. A simple majority vote by those members attending the meeting and entitled to vote shall be sufficient for resolution to be carried.

Rule 42. The Secretary will make arrangements to enable members who cannot attend the Annual General Meeting, or an Extraordinary General Meeting, to nominate a proxy to vote on their behalf in accordance with Article 21 of the Constitution. Members may nominate as their proxy the Chairman, a Committee Member or any other member known to be attending the Meeting in question. Members must send their proxy nominations to the Secretary, in writing, prior to the Meeting.

Rule 43. A decision of an Annual General or Special Meeting shall be binding upon the Association, its Officers and members.

Rule 44. A true and accurate record of an Annual General or Special Meeting shall be maintained by the Secretary. This record, the Minutes of the Meeting, shall be made available to all members, within the bounds of economy, after the conclusion of the Meeting. These Minutes shall constitute the authority to implement those decisions taken at the Meeting.

Rule 45. Meetings of the Committee shall be held as required, but not less than two per year, and as notified to Committee members. Such meetings shall not discuss, or take decisions upon any subject or matter other than the routine conduct of the Association's business. A simple majority vote shall be deemed an agreement of the Committee and shall be binding on all members of the Committee.

Rule 46. The Secretary shall maintain a true and accurate record of the Committee's proceedings and shall be directed by the Chairman which of the decisions taken in the Committee shall be included in the President's Annual Report to the Annual General Meeting. Where applicable and appropriate, the reports and findings of all Sub-Committee(s) shall be summarised in the main Committee's Minutes.

Rule 47. No member of the Association shall use or permit the use of the name, initials, badge or other insignia of the Association which would in any way suggest that any of his/her activities has the support of, or is conducted under, the auspices of the Association without the prior written authority of the Chairman; if such authority is given it may be revoked at any time.

Rule 48. The Committee may make Bye-Laws for regulating the affairs of the Association and the Committee. Bye-Laws shall prescribe anything which is required by these Rules, and may make further provisions as may be seen by the Committee to be necessary, or desirable, for implementing, or facilitating, the provisions of the Constitution in the absence of a specific Rule to cover any particular circumstance or contingency. Such Bye-Laws shall be submitted by the Committee to the next Annual General Meeting for ratification and inclusion in these Rules.

Rule 49. In these Rules, unless otherwise specified the following definitions apply:

Rule 50. In these Rules references to the Rules shall, unless otherwise specified, include any Bye-Laws issued under the provisions of Rule 48.