F.A.Q.

What does A.I.R.S. stand for?

A.I.R.S. is the Aircooled Interstate Rescue Squad.  It also stands for truth, justice, and other good things man can do for his/her brethren.

 What is the Purpose of A.I.R.S.?

The purpose of the group is to promote the driving of your Volkswagen Type 2 bus (Late or Early model) as well as other VW's.  We do this by offering assistance for a fellow VW pilot traveling from one locale to another.It also helps people who are new to city or state, find other VW owners to enjoy the hobby/lifestyle with.

What do you mean by "assistance"?

This "assistance" can be rendered in times of crisis such as breakdowns. In fact, the group was formed after a fellow list member Steve Dolan, who at the time was traveling across country, had engine problems.  A group of us let the mailing list know about his dilemma and the response was so great, it was obvious the time was right to form this group.

The "assistance" might also be rendered as fellowship (the best kind in my opinion).  On the type2 list there are many people who each day converse with one another via e-mail.  These people sometimes pass right through each others cities and do not even know they are that physically close. A.I.R.S. promotes the meeting of these members.

How do I use A.I.R.S.?

The next time you are planning a trip, click to the A.I.R.S. Website.  Find the states you will be driving through or near and click on them individually. On each states page you will find a list of names with various tidbits of information about that person.

If they are near your route and there is time, e-mail them a message and let them know you will be traveling through their area, and what kind of VW you will be driving.  They may invite you to stop in, or have coffee somewhere. Who knows, you might not have to crash in a hotel, or spend a long winters night in a campground with no electricity to power that lovable little heater you bought at Wally world.

If you do happen to have problems along the route, say a busted tire/tyre or blown engine/injun, then they are also there to assist you in whatever way they can.  Be aware, some amount of preparation should be exercised in anticipation of your journey.  A.I.R.S. is not a bunch of rich people looking to hand out money and their time is as valuable as yours.  Proper respect in the partaking of benevolent acts is just good manners.  I will give no less, I will expect no less!

When signing up, please put the proper name that you would expect to be called by, and not "viper" or "Sabertooth" etc. The locals may call you that, but when 3a.m. rolls around and someone calls your house asking for "Big bad buddah", your wife or family may not be very happy, or you may hang up on them thinking its a prank because you forgot that you submitted that as your name on here 6 months ago.

Are there dues for A.I.R.S.?

The only dues required for membership are: that you help when you can, how you can, and go the extra mile if you can.  A.I.R.S. is about giving back! You must sign-up on the the AIRS list if you want to use it. And the other requirement is that you notify the webmaster if any information provided by another member was incorrect, false, or has changed. If you call someone and the # has been disconnected, LET ME KNOW! if you don't, the list becomes inaccurate and the next person may think he has backup when traveling thru a state, but in reality he doesn't.  I'm only one person, I can't sit around all day trying to verify 1500+ members constantly changing information. The success of AIRS depends on *YOU* in more ways then one.

So how often will I be contacted?

It all depends. Some people get contacted all the time, others are still AIRS "virgin's." Of course depending on how heavily traveled your area is, and how much you are offering in your info, that will have a lot to do with it. Again, if you put a poor nickname, that could effect your calls. Also if you mark EMERGENCY ONLY in your info, you will probably get less calls since many calls *may* revolve around " Hi, I'm traveling thru the area in my 62 bus, mind if I stop by and check out my engine in your driveway?" That is not an emergency call, so of course they wouldn't call you if you marked emergency only- You would miss all those sort of calls. You may also want to signup on the vintagebus and type2 discussion mailing lists- many times a driver in distress calls an AIRS member but he is unable to help, so he send out an SOS to the mailing lists for anyone close by the motorist to lend a hand. If your on the lists, you see that sort of thing and can help out if you can.

So isn't A.I.R.S. sort of contradictory to the NEATO/LIMBO TTT Directory?

Absolutely not.  We respect NEATO/LIMBO for their efforts in promoting the preservation of the Volkswagen bus and other air-cooled VW's.  In fact the A.I.R.S. list on the internet can be used in conjunction with the TTT....Not everyone is a member of A.I.R.S. and not everyone is a member of NEATO/LIMBO.

Where are you guys located out of?

Everywhere. There is no "central AIRS agency" It is run out of each and everyone's home that is on the map, which means you if you have signed up.... If you mean 'where is the webmaster from', I live in Gilbert AZ, USA

********TROUBLESHOOTING*********
I've submitted my form more than once and I don't see my name on the list!
The AIRS site is updated manually, and I get a few submissions in my mailbox before I go in and do the updates. If you hit submit more than once, that means there's multiple submissions from you in my mailbox. Please be patient.

The date on the front page has been updated but I STILL don't see my name on the list!!

In this case there was a problem. Please re-signup and in addition, send me a private email explaining the deal and we'll work something out.

Whooops, I signed up and I see my info on the site, but I messed up. What's the best way to go about fixin this?

Go back to the main page and select the link that says "EDIT INFO"...follow instructions from there.

Who can I contact for further information regarding AIRS or its purpose?

Wade Lloyd - webmaster
Email