The FAA has named Billy Nolen, a former airline captain who most recently held a leadership role with WestJet Airlines in Canada, to serve as associate administrator of aviation safety. Previously v-p for safety, security, and quality for WestJet, Nolen brings considerable airline experience to the agency, including stints with Qantas Airways, American Airlines, and Airlines for America (A4A).
JetNet has named Greg Fell to lead the company in a newly created CEO position. Ownership of JetNet is remaining with the Esposito family, and Tony Esposito remains president, owner, and majority shareholder. Fell brings a 30-year background in senior management, including strategic development and IT infrastructure growth, across a number of industries to his new role. He has served as CEO for the social media company Display Social and as COO of Gama Aviation and held positions with Ford Motor Co. and Terex.
Nikolay Kolesov has been appointed director-general of Russian Helicopters. He succeeds Andrei Boginsky, who held this position since 2017 but has transferred to the United Aircraft Corporation as the deputy director-general for civil aviation and director-general of the Irkut Corporation. Kolesov had been the head of Concern Radio-Electronic Technologies since 2009.
Lilium has appointed Karim Jalbout chief people officer. Jalbout recently was a lead partner for private equity and technology at Egon Zehnder and also led global customer propositions and sales at Sony Ericsson Mobile.
Stevens Sainte-Rose has joined Wheels Up Experience as chief people officer. Sainte-Rose has human resources experience across a range of industries, previously as senior v-p of human resources at Coca-Cola Company International, chief human resources officer at U.S. Walgreens, chief human resources and transformation officer at Dawn Foods Global, and most recently, chief human resources officer at Parallel Inc.
Gulfstream Aerospace has promoted Michael Swift to regional senior v-p for Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Indian subcontinent, succeeding Roger Sperry. Sperry is retiring after serving with Gulfstream for 20 years and in the business aviation industry for nearly 50, including positions with Cessna, Learjet, and Galaxy Aerospace. Swift joined Gulfstream in 2018 as a regional vice president of sales after holding aircraft financing positions with Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Textron Financial. In addition, Chad Beaulieu has been promoted to regional v-p of sales for the south-central U.S. He succeeds Sherman Griffith, who is retiring after 15 years with the company. Beaulieu previously was regional sales manager for the south-central region and has also served with business aviation companies such as Leviate Air Group, Dallas Jet International, and Starbase Jet. Meanwhile, Tim Wood has rejoined Gulfstream as regional sales manager for the Middle East, Africa, and the Indian subcontinent. Previously with the Royal Air Force, Wood served with Gama Aviation before originally joining Gulfstream in 2018.
Mente Group has named Jay Bushouse managing director for the Midwest region. Bushouse, a flight instructor and airline transport rated pilot with more than 4,500 flight hours, previously served as a sales director for Textron and also has been involved in sales and marketing, revenue management, and planning in the commercial real estate sector.
Jet Linx has promoted Scott Wilbanks to senior v-p of aircraft management sales. Wilbanks, who has 20 years of sales and business development experience, joined Jet Linx in 2014 in Atlanta as director of private jet card sales and most recently was v-p of regional aircraft management sales.
Linda Peters, who has managed exhibitor activities for NBAA’s conventions and other events, has retired after spending nearly 28 years with the association. Peters—who was responsible for exhibitor events surrounding the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition and the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition, in addition to other NBAA events—joined the association in 1994 after serving with the Helicopter Association International.
The Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter (WIAAC) has appointed Victoria Foy as co-chair. She succeeds Jacqueline Sutton, who had served as co-chair since July 2020. Foy is executive v-p of Safran Seats and brings 15 years of senior leadership experience to her role at WIAAC.
The United States Helicopter Safety Team has named Karen Gattis—who is FAA Flight Standards acting deputy director for general aviation safety assurance—as the government co-chair. Gattis, a former colonel in the Army National Guard who served as the director joint chief of staff and Aviation Brigade commander, has served with the FAA for 17 years and previously was a division manager with oversight for 10 General Aviation offices with an emphasis on helicopter operations and air tour operations.
Four Corners Aviation has named its initial senior leadership team: Diana Schneider, v-p of client services; Ray Bennett, v-p of sales; Mike Jefcoat, v-p of operations; and Phil Leone, v-p of safety and security. Schneider, who joined Four Corners Aviation's predecessor in 2019, began her aviation career as an accountant/controller in 2007 and has a financial, managerial, and organizational background through other industries as well. Bennett has 30 years of aviation sales experience, including management roles in the areas of avionics, fractional aircraft, aircraft manufacturing, parts distribution, and aircraft management. Jefcoat spent 18 years as an airline pilot, including with Delta Connection, and also has served as the chief pilot and director of operations for FlightWorks, a consultant with ATP Flight School, and an FAA-approved check airman on the Hawker 800 and Bombardier Challenger 300. Leone has 26 years of experience in the New York Air National Guard, where he served as an aircraft commander, instructor, and evaluator in the C-5A Galaxy, an aircraft commander in the C-17 Globemaster, and the chief of safety for the 105th Airlift Wing in Newburgh, New York.
JSSI has named David Caporali v-p of business development for Latin America. Caporali, who has 15 years of industry experience, previously was director of aircraft sales for Viking Air Limited and also has served with Lider Aviação, where he specialized in regional sales and distribution of Hawker Beechcraft products in Brazil and North America.
Assent Aeronautics has named Ricky Gioconda v-p of advertising and business development. Gioconda joins Assent from AvBuyer, where he was associate publisher.
MyGoFlight has added Mitch Biggs to its senior management team leading sales and business development. Biggs formerly was v-p of sales and marketing at Avidyne Corporation and has held senior sales positions with several national retailers.
The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) has hired Alex Burkett as general counsel and director of safety and regulatory affairs. Burkett joins GAMA after serving as the staff director and special advisor on aviation for the U.S. House aviation subcommittee and also has served as director of regulatory compliance for United Airlines and as an attorney with the National Transportation Safety Board.
Jet East has hired Patrick Moylan as v-p of safety. A former air traffic controller with the U.S. Marine Corps, Moylan most recently was a senior associate at FBO Partners and also has served as senior director of health, safety, and environmental for Signature Flight Support and held several safety positions supporting the FAA’s Office of System Safety and NextGen.
Air Charter Service has appointed John Castellano as v-p of commercial sales. Castellano has 18 years of private aviation experience, having previously worked with companies including Jet Aviation, Private Jet Services, NetJets, and Marquis Jet.
Alastair Kiernan has joined 2Excel Charter as head of large aircraft sales for the company’s charter division. Kiernan has almost three decades of aviation experience and formerly served as business development director for Titan Airways.
Savback Helicopters has named Stephen Mitchell head of sales for the UK and Ireland. Mitchell, who served in the Royal Air Force, brings 25 years of civil aviation sales experience to his new role, including with Sloane Helicopters, Auro Aviation, and JetBrokers.
Giuliano Donadio has joined Traxxall as regional sales director for Latin America, including Mexico, seven other Central American countries, and 12 South American countries. Giuliano previously spent seven years in aircraft services sales in Sao Paulo, Brazil, most recently as an aircraft sales manager focused on Cessna Citation aircraft for TAM Executive Aviation.
Jet Linx has named R. David (RD) Johnson director of safety. Johnson formerly was director of safety management systems for Global Flight Test and Delivery Group and has experience in flight operations, technical ops, employee development, process improvement, and safety management across the military, commercial, and general aviation sectors. He spent 31 years as a command pilot with the U.S. Air Force.
Sun Air Jets has appointed James Evans director of safety and FBO operations. Evans has held multiple roles within the operational management divisions at Southwest Airlines, including overseeing quality assurance/quality control, safety, recordkeeping, and compliance before transitioning to business aviation.
Jonathan Sharp-Fisher has been appointed business development director for Aerogility. Sharp-Fisher has 20 years of aerospace experience, including with Raytheon UK and BAE Systems.
Randy Miller has moved into the new role of manager of the paint shop at Duncan Aviation’s facility in Battle Creek, Michigan. Miller spent eight years as a maintenance technician for Duncan Aviation and previously served in the automotive field.
Gianfranco Sottotetti has joined Blueberry Aviation’s commercial team. Sottotetti has a background in engines, fixed-wing and rotary aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles, and has held sales and management positions at Piaggio Aviation, Rolls-Royce, and Leonardo.
West Star Aviation has promoted Chuck Conway to avionics supervisor at its East Alton, Illinois facility (ALN). Conway has more than 13 years of avionics experience. He began as a technician with the U.S. Marine Corps, held various technician roles with companies such as Flying Colours and Aero Charter, and joined West Star as an avionics maintenance lead last year. In addition, West Star has promoted Jake Zimmerman to Falcon avionics supervisor at ALN. Zimmerman has served with West Star since 2015 and has held a lead avionics position since 2017.
Duncan Aviation has named Rick Conner as a technical representative, working directly with aircraft operators who call with technical or troubleshooting questions. Conner has more than 38 years of avionics experience, including 33 with Duncan Aviation’s avionics and instruments repair facility as a technician, radar team leader, and most recently a customer account rep.
Melissa Raddatz has joined Pro Star Aviation as sales manager for the Great Lakes region. Raddatz, who has more than a decade of aviation experience and serves on several NBAA committees, has been a line maintenance technician for Gulfstream, a program coordinator for the National Association of Flight Instructors, an avionics installation technician for Duncan Aviation, and most recently, a regional sales manager for Flying Colours.
Jacqui Gunn has joined the Experimental Aircraft Association events team as a senior coordinator. Gunn most recently served as restaurant and events manager for the Holiday Inn in Appleton, Wisconsin.
West Star Aviation has promoted John Sonsoucie to project manager at its East Alton, Illinois facility. A U.S. Navy veteran, Sonsoucie joined West Star in 2014 as an avionics supervisor.
Final Flight
Charles Schneider, a software engineer who co-founded MyGoFlight in 2010, died December 17 after being in an aircraft crash the previous day near McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, Tennessee, the company confirmed on a Facebook post.
Schneider, who served as CEO of MyGoFlight, had been traveling on business in a Cirrus SR22 piston single when the aircraft crashed at 9:20 a.m. on December 16, the company said, adding that the cause of the accident is unknown. According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), the CAPS ballistic parachute was deployed, but the aircraft was destroyed in the accident. MyGoFlight posted on December 17 that Schneider had died that morning at UT Medical Center in Nashville. Another occupant onboard the aircraft survived but was injured, AOPA added.
Schneider—who had a background that included leadership roles at companies such as Booz Allen & Hamilton, Oracle, MDC Holdings, and Builder Sourcing—founded MyGoFlight after obtaining his pilot license and deciding he did not want to use paper charts, the company said. Instead, he decided to use a computer but had difficulty keeping it on his lap. Shifting to an iPad, he determined a need to secure it and, MyGoFlight said, “Our first product, the iPad Kneeboard, received so much attention and demand, a business was born.”
That business has since expanded to include numerous mounts, cases, cradles, flight bags, luggage, anti-glare glass, and the first certified head-up display for general aviation.
