A recent joint meeting of the Pacific Northwest Business Aviation Association (PNBAA) and the Pacific Rim Schedulers & Dispatchers Association (PRSDA) at the Museum of Flight in Seattle underscored the synergies that are possible when local business aviation groups collaborate.
Kristi Ivey, NBAA’s Northwest regional representative, said that the leaders of the two local groups – Jim Bennett, chair of the PNBAA board, and Kim Ruth, an officer of PRSDA – demonstrated how working together can advance the interests of the entire business aviation community, as well as the associations themselves.
“The joint meeting is expected to lead to other collaborative efforts in the Pacific Northwest, which, in turn, will make possible cross-pollination of ideas among the professionals in the local business aviation community, as well as the industry as a whole.”
PNBAA and PRSDA officials organized a riveting dinner program in which former AMI Jet Charter Chairman and CEO Chuck McLeran and other former members of the AMI/TAG Aviation leadership team for the first time publicly revealed the details of the FAA investigation and subsequent October 2007 certificate revocation that eventually led to the demise of the charter company.
McLeran’s story, along with firsthand accounts provided by other participants in the panel discussion, was a cautionary tale for not only the capacity crowd of nearly 200 people who assembled to hear them speak, but to all those involved in FAR Part 135 operations nationwide.
Don Hitch, president of Flight Partners Group and the PNBAA board member who coordinated the November meeting, said the program was put together due to the “numerous inquiries from the industry and colleagues” who wanted to hear what really happened during the operational control enforcement action. Hitch, a former AMI executive himself, asked the other principals involved in the landmark FAA case to shed some light on their experience, saying it was important to understand the details so as “to create an environment where this could not happen again.” Hitch also hoped that reviewing the details of the AMI case would create “an opportunity to enhance the relationship between the regulators and the industry.”
AMI Jet Charter’s compelling story sparked in-depth conversations among the flight department managers, pilots, schedulers, dispatchers and other aviation professionals who attended the Seattle meeting, and their diverse perspectives enriched the discussion that followed the AMI presentation. Clearly, “Lessons Learned” was a fitting title for the event, and the joint meeting is expected to lead to other collaborative efforts in the Pacific Northwest, which, in turn, will make possible cross-pollination of ideas among the professionals in the local business aviation community, as well as the industry as a whole.
“Partnering on the ‘Lessons Learned’ program ensured that every discipline – pilots, flight attendants, technicians, dispatchers and admin staff – participated in the experience,” said Bennett and Ruth. “We have found that anytime you can engage a cross-functional group under a common theme, the true value of that experience will come from input where the stakeholder perspective may be different from yours. It’s our shared vision to continue jointly hosted programs that are relevant to both groups and provide both networking and information- sharing opportunities for both organizations.”
To learn more about regional group activities, visit www.nbaa.org/region
