Avionics News October 2016 - 49

long for us in Iowa. Seven years
ago, we packed up and moved to
Tucson where I managed sales for
the western U.S., with the occasional King Air 350 flight. After a
couple of years, I was promoted
into a business development role,
specifically working with other avionics companies to partner on various business opportunities. Today, I
still manage business development
in addition to the program management role. And of course, I'm
flying every now and then in the
Citation VII, which is a nice change
of pace.
What do you like best
about your job?
Probably the variety of what I
do. I'm always coming across something new and intriguing. What's
so refreshing about Universal
Avionics is that our management
team knows the market and people
within it so well - all the way up to
our CEO and owner. I must add that
I'm lucky to be in a role where I
have the opportunity to be around
a lot of great people within this
industry. I've been in aviation since
1985 - that's 31 years - and the
best part is seeing old friends and
having the opportunity to meet
new ones.
You also serve on two
committees.
Yes, I am involved in the FAA
rulemaking committee that is
focused on data link, which
includes the Future Air Navigation

System, or FANS, and is now
mandated in parts of the North
Atlantic. The group analyzes the
communication and surveillance
performance of aircraft using data
link around the world with the
goal of reducing aircraft separation
while improving safety. Several
Universal Avionics products are
used in the FANS environment.
Now, the FAA is expanding FANS
usage to domestic U.S. airspace,
using the same Controller Pilot
Data Link Communications message set for departure clearances.
When you're on the ground at
Teterboro and 20 other aircraft are
trying to get their clearances at
the same time, you can get yours
via a data link within seconds of
requesting it. While the other
guys are waiting their turn to get
a clearance, they're watching you
taxi out. We recently tested this
technology on our Citation VII
while we were in Louisville, and it
worked great.
And you serve on an
NBAA committee, too?
Yes, I'm on the International
Operators Conference Committee
where NBAA has 500 to 600 pilot
attendees who fly internationally.
We have sessions covering flight to
various areas of the world to provide an idea of what it's like and
what you have to watch for. We
also talk about the various systems
that are used around the world
from an avionics perspective. It's a
great conference.

What do you do when
you're not working?
My wife, Niki, and I have two
teenage girls, Elsie is 15 and
Emma is 13. Elsie seems to be
interested in aviation, and I have
taken her to our hangar to see
what it's like to prepare for a
flight in the Citation. Emma is
involved in singing and dancing,
which my friends know that this
talent must have come from her
mom. Elsie is a good singer as
well, so maybe we'll see them
both on TV someday paying for
their parents' retirement home.
I also enjoy cooking, which
comes from my side of the family, where one brother is a chef.
There was even a period of my
life that I was cooking in an
upscale Italian restaurant and flying when I could. The latest passion has been experimenting with
my electric smoker, which seems
like a given since I was born in
Kansas City.
We still like to road trip back
to the Midwest in the summertime to visit family in Colorado,
Minnesota and Iowa.
What do you see
in your future?
I see myself being involved in aviation for a long time in some form
or fashion, where I've had so much
fun and been able to call it work. q
To learn more about
Universal Avionics, visit uasc.com.
avionics news

october

2016

http://www.uasc.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News October 2016