AVIATION WEEK Editorial Team Members

Andrew writes about low-cost carriers, airline distribution and marketing, and other topics. Before joining Aviation Week he worked at Travel Weekly covering all aspects of the airline business for nine years. Prior to his tenure with Travel Weekly, Andrew covered military personnel issues for Army, Navy and Air Force Times as a reporter for its Times News Service, and he also covered Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard issues for Air Force Times. Andrew has flown on a 28-hour B-52 bomber training mission, completed Arctic survival training and reported on-site in Bosnia weeks after the peace treaty was signed. He graduated cum laude from the University of Maryland in College Park with a bachelor's degree in government and politics, and he has received awards for investigative reporting, health reporting, column writing and public service.

Jen is a Congressional Editor, in Washington. Jen came to Aviation Week in March 2011 from Politico, where she covered the intersection of defense and politics. She has also worked as a reporter and editor for Defense Daily, Inside the Army, The Other Paper and The Columbus Dispatch. Jen received an M.A. in journalism as a Kiplinger Fellow at the Ohio State University. She graduated with a B.A. in history and journalism from the University of Michigan.

Jens is International Air Transport Editor based in Frankfurt, Germany. Prior to joining Aviation Week, he started writing on air transport in 1992 as a contributor to Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany's largest daily newspaper. He has since published stories in various daily newspapers, magazines and trade publications. He frequently appears on radio and TV shows commenting on industry matters and is one a host of the ITB Aviation Day, an industry conference held annually in Berlin. In 2003, he received the Hugo Junkers award of the German aviation press for his coverage of the Fairchild Dornier insolvency. In 2007 and 2008, he was ranked third and second among the country's top travel/air transport writers by the Travel Industry Club. Jens studied Middle Eastern studies and has a degree in journalism by the Munich School of Journalism.

Leithen is Aviation Week's Singapore bureau chief and covers the Asian region for Aviation Week. Leithen has reported extensively on Asia's aircraft manufacturing industry, particularly in China, Indonesia and Japan. He was at the roll-out of China's ARJ21 regional jet and has also covered China's C919, MA60 and Y12 aircraft programs as well as Japan's MRJ regional jet program. Leithen reports on Asia's burgeoning airline industry and has interviewed many of the region's airline CEOs. As for defense reporting, Leithen covers defense competitions in Asia and the region's indigenous military aircraft programs. Leithen is from Melbourne, Australia and has a BA in Journalism from RMIT University. He was deputy Asia editor for Flight International, where he worked for 7 1/2 years before joining Aviation Week in August 2010.

Based in London, Rupa is Aviation Week's community manager for civil aviation. In addition to her focus on social media, Rupa serves as online editor for the commercial, MRO and business aviation channels. Rupa has worked in the travel industry for 13 years, most recently at London City Airport where she managed communications and spearheaded the airport's digital media strategy. Follow Rupa on Twitter @AvWeekRupa.

Kristin is the assistant editor of Overhaul & Maintenance (O&M) magazine and covers maintenance, repair and overhaul issues for commercial aerospace. She also creates interactive multimedia features and social media strategies to bolster Aviation Week’s online presence. Prior to coming to Aviation Week in 2010, Kristin served as a campus editor for The Athens NEWS in Athens, Ohio, and was a contributor for Cleveland Magazine. In 2010, she received a B.S. in magazine journalism from Ohio University with minors in linguistics and Spanish.

Mike is the Northern California Bureau Chief. Mike joined AVIATION WEEK in March 1987 as a Congressional Editor in the Washington, D.C. He went on to become Bonn Bureau Chief in 1990 and the Asia Bureau Chief based in Hong Kong in 1993. After return to the U.S. in 1997 he continued to head the Asian coverage for another decade. Besides continuing to contribute to the Asian coverage, Mike writes about commercial aircraft and engine production. He regularly covers the work of California-based satellite manufacturers and space research institutions. Prior to joining AVIATION WEEK, Mike was a congressional correspondent and space/science writer for the Gannett News Service. He received his B.A. in political science from Claremont Men's College (now Claremont McKenna College) and an M.A. in journalism from The American University in Washington, D.C.

Brad is the Asia-Pacific Bureau Chief, leading our coverage of the region's evolving airline and aerospace businesses and their operations Before joining Aviation Week, Brad reported for Reuters. He is stationed in Beijing.

Adrian is a Senior Air Transport Editor, based in New Zealand. He covers commercial aviation in Australasia and Japan, leads Aviation Week’s coverage of air traffic management and heads Aviation Week’s high-profile Top Performing Airlines. Adrian was based in the Washington bureau for eight years, writing for a range of Aviation Week publications. He won the breaking news category in the 2008 Aerospace Journalist of the Year Awards. Prior to joining Aviation Week in 2002, Adrian covered aviation industry and policy issues for two other publishing companies in Washington. He has also worked for newspapers in Texas and New Zealand, covering a wide range of topics. Adrian graduated from Auckland University with a degree in history and English.

Darren is a Senior Editor for the commercial aviation industry with insider knowledge of the aviation industry and 15 years of international journalism experience. Darren is a former managing editor for the Americas at Flight International and a U.S. editor for online newswire Air Transport Intelligence. During his career as a journalist he has also held senior editing and writing positions at Travel Agent Magazine, World Airline News, Middle East Economic Digest, Fish Farming International and Retail Week. In addition, he worked as a manager of media relations for Northwest Airlines.

Madhu is an editor for Aviation Week focused on commercial aviation. Before coming to Aviation Week in 2004, he worked for a consulting firm and a Web start up. He graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University in 1994 with BA in History and Japanese, and completed his Master's of Science with honors from the London School of Economics in 1998.

Alfild is a Managing Editor for Aviation Week with expertise developed from more than 30 years in the commercial aviation industry. Before she focused on aviation, she was an instructor in French and German languages at Northeastern University in Chicago. Alfild graduated with B.A. and M.A. from the University of Michigan

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Business Aviation Editors

Dick Aarons is Safety Editor of Business & Commercial Aviation and has served in all editorial positions at Business & Commercial Aviation including Editor-In-Chief. He holds a Commercial pilot license with type ratings in the Citation Series and the Falcon 900. He has done graduate studies in aviation/aerospace safety systems and accident investigation at Embry-Riddle and is a graduate of the FAA's accident investigation school. His safety articles and "Cause and Circumstance" column have earned many awards including two distinguished service awards from the Flight Safety Foundation and as Aerospace Journalist of the Decade. He is a member of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators and the International Association of Arson Investigators.

David Esler is a contributing editor for Business & Commercial Aviation. David is a former U.S. Army officer and a Commercial pilot with Instrument and Multi-Engine Ratings. He has traveled throughout the world reporting on business and general aviation and has been accorded numerous acknowledgements for his work, including five Aerospace Journalist of the Year awards, two NBAA Gold Wing awards, and two Aviation/Space Writers Association Awards of Excellence. His beats have covered the gamut in domestic and international operations, including safety, technology, charter and fractional ownership, engines and maintenance, regulatory and air traffic control issues, and since 2001, aviation security

Mike Gamauf is a contributing editor for Business & Commercial Aviation. Mike has an A.S in Aviation Maintenance Technology, a B.S. in Professional Aeronautics, and is currently completing a Masters of Aeronautical Science Degree in Aviation Safety. He is a licensed A&P Mechanic, IA, and Helicopter Pilot. He began his aviation career as an Army UH-1 crew chief and now includes over two decades of experience troubleshooting and repairing large and medium civil helicopters. Mike writes the Director of Maintenance Notebook, and is currently working with a major airframe manufacturer developing a civil Fly-by-Wire Helicopter.

Fred is a senior editor with Business & Commercial Aviation. Fred is Aviation Week's aircraft evaluation specialist, having flown left seat in virtually every turbine-powered business jet produced in the past two decades. He has flown more than 150 individual aircraft types, ranging from the Piper J-3 Cub through Boeing and Airbus single-aisle jetliners, logging more than 5,700 hours of flight time. He has earned an Airline Transport Pilot certificate and four jet aircraft type ratings, and he remains an active pilot. Fred also specializes in avionics, aircraft systems and pilot technique reports. Prior to joining Aviation Week, he was an FAA designated pilot examiner [CE-500], instrument flight instructor and jet charter pilot. He also is former U.S. Naval Aviator who made three cruises to the western Pacific while flying the McDonnell-Douglas F-4J Phantom II. Fred has won numerous aviation journalism awards and serves as a Director of the San Diego Air & Space Museum.

Jessica is Executive Editor of Business & Commercial Aviation magazine. She started as Editor of ShowNews Online, Aviation Week's on-site trade show daily published at the Paris Air Show, NBAA Annual Convention, Singapore Air Show and at other significant aerospace gatherings. Jessica has worked in television production and management consulting. While not yet a licensed pilot, Ms. Salerno has received flight instruction and has soloed.

Robert A. Searles is a contributing editor for Business & Commercial Aviation and has been affiliated with the magazine since 1981. He specializes in stories on aviation history and previously owned aircraft. His work has earned him honors as an Aerospace Journalist of the Year. From 1986 to 1992 he also served as editor in chief of Aviation Week's Show News, a daily publication produced at major air shows worldwide. Since 1995, he has been managing editor of Aviation Week Custom Media, which produces a variety of special editorial projects.

Jim Swickard is Intelligence Editor for Business & Commercial Aviation. Jim spent many years in corporate communications at Rockwell Collins and FlightSafety International prior to founding a corporate communications agency serving aviation, high technology and financial service clients. He is a retired Air National Guard pilot, having flown the O-2A, F-100D and A-7D. He is a 4,400-hour Commercial pilot with Single- and Multi-engine, Instrument and Glider ratings.

Pat Veillette is a contributing editor for Business & Commercial Aviation. In his professional piloting career, Pat Veillette has flown for the military, as well as for EMS, aerial fire fighting, air taxi, freight, scheduled airline, flight test and major fractional operators. He has over 13,500 flight hours in more than 100 makes and models of aircraft, ranging from balloons and rotorcraft to seaplanes and business jets. A 1983 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy with a B.S. in aeronautical engineering, he also has advanced graduate degrees in mechanical and civil engineering. His engineering work specializes in flight-test, accident investigation and human factors, and has received numerous awards from the National Research Council, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Royal Aeronautical Society.

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Defense, Space and Security Editors

Amy is the senior Pentagon editor and has flown on a variety of military aircraft since joining the staff, including a 9-hr. HH-60G Pave Hawk search-and-rescue mission after Hurricane Katrina, and MV-22 Osprey and F/A-18F Super Hornet. Prior to joining Aviation Week, she was the Pentagon bureau chief for Defense Daily covering multiple services programs, the defense budget and Defense Department dealings with Congress. She worked as the managing editor of Inside the Air Force covering Air Force procurement and policy issues. Prior to that, she was the The Daily Sun's military reporter in Warner Robins, Ga., where she participated in a two-week media trip to Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, and reported on Air Force activities supporting the no-fly zone over Iraq. Amy studied English literature and history at Mercer University in Macon, Ga., and took a term at Oxford University, England.

Mark is based in Houston, where he has written on aerospace for more than 25 years. While at the Houston Chronicle, he was recognized by the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation in 2006 for his professional contributions to the public understanding of America's space program through news reporting. He has written on U. S. space policy as well as NASA's human and space science initiatives. Mark was recognized by the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors and Headliners Foundation as well as the Chronicle in 2004 for news coverage of the shuttle Columbia tragedy and its aftermath. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas and holds a Master's degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from Kansas State University.

Michael is a military reporter specializing in U.S. Defense Department contract analysis and naval programs. Prior to working for Aviation Week, he reported on military matters for Defense News and mainstream newspapers from Newport News, Va., to Savannah, Ga. Before focusing on defense issues, he lived in Brazil, and worked for a variety of publications including The Economist and O. Estado de S. Paulo. He has won national, state and regional journalism awards and is a frequent panel speaker for Investigative Reporters & Editors on military investigations.

Dave is senior military editor specializing in operations, intelligence, unmanned aircraft and electronics. Dave is the only journalist to have flown several key intelligence-gathering aircraft including Rivet Joint, Cobra Ball, Compass Call, Senior Scout, F-4G Wild Weasel and EP-3E. He was involved in military operations in Bolivia, Nicaragua, Honduras, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, Qatar, Bahrain, Afghanistan, Iraq and the North Arabian Sea. Dave has been cited eight times by the Royal Aeronautical Society and three times by the Aviation Writers Association for editorial excellence and is the author of three books on the Vietnam War. He has an undergraduate degree in journalism and continued graduate work in military history at Texas A&M University and diplomatic history at Georgetown University.

Paul is a senior editor covering technology and global defense issues. Prior to joining Aviation Week, he served as a staff writer for the Columbia Journalism Review, for which he reported from Iraq, as well as from New Orleans. He has written about the media, politics and military and international affairs for Foreign Policy magazine, Los Angeles Times, Center for American Progress, The Forward, Mother Jones, the New York Sun, Salon, the Guardian UK, New York Observer, the Weekly Standard, CBS.com, and the Christian Science Monitor. He has been quoted and his work discussed by the Council on Foreign Relations, the New York Times, Der Spiegel, USA Today and the AP, and has appeared on NPR's Day to Day.

Sean Meade is the Community Manager for Defense at Aviation Week, including responsibilities as Web Editor for all Defense content and overseeing the popular Ares weblog. Sean has been active in the world of weblogs for over 8 years, most recently as a webmaster and designer for various defense-related sites. Sean is especially interested in the role of the military in helping the poorest countries in the world to rise out of poverty. He has a BA in Philosophy from Wartburg College and an M.Div. from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary-Charlotte.

Frank is a Senior Editor and has been a journalist for 35 years, specializing in aerospace for the over 20 years. Frank joined Aviation Week in 1989 as a defense/space reporter and senior space technology editor. In 2007 he was named deputy managing editor/space, responsible for coordinating space coverage across all bureaus and publications. Frank began his career working for his hometown daily in Huntsville, Alabama, and moved to Washington in 1979 as correspondent for the Birmingham Post-Herald. He later covered the Cold War Pentagon for Scripps-Howard News Service. Frank received a degree in comparative literature from Dartmouth College.

Andy is an Italian correspondent for Aviation Week. Andy is also Editor in Chief of the Italian monthly magazine RID, military contributing editor of the daily Il Giornale and performs work as a defense expert for national and international television and radio. Previously he was the Italian correspondent for Flight International and began his career writing for the Italian Air Force magazine. He has been an air power lecturer at the Italian Air Force war college, carried out research activities on behalf of the Italian MoD Military Center for Strategic Studies, written several books on defense issues, and contributed to military sections in several encyclopedias. During his career Andy was embedded in the Balkans, and Afghanistan, and "attached" to Army, Air Force and Naval forces to get first-hand information on doctrinal, operational and technical issues. He has "hands-on" experience with weapons systems/platforms, ranging from handguns to fighter aircraft and helicopters to submarines.

Amy is Aviation Week's Paris bureau chief and covers European space programs and the commercial satellite telecom industry. Amy has reported extensively on space and defense programs in the U.S. and Europe, covering the final days of NASA's space shuttle program and the emergence of entrepreneurial space companies seeking a foothold in the commercial market. In defense, Amy closely covered the U.S. Air Force aerial refueling tanker competition during the administration of George W. Bush, the largest procurement scandal in the service's recent history. She also followed the proceedings of the 9/11 Commission and the creation of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Raised in a small town in central Arizona, Amy covered community and education issues for the state's largest daily newspaper before moving to Washington in 1999. She worked as the international arms trade reporter and later the Capitol Hill correspondent for Defense News, spent three years covering U.S. national security spending for National Journal's CongressDaily and two years writing about NASA at Space News before joining Aviation Week in May 2011.

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